Elizur Wright's Tower on Pine Hill

Elizur Wright's Tower is a stone observation tower on Pine Hill in the Middlesex Fells, with a view over the Boston Basin. The shortest way up starts at the Bellevue Pond lot on South Border Road in Medford.

Most people just call it Wright's Tower. It's named for the man who started the campaign to save the Fells.

How to Hike to Wright's Tower

Park at the Bellevue Pond lot on South Border Road. Its entrance is about 0.2 miles up South Border Road from Roosevelt Circle, on the right. DCR says the trails and wide fire roads around Bellevue Pond include routes up to Wright's Tower.

DCR's trail map shows a Wright's Tower Trail loop but doesn't publish its length. Bring the official trail map so you stay on marked trails.

The Skyline Trail is the longer way up. DCR's Suggested Hikes says the Skyline's views of Boston are best from Wright's Tower, and suggests starting the loop at the Bellevue Pond, Long Pond or Sheepfold lots.

The lot is gated. It usually opens at 9 AM and is locked within a half hour after sunset, so leave time to get back down.

No car? Take the Orange Line to Wellington, then the #100 bus to Roosevelt Circle, and walk up South Border Road to the Bellevue Pond entrance. See our public transit page.

Good For / Maybe Skip If

Good for: a hike with a Boston view, and sunset, as long as you're back before the gate locks.

Maybe skip if: you want a long day. The Skyline Trail, 7.6 miles around the western Fells, is a better fit. Our hiking guide compares every marked trail.

What You See From the Top

DCR says Wright's Tower looks out over the Boston Basin. Friends of the Fells walks to Pine Hill describe views of Medford, Boston and the Blue Hills in the distance.

Who Was Elizur Wright?

Elizur Wright was a well-known Boston abolitionist. In 1864 his family bought a home at the base of Pine Hill, in what was then the edge of Medford. That spot is now under Route 93.

Loggers were clear-cutting the hills around him, and Wright started a public campaign to turn the whole 4,000-acre landscape into a public forest park. In 1880 he formed the Middlesex Fells Association with naturalist Wilson Flagg, journalist Sylvester Baxter and others. Flagg arranged a visit to the Fells for Wright and Frederick Law Olmsted, and Olmsted backed the campaign.

Wright kept at it until he died in 1885. The state didn't start buying Fells land until 1894, but Friends of the Fells traces the reservation and the metropolitan park system back to the campaign he started. Read more in our history of the Fells.

Wright's Tower vs. the Bear Hill Tower

They're two different towers. Wright's Tower is on Pine Hill, above Bellevue Pond and South Border Road. Bear Hill Tower is at the end of the Bear Hill Trail, off the Skyline Trail, and Friends of the Fells lists it as currently closed.

Parking, Hours and Rules

• The reservation is open dawn to dusk, and it's free. See hours.
• Bellevue Pond lot: gated, usually 9 AM to a half hour after sunset. See parking.
• Dogs on a leash, up to four per person. Pick up and carry out all waste.
• No fires, grilling, drones or alcohol.
• Stay on official trails, and avoid them after heavy rain.