DeCarte Recreation Area in Franklin, MA gets better

The130+ acre DelCarte Conservation Area received major improvements that were completed in 2014. Large portions of the dam system were rebuilt. and the walking trails that wind around the ponds created by the dams have been widened and extended. Visitors now can enjoy picturesque views, several walking trails, a picnic area and a playground for young children.

What’s waiting for you at the improved DelCarte

Here are videos of what you will find at the improved DelCarte Conservation Area:

Enhanced dam safety at DelCarte

The most expensive and necessary changes at DelCarte have addressed safety concerns with some of the seven earthen dams at the site.

Some of these earthen dams were overgrown with trees and woody plant growth. This is how the suspect dams looked prior to the rebuilding recently completed.

DelCarte Open Space Franklin MA - old dams

Earthen dams are weakened by woody vegetation and the erosion such plants cause over time (see download from FEMA). It was imperative that the destabilized dams at DelCarte were rebuilt before they failed.

The satellite images below show how the dams looked in 2003 compared to how they looked in 2014 after being rebuilt.

The new dams are substantial and seem designed to last a long time.

Gone are the trees and woody growth that were imperiling the old structures. Each dam has a spillway that controls the water level of the respective ponds.