Sign up for Fall 2025 Events  
Please register for any or all of the Fall 2025 Friends of Pine Hawk events using the form below.  All events require registration in advance and are free.

For Zoom or live-streaming events, you will receive a link via email a day or two before the event. For in person events, you will receive a confirmation with additional details a few days before the event. Thanks for your interest!   More information about the Friends of Pine Hawk and more detailed descriptions of these events can be found at https://www.pinehawk.org. For questions, please email  friends.of.pinehawk@gmail.com.

The 2025 Pine Hawk Fall Program is made possible by support from the Acton Memorial Library, the Boxborough Conservation Trust, and Freedom’s Way National Heritage Area. 

Please start by filling in your email so you can receive a copy of your responses as well as notifications a few days in advance of the events you have selected below. 
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1. Thursday, October 9, 7-8:30PM, in person at the Acton Memorial Library. 

"Discover Ancient Nipmuc Mishoonash at Lake Quinsigamond!", Cheryl Stedtler of Project Mishoon takes us on  an immersive journey into underwater archaeology, Indigenous heritage, and 1640s canoe discoveries that are reshaping New England’s historical narrative. 
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2. Saturday, October 18, 10AM–noon, in person at The Trail Through Time in North Acton. 

Adult Archaeology Walk. Bettina Abe, a long-time Acton trail volunteer and retired member of Acton’s Conservation Division, will lead a new and brisk hiking route this year along the Nashoba Brook, Robbins Mill, and Spring Hill connector Trails. The new route starts at the Robbins Mill Conservation Parking lot on Carlisle Road. Stops will include the Roof Slab Quarry, views of Robbins Mill Pond and mill site, and the Pipsissewa Native American ceremonial sites. Trail conditions can be rocky, uneven, and often wet, and thus participation is limited. Registrants will receive a detailed email several days before the walk. Limited to 20, ages 17 and up. The walk is full, but you can be added to the waitlist. 
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3. Wednesday, October 22, 7-8:30PM,  in person at the Acton Memorial Library.

The Historical Archaeology of Massachusetts.  Some of America’s most significant historic archaeological sites are located in Massachusetts and some of the earliest and most influential archaeologists investigated sites in the Commonwealth. Join archaeologist Holly Herbster for an overview of Massachusetts’ post-1600 archaeological heritage, its role in the development of historical archaeology, and the ways in which current research and collaboration are helping to rediscover histories that have long been hidden or ignored.

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4. Saturday, November 1, 10am - 12 Noon. Depart Acton at 9AM.  

Hike at  Hockomock Swamp, Join Dan Boudillion and Bettina Abe for a 2 mile hike at Hockomock Swamp, a Massachusetts Wildlife Management Area in Raynham, Mass. We will meet in Acton and carpool down Route 495 for an approximately one hour drive to “the Bridgewater Triangle." There is much lore surrounding the history of Hockomock Swamp, beginning in the 1600’s. “Hockomock” in Algonquin means "land where spirits dwell” and is a revered Wampanoag sacred site, and later a “Devil’s Swamp” for English settlers. The area is the largest freshwater swamp in the state and is known for sightings of floating orbs of light, ghostly voices, and phantom drums linked to its past as an ancient burial ground and a natural fortress during King Phillip’s War. We will walk the trail, while Dan shares the stories and lore he has collected over the years. The walk is full, but you can be added to the waitlist. 

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5. Wednesday, November 5, 7-8:30PM   in person at the Acton Memorial Library.

Path of Souls: Traces of the Native Death Journey in Nashobah. This new book by Gregory Little gives evidence of shamanic soul travel to the Milky Way in mound culture.  Are there traces of such structures and travel in Nashobah?  Yes – Nashobah historian Dan Boudillion will explore local structures that mirror the arrangements identified in Little's book and which may have been used for similar purposes. 

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6. Saturday, November 8, 7-8:30PM   in person only at the Acton Memorial Library. 

Native Stewardship of Mother Earth.   Nashoba Praying Indian Grand Chief Quiet Storm will talk about how we as a community can be good stewards of the land in all spaces. She will also highlight how we can better support the pollinators and biodiversity that we rely on to sustain our life on Mother Earth.
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7. Sunday, November 9, 1-3PM in person at The Trail Through Time in North Acton. 

Community Service Day. Assist with trail and site maintenance on the Nashoba Brook Conservation Land’s Trail Through Time, a multicultural heritage trail in North Acton. The focus of this annual effort this year will be on trail and site maintenance.  Local Scout troops are also invited to join. There will be an optional brunch beforehand at 11:30 am. Details will be emailed to registrants a few days in advance. Limited to 25, ages 13 and up. 
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8. Thursday, November 13, 7-8:30 PM, in person at the Acton Memorial Library.  

Manitou Book Discussion. Join a group discussion of the groundbreaking work Manitou: The Sacred Landscape of New England's Native Civilization.  This book is now a classic in the archaeology of our region. Several decades ago, one of the authors, Boxborough resident Byron Dix, discovered the first of many areas in New England believed to be ancient Native American ritual sites. Dix and coauthor James Mavor tell the fascinating story of the discovery and exploration of these many stone structures and standing stones, many of which are believed to play an important role in celestial observation and shamanic ritual.  One chapter is devoted primarily to the stone structures of Boxborough and its magnificent esker, the locale of the November 15 walk.
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9.  Saturday, November 15, 1PM-3PM, in person  at the Boxborough Esker trail head.  

Boxborough Esker Walk in memory of George Krusen is sponsored by both the Boxborough Conservation Trust (BCTrust) and the Friends of Pinehawk. The landscape of Boxborough was sculpted over millions of years, but some of the most dramatic features formed “only” about 15,000 years ago. The Beaver Brook Valley Preserve protects a beautiful example of an esker – a long, sinuous ridge of sediment that was formed under the edge of an enormous glacier at the end of the last ice age. Tufts geologist Anne Gardulski will guide the walk along the crest of the Boxborough Esker and explain how it formed, looking at the evidence in the sediments. Rita Grossman, BCTrust’s president, will also note how the efforts of George Krusen were key in protecting this significant geological feature from being fully excavated for gravel to build I-495.


George also deeply appreciated the Native American imprints on the land in our region. Brian McClain of the  Friends of Pinehawk will point out possible Indigenous stone structures including those as described in the book Manitou, which will be discussed at a Pinehawk event taking place on November 13th. This trail walk involves climbing steep terrain. Details, including preparation, will be emailed to registrants a few days in advance. For ages 13 and up and is limited to 40 participants. The walk is full, but you can be added to the waitlist. 

Raindate:  Sunday, November 16 at 1 pm.

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If you are not already on the Friends of Pine Hawk announcements list, would you like to have your email address added to it?  If you respond "yes" you will receive about 6-8 emails per year from the Friends of Pine Hawk.
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