Purgatory Chasm and the Blackstone Canal

It’s been a rough summer with little to write about but last Friday it was time for Maura and I to have a father and daughter outing. When our original plan to visit the Boston Harbor Islands proved impractical so we settled on a trip to Purgatory Chasm in Sutton, Massachusetts with a possible side trip to the Blackstone Canal. When our morning chores were done we loaded our lunch and hiking gear in the car and hit the road. An hour and half later, after winding our way through the Massachusetts countryside and getting slightly lost (a necessary part of all of our long trips together) we arrived at last at Purgatory Chasm State Reservation. After a brief stop to eat our lunch of salami and cheese sandwiches we made our way to the Chasm itself and began our first hike of the day.

Purgatory Chasm is a fascinating geological curiosity and also a fun scramble around, over, through and sometimes under rocks. Carved by glaciers in the last ice age the chasm resembles a seventy feet deep gorge without a stream at the bottom. Much of it is choked with boulders fallen from the granite walls making it a rugged and challenging hike. The boulder piles create talus caves and narrow crevices that can be explored by the adventurous and young and the tumbled landscape is weird but beautiful though it is marred by trash and graffiti left by thoughtless visitors. Maura and I walked down the trail to the base of the chasm and then returned by a route that took us along the rim before cutting back into the chasm on the way to the top. Maura explored caves and both of us ventured though a crevice where I tried to show Maura how to chimney climb. She wasn’t willing to try it so I had to help her out of the crack but it was still fun for both of us.

Back at the top of Purgatory Chasm we took a short rest in the shade. We purchased treats at the ice cream truck that was parked there—an ice cream sandwich for me and an enormous ice pop for Maura. Both were thoroughly enjoyed. From there we headed to our next destination, the Blackstone River and Canal Heritage State Park in Uxbridge, on our way home. We stopped at the visitor center at River Bend Farm for awhile. While we were there I took in the historical information about the region, the canal and the industrial revolution in the Blackstone Valley. Maura was a bit tired and not much interested in history for the moment, though she often is. After the museum we took a short hike on the tow path, between the old canal and the Blackstone River itself. The walk was pleasant and mostly flat and Maura’s interest in history revived in the outside setting when we stopped to read the descriptions of what we saw in the interpretive guide I'd picked up on the way to the trail.

When our walk was over we headed home. Before we started driving the only unfortunate event of the day occurred. I tried to call Jennifer and found my phone dead. I’d considered stopping for dinner on the way but unable to contact Jennifer I decided we should head straight home. We took a slightly longer route to avoid traffic at rush hour and arrived home at 6:30. Jennifer had not eaten dinner either so we all went out for a meal together to close out the day.