Nature
Bear's Den in New Salem, Massachusetts, is a six-acre nature reserve near the Quabbin Reservoir, known for a waterfall where the Middle Branch of the Swift River cuts a roughly seventy-five-foot-deep granite gorge. A short trail leads to the gorge and a small cave beside a stream, the feature associated with the site's name. Local tradition holds that Metacomet met Nipmuck leaders here in 1675 before attacks on nearby English settlements during King Philip's War. In a later period, the falls supplied waterpower for local grist mills. The Trustees of Reservations acquired the property through gifts in 1968 and 1988, and it remains a tranquil place for hiking and picnicking.
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New Salem, Massachusetts · United States
