Above: A spooky video demonstrates that hikers will actually “meet” an old dump that “continues to haunt” Town owned conservation land. (video posted by Carl Guyer)
Updated (10/23/19 10:15 am): This event that was advertised earlier this week has been cancelled. Organizer Carl Guyer explains:
A town regulation restricts public use of the town’s land to only the designated trails.
Since none of the trails allows access to the site, leaving a trail to visit the dump site is not allowed.
Please accept my apology, I was mistaken in thinking the all the property was open to public access.
Resident (and member of the Conservation Commission) Carl Guyer asked me to share a special invitation for the public. He’s using seasonally themed theatrics to raise awareness of an old dump at Breakneck Hill Road. Guyer invites:
Halloween Special
Meet the Monster of Breakneck HillOn Saturday October 26th you have the opportunity to meet a Monster residing at Southborough’s Breakneck Hill conservation land. It lives hidden away in the brambles and vines. The Monster is old and neglected. It was sadly abandoned many years ago and continues to haunt the area while hoping someday to be rehabilitated. The Monster lives alone, none of the hiking trails ever brings the Monster a visitor. Only if you leave the established trails can you venture into the Monster’s realm and connect with this devilish beast.
The Monster is in point of fact a dump. Old tires, rusting machine parts, rotting 55 gallon drums, asphalt singles, sinks and tanks, street sweepers, heavy equipment, broken ceramics, plastic objects; a general mess. All is out of sight hidden by fallen trees and overgrown vegetation just like in the movies. Owned by the Town of Southborough and under the control of our Conservation Commission. Would you like to meet the Monster? Guided tours will be run on Saturday October 26th at 10:00 AM and 2:00 PM. Meet at the parking lot next to the community gardens on Breakneck Hill Road. It is a dump, so wear good hiking shoes/boots to protect your feet, gloves, long pants and long sleeves so you can deal with the tangle of vines without getting scratched. It is not recommended for those under 10 years old to take part in the tour.
As a preview, here is a video with pictures taken during the winter and fall of this year: https://youtu.be/QG61cjs-jgU
I asked Guyer what he is trying to achieve through the event. He responded that he’s trying to get the Town to clean up the mess it owns.
Updated (10/25/19 8:46 am): I provided more info on Guyer’s goals for the event here.
Carl, thank you for this. I have seen it firsthand, and ‘mess’ is an understatement.
I would assume this is a dump created by the family of farmers that have owned that land previously for many generations.
“Try to get the Town to clean up the mess it owns”. Sounds a bit on the aggressive side. They may own it, but they sure didn’t make it.
Question for Carl, how many pieces of trash have your taken out of this area to help clean it up?
Carl< better be careful what you wish for, the dump sits on land that was a very active apple orchard for many many years. do you have any idea the amount of poison that could be buried there? some of the agricultural pesticides used at that time were highly toxic, Guthion is one that comes to mind, a very important tool for apple production in those days.