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Outside Magazine November 2004

Destinations: 100 Urban Adventures
City Without Limits
Boston

By Jake Halpern

Intro | How to Go Metro | New York City | New York City (Cont.) | Chicago | Los Angeles | Los Angeles (Cont.) | Denver | San Francisco | San Francisco (Cont.) | Washington, D.C. | Seattle | Boston | Urban Outfitted

Boston
(PhotoDisc)
93. DITCH THE HOTEL TREADMILL and sprint through Boston's Esplanade, a greenway flanking the Charles River. The 17 miles of paved and dirt paths offer awesome views of the city skyline and draw runners, cyclists, and inline skaters from dawn to sunset.

94. SLEEP CHIC at the Nine Zero, a stylin' hotel in the downtown Ladder District where urban-contemporary decor—lots of glass, nickel, and polished wood—meets the traditional New England comfort of goose-down comforters. (Doubles, from $279; 617-772-5800, www.ninezero.com)

95. PADDLE THE CHARLES alongside rowers from the Harvard crew team. Stroke downstream by the brownstones of Beacon Hill or upstream toward Cambridge and the quieter backwaters beyond. Charles River Recreation rents canoes and offers three-hour evening kayak tours. (617-965-5110, www.paddleboston.com)

96. GLIDE across the Frog Pond, a 16,000-square-foot ice rink in Boston Common that's groomed for skating (and lit up at night) from mid-November through mid-March. (617-635-2120)

97. GO HEAD TO HEAD with procrastinating college kids and Cambridge locals at an afternoon pickup basketball game on the courts at Corporal Burns Playground (Memorial Drive at Flagg Street). Not humbled yet? Swing by Harvard Square for a game of speed chess with the pencil-gnawing MIT brains who gather on the patio outside Au Bon Pain.

98. SLURP LOCAL DUXBURY OYSTERS or try spicy halibut tacos with papaya salsa at Great Bay. The chic, colorful restaurant in Kenmore Square's Hotel Commonwealth serves some of the freshest, most innovative seafood dishes in town—and addictive watermelon mojitos. (617-532-5300, www.hotelcommonwealth.com)

99. COOL OFF at South Boston's Carson Beach, a hidden sweep of sand with volleyball and groomed bocce courts that's easy to reach on the Red Line subway. (Exit at the JFK/UMass stop.) Kiteboarders ride the gentle waves in nearby Pleasure Bay; for gear or lessons, contact the Flight Factory (781-608-2020).

100. TRANSCEND under a majestic cork tree at Arnold Arboretum (617-524-1718, www.arboretum.harvard.edu). The lush, 265-acre preserve is maintained by Harvard University and hosts more than 4,500 species of trees, shrubs, and flowers from around the world.

Next Page: Slick, rugged, must-have accessories for the mean streets of metro adventure

Intro | How to Go Metro | New York City | New York City (Cont.) | Chicago | Los Angeles | Los Angeles (Cont.) | Denver | San Francisco | San Francisco (Cont.) | Washington, D.C. | Seattle | Boston | Urban Outfitted


JAKE HALPERN's first book, Braving Home, will come out in paperback in June 2004.
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