Flat Brook WMA (Cranberry Pond) Massachusetts Division of Fisheries & Wildlife Baker Street Parking Area

Baker Street, West Stockbridge, MA

About Baker Street Parking Area

The Baker Street Parking Area in the Flat Brook Wildlife Management Area offers an excellent opportunity for hunting and wildlife viewing in the Berkshires. The old agricultural fields surrounding the site provide the first glimpse into the area's thriving wildlife habitat, while deeper into the woods are wetlands and ponds that incubate countless bird species, amphibians, and reptiles. Hunters can spot the abundant waterfowl by the water and pheasants near the fields, which are stocked by the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife during pheasant season. The fields are mowed in a grid-like fashion so that they are accessible for recreational hunting but maintain areas of high grass in which wildlife flourish. The backwater areas of Crane Lake make an excellent place to explore aquatic botany and peek into the wildlife of Western Massachusetts marshland.

Some sections of the Wildlife Management Area can be hard to reach by foot, including spaces around the secluded Cranberry Pond. For those looking to explore the area by boat, the Albany Road Parking Area provides a space to begin a kayaking, canoeing, or standup paddleboarding excursion. Fishing is common in Crane Lake and Cranberry Pond, but the best spots should be accessed by boat, as shore fishing can be difficult in the overgrown marshland surrounding these bodies of water.