The last I knew the beach area was for Jaffrey Residences only.
Thorndike Pond has been one of our go to ponds since moving to the area. Friends who have lived here longer than us have said that Thorndike was always the place they went to catch frogs and not swimming. We love swimming there. We usually go in the evening and the beach is not too crowed, there are a couple picnic tables and grills, a shelter and an outhouse. There is a small parking area. You do have to walk several feet from the parking lot to the beach. The water is clean and cool.
Recently we decided to kayak and paddle board around the pond My husband and daughter kayaked while I rented a paddle board from Eastern Mountain Sports in Peterborough. We parked on the side of the road at the boat launch which is on Dublin Road in Jaffrey. The beach parking lot is almost across from Monadnock State Park enterenceand the boat launch is a little further up. I would say less than a mile.
The pond was very nice to paddle around.
In the middle is Whittemore Island that is managed by the Monadnock Conservency. We paddled around it to the trailhead.
We did not walk up the trail, but it looks like it is about a mile around the trails and an easy walk.
We then paddled over to the public beach to enjoy a swim and to play around with the paddle board.
I was surprised to find the beach was not too crowded for a hot summer Saturday. It was a perfect spot to sit and fuel up. The temps were in the low 90’s and I was impressed with my Pack-It lunch box, as it kept our drinks cold on this hot day. Overall Thorndike continues to be one of our favorite ponds in the area to swim, paddle and explore.
In the winter, when the ice is thick enough, it is also a great place to walk along the pond and get beautiful views of Monadnock.
As of Summer 2020 I have heard that the beach is for Jaffrey Residents only, but you can still put in at the boat launch and paddle around the pond.
