World's End Location: Martin's Lane, Hingham. Phone: 781-821-2977. Driving: Take Route 3A south past Hingham Harbor and enter the rotary. Take a right onto Rockland Street. At the first light, take a left onto Martin's Lane. The park is at the end of the lane. Open dawn to dusk. The longest day: Bring a picnic and celebrate the summer solstice at World' s End, with tractor-drawn hayrides and live music. Soft drinks and dessert will be provided. June 21, 6-8 p.m. $7, Trustees of Reservations members $5, children under 12 free.

A few hours in aptly named World's End - panoramic as an opening shot by director David Lean - conveys the essence of peninsulas. Walking in this secluded preserve, with views of harbor, hill, and sloped meadow, you feel yourself in a world apart.

The 250 acres of peninsula, with over five miles of shoreline along the Weir River and Hingham Harbor, used to become an island when high tides flowed through the salt marsh. During the 1600s, settlers built dams and a narrow causeway. Farmers then plowed the glacial hills, growing hay, oats, and corn, and pasturing cattle and sheep.

During the 1880s, Frederick Law Olmsted was hired by John Brewer, who then owned the land, to design roads, landscaping, and lots for 163 homes. Mercifully, the ambitious plan did not materialize, though Olmsted's carriage paths did. Native hardwoods and the first English oaks in the United States were planted.

The property is a superb site for birding because of its location and varied habitat. The marshes are home to ducks and cafeterias for herons and egrets. The hills are habitat for hawks and falcons. Marsh, meadow, and woods are where the songbirds live - and sing, especially in spring.

Published in the Boston Globe Calendar's 1999 Wandering New England issue.