Simsbury - Walker's Woods

Date Hiked:  Tuesday, June 19, 2012
Number in Group:  9
Estimated distance round-trip: 2.5 miles
Weather:  Overcast and humid, 75°F
Website:  SLT's Walkbook, Walker's Woods Trail map
Highlights of the trip: View from Ethel Walker Property

According to the Simsbury Land Trust's Walkbook, there are a number of different places you can park to start a hike in the Ethel Walker Woods.  We decided to park near the picnic pavilion in Town Forest Park.  From there we had easy access to both the Town Forest and Ethel Walker Trails.

There are lots of interconnecting trails here and it would have been helpful to have a map.  Unfortunately, I had neglected to print one.  I am not sure how helpful it would have been if I had, because I would have used the map from the Walkbook which is not color coded (my one gripe with the very nice Walkbook).  I later learned from my son that he had found a color coded map on the Ethel Walker website.  It definitely would have been nice to have.

I know we started our hike on Orange, but that may have been just a short stretch until we hit the Green and doesn't seem to appear on the map.  We went south on the Green, to the Blue, then Blue/Yellow, then Blue all the way to the observatory.  On the way back, I think we took the same Blue trail, but took a right on to the Yellow, then to Blue, then Green and finally, Orange. 

The bridge leading into the Woods from Town Forest Park.

Looking at the water from the bridge.  Although it doesn't show well in the picture,
there is a large patch of light blue Forget-me-nots on the other side of the water.

Forget-me-nots.  Sorry, not in focus.

As we walked along, we saw quite a few of these cement objects.  They were only on one side of the trail.  One end was round, but the other end was square.  The hole went all the way through.

A short distance later, we came to more of these objects, but this time they were planted in the ground.  Although they were spaced fairly far apart, our guess is that they were for some kind of fence post.  The distance between them may have been strung with wire.

Nice open area of ferns.

At the end of the Blue trail, we came upon a field.  At the top was the Van Gemeren Observatory and a picturesque look at Ethel Walker's fields and chapel.  The observatory is just a small shed, but I wish now that I had taken a picture of it.  One of the things we noted was that above our heads, to one side of the building, there were tracks and a chain, like you would have for your garage door.  In looking at the Ethel Walker Website, it is clear that the roof of the observatory retracts.

Ethel Walker's chapel.

Heublein Tower on the Metacomet Ridge.

This was a nice hike, not nearly as strenuous as our last couple of hikes.  And now that my son has pointed out the color-coded map, I can see that there is more exploring to do here.  So, we will be back!