Torrington - Burr Pond State Park

Date Hiked:  Monday, September 10, 2012
Number in Group: 7
Estimated distance round-trip: 2.5 miles
Weather:  Beautiful, crisp, fall-like day, 71°F
Resources:  Burr Pond State Park, Trail Map
Highlights of the trip: Views of the pond, rocks to climb on

What an absolutely perfect day for a hike.  The sun was bright, there was a little breeze and the temperatures were in the low 70's.  Our group met in the parking lot for the boat launch (no parking fee) and we proceeded counter-clockwise around the pond.

View from the boat launch parking area.

The first thing we noticed before we left the parking lot was a purple box hanging way up in a tree.

I had seen other, similar boxes, but this was the first time I had the opportunity to go to the base of the tree and see if I could find out what it was.  Sure enough, there was a tag attached to the rope.

There were so many interesting things to see, and we proceeded so slowly, that I think we have to say it was more of a saunter than a hike.  We would walk a little, then stop to look at rocks or trees, walk a little more and stop to look at mushrooms or ferns.  We also let the kids take some time to climb on some of the bigger rocks we came across.

I can't even venture a guess.

I believe this and the one below are birch polypore.

That is just so cool!

More I don't know.

Christmas Fern.

The kids had a blast climbing around on these huge rocks.

The octopus tree.

Dam near picnic area and beach.

Here is a little information about the dam from the DEP website:

In 1851, Milo Burr placed a dam across the confluence of several mountain streams impounding water for power. The tannery and three active sawmills erected downstream consumed the finest pines and oaks for miles around to meet the needs of lumber production. The clearings became homesites and Connecticut's industrial leadership was further strengthened. Burr Pond was designated as a state park in 1949.

Gail Borden, discoverer of the process of milk preservation by evaporation and condensation, built the world's first condensed milk factory here, in 1857. The new milk product proved to be of great value, particularly to the Union Army during the Civil War. Fire destroyed the mill in 1877. A bronze tablet marks its site, just below the falls.

We did not notice the bronze tablet.

We continued down the trail past the dam, crossed a stream and went up the trail to the other side of the dam near the picnic area.

The stream below the dam.

On the other side of the dam, we came across a few more interesting items that required a closer look.

Asiatic dayflower.

Large snail found at the dam.

View of pond from dam.

We left the area of the dam and walked past the picnic and beach areas back to our cars at the boat launch.  The beach area looked nice.  There was a large sandy stretch and the area around it was lightly wooded and had pavilions and picnic tables.  

Near the edge of the boat launch parking lot, there was a tall oak tree that caught my eye.  It grabbed my attention because all the leaves at the top of the tree were dead.  When I walked over for a closer look, I understood why.  The tree had obviously been hit by lightning.  The scar extended up the tree as far as I could see and long strips of bark had been blown off and were scattered around on the ground.

Wouldn't want to have witnessed that!

This hike is definitely worth doing again.  I suspect that autumn might be the best time to visit.  There were areas, especially in the first half of our hike, that I could see being pretty muddy/impassable in the spring.  I may have to come out again in a month when the leaves have changed color, maybe bring the kayaks.

Norfolk - Dennis Hill State Park

Date Hiked:  Monday, August 27, 2012
Number in Group: 9 plus 1 dog
Estimated distance round-trip: 2.5 miles
Weather:  Cloudy, 86°F
Resources:  Dennis Hill State Park, Trail Map
Highlights of the trip: Views, stone pavilions

In the week before school officially starts, we strayed a little farther afield.  We went to Dennis Hill State Park in Norfolk.  This was a place none of us had been before.

There is a road that allows you to drive all the way to the top, but we parked in a lower area near some picnic tables and walked up along the single-lane road.  At the top of the hill is a large pavilion with a standing seam metal roof.  The view is spectacular.  At one time, there had been stairs up to an observation deck that allowed you to see even more, but the observation deck is no longer there.  According to information found by Steve Wood at CT Museum Quest, there was a fire there in the 1980's.  Perhaps the observation deck was not replaced when the new roof was put on.

Here is some information I found about the pavilion from the application put forth to add it to the National Register of Historic Places:

Commanding an impressive view of Norfolk's wooded hills, this stone bungalow was built in 1908 on the summit of Dennis Hill (elevation 1627’). The hill is completely forested except for the land immediately adjacent to the building, which is cleared. The building's original purpose was as an adjunct to "Tamarack Lodge," a large summer estate at the foot of the hill. Today, its rustic construction, its open design and its advantageous setting can still be appreciated by hikers in Dennis Hill State Park, for which the building serves as a shelter. Although there is no glass in the window openings, nor any interior furnishings, the arcadian ambience of the place remains, a kind of democratization of its original function. At the time of this report, the bungalow was inhabited only by an escaped kestrel in jesses, an appropriate reminder of the lifestyle of the building's first owners and of the fact that Norfolk continues as an exclusive summer retreat.

Looking out at the hills from the entrance.

Inside the pavilion.

View from in front of the pavilion.

This location would be a great place to view the fall foliage.  There are picnic tables inside the pavilion.

Saw these along the road.  I think they are blue cohosh.

We walked back down along the road until we came to a small parking area where the white trail heads into the woods.  The trail entrance was a little overgrown, but we gamely pushed through.  There were burrs and other prickers, but there were also stinging nettles.  It felt like we were being pricked by pins.  Once through this initial area, the trail again seemed to close in.  We decided to turn around and head back down to where the yellow trail came out by our cars.

Burdock, idea for Velcro.  Note the shield bug between the burs.

Stinging nettle.  Sorry, not a very good picture.

Interestingly, stinging nettle can be used as a treatment for other ailments including joint or muscle pain.  My husband (who had an unpleasant experience with nettles in England) thinks that the sting of the nettles simply takes your mind off of your other problems.  Relief from the effects of stinging nettle can be found in plants that may be growing near by.  One is called dock plant and the other is jewelweed.  We did see jewelweed as we walked on down the road.

Once back at our cars, we took the yellow trail into the woods.  This was wider and allowed several of us to walk abreast.  We went around the yellow loop to the right and ended up at a small pavilion that offered another fantastic view.

Metamorphic rock - schist?

Leaving the pavilion, we continued on the loop and returned to our cars.  There was one place on the loop where it looked like another trail went off to the right.  Make sure you continue following the yellow blazes.  The white trail that we had abandoned was supposed to join the yellow trail, but I never noticed where. 

There are a few things I am going to do the next time I come out here - and I will be out here again.  The pavilion would be a perfect place to have a picnic, so I am going to bring my lunch and enjoy the view.  I am going to read the information in the pavilion as mentioned at CT Museum Quest.  I am going to follow along with the information available on The Geology of Dennis Hill State Park as I hike.

This was a great little park.  Other parks nearby include Haystack Mountain and Campbell Falls.  I highly recommend both of those.  Haystack has a stone tower you can climb with fabulous views and Campbell Falls is just up the road from there.

Simsbury - Talcott Mountain State Park

Date Hiked:  Thursday, July 19, 2012
Number in Group:  8
Estimated distance round-trip: 2.5 miles
Weather:  Sunny, 83°F
Resources:  Talcott Mountain State Park, Trail Map
Highlights of the trip: Views, Heublein Tower

This is always a nice hike, and the fact that the Heublein Tower was open made it even better.  We started from the parking area off of 185 and headed up to the ridge.  From there it is an easy walk along the ridge to the tower.

View looking west over the Farmington Valley. 
You can see the Farmington River below.

Looking north.

The kids enjoyed climbing to the top of this.

I have not been in the tower in, well, I'd rather not say how many years.  It seems to me they have done quite a bit of work.  We took a look at some of the displays downstairs and also looked at some of the rooms.

This looks like a nice little place to read.

Looking south from the tower.  You can see the reservoir.

Looking east with Hartford in the distance.

Inside the tower.  I think it has been renovated since I was last here.

Looking north.

Dining room.

Common name: Selfheal or Heal-all
Scientific name: Prunella vulgaris

And just because I was curious, from Wikipedia:

Self-heal is edible: the young leaves and stems can be eaten raw in salads; the whole plant can be boiled and eaten as a potherb; and the aerial parts of the plant can be powdered and brewed in a cold infusion to make a tasty beverage.
Medicinally, the whole plant is poulticed onto wounds to promote healing. A mouthwash made from an infusion of the whole plant can be used to treat sore throats, thrush and gum infections. Internally, a tea can be used to treat diarrhea and internal bleeding.

I am very glad we went on this hike.  I'd like to go back this fall when the sky might be a little more clear and the leaves have turned color.

Hartland - Falls Brook Trail

Date Hiked:  Thursday, July 12, 2012
Number in Group:  5
Estimated distance round-trip: < 2 miles
Weather:  Sunny and warm, 91°F
Resources:  Connecticut Walk Book: West put out by CT Forest & Park Association
Highlights of the trip: Stream with falls

We had a small group on a day that was a little more humid than I was expecting.  We headed down into the woods with the kids in the lead.  (The kids are now timing us to see how long it takes us to catch up with them.  Hey, if that makes the trip more interesting for them and gives them a little something to bond over, then that's okay with me!  To my son I'll say, Just remember who is carrying the water.)

From the map in the Walk Book, we could see that this was a loop trail, but I must admit we had some trouble with that.

Heading in.  Blue blazes clearly marked.

Pretty little stream.

Ferns, and I am not sure what the plant with the long, thin leaves is.

We kept following the trail down and along the stream until we came to the falls view point and this kind of funny sign.  Funny to me because it had an unofficial look to it.  Verboten Trail?  Really?

Is it:

Closed. No.        Anything Allowed. 

Or is it:

Closed.  No Anything Allowed.

I suspect it is the latter.

Alles erlaubt.  Nein!

Where the blue trail circles back at the top of the falls, it is supposed to connect to a white trail that leads to a better view of the falls down below.  The sign was telling us not to go there, I presume because of damage left from the October snowstorm.  I will admit I went a few steps down the trail just to see.  I also looked for white blazes without success.

Sure enough, trees across the trail.

So we went to the falls view point.  There was not much water flowing, but the moss covered rocks were pretty. 

Looking down over the falls to a pool below.

Moss covered rocks at the top of the falls.

So, we never made it to the bottom of the falls.  We also missed the return on the loop.  The funny sign seemed to indicate a crossing, and I think there may have been another sign that said something about a crossing without a bridge, but we got sidetracked.  We started back on a different blue trail, but very shortly came back to the trail we had been on on the way in.  My guess is that we were supposed to cross the stream, but we somehow missed that.

As we headed back towards the car, we saw where the loop came back in and a small bridge over the stream.  We had completely missed seeing this on the way in.

Small bridge near where the loop rejoins the trail in.

In the final stretch back to the car, we ran into some other people and I asked them if they knew where you were supposed to cross the stream to do the loop.  Apparently, they had done it only once before and had had the same problem.  Today, they were going to reverse direction and see if that made it easier to figure out where to cross.  Those had been my thoughts, too.  Next time, maybe in the fall when there aren't so many mosquitoes, I'll come back and try the loop in the other direction.

On the way home, we stopped at the overlook for the Barkhamsted Reservoir.  A nice view, but I bet it is really stunning in the fall.

Avon/Simsbury - Farmington River Paddle

Date Paddled:  Sunday, July 8, 2012
Number in Group:  13
Estimated distance: 3.3 miles
Weather:  Sunny and warm, 85°F
Resources:  Farmington River Watershed Association, Huck Finn Adventures
Highlights of the trip: Wildlife, views, just enjoying the water

Although this was not a trip officially planned by the Farmington Valley Homeschool Hikers, most of the people who went on this trip do hike with us, so I thought I'd post about it.

From the Farmington River Watershed Association website (see above).

We started our paddle at Alsop Meadows in Avon (access point 22) and paddled to Route 185 and the giant Pinchot Sycamore Tree in Simsbury (access point 23).  Huck Finn Adventures has their base at Alsop Meadows and I appreciated that they were willing to help me get my kayak in the water even though I wasn't renting from them.  Others in the group did rent canoes and kayaks and were picked up at the Sycamore tree when they were done.

Starting out.  Route 44 bridge ahead.

Shortly after we started, we passed the Route 44 bridge.  We soon came to another small bridge decorated with flowers.  After seeing a golf cart pass overhead, it became apparent that we were passing Blue Fox Run. 

A little further on, on the western side of the river, we could hear gunfire.  The gunfire comes from the Nod Brook area noted in the Simsbury Walk Book.  This area is used for hunting dog training and field dog trials.

Mama and some ducklings.

Adult female and juvenile Common Mergansers.

Even for the middle of the day, we saw a fair amount of wildlife.  In addition to the ducks and mergansers noted above, we also saw a Green Heron, a Great Blue Heron, and quite a few fish.  We had a fisherman with us, and he caught a few.  Maybe he can tell us what kind they were.

B decided to swim part of the way.

A perfect day to be on, or in, the water.

Heublein Tower on the Metacomet Ridge.

We passed the Heublein Tower and could hear more gunfire, this time from the eastern side of the river.  We were passing the CT State Police firing range.  Eventually we came to the Route 185 bridge and our take out point at the Pinchot Sycamore tree.  There were quite a few people swimming in the water here and the parking lot was pretty full.  Someone had helped me shuttle my car here, so I loaded up.  Others had parked on Nod Road, just across the bridge (good to remember if the lot is full).  Huck Finn came and picked up the rest to take them back to their cars.  The entire trip, taken at a pretty leisurely pace, took about 2 hours.

This was a fabulous trip.  I think we should plan another one as part of our hiking group this fall.