Pachaug SF, Pharisee Rock Trail
Posted By auntie on April 1, 2013

4.44 miles 2.4 mph
did a quick out-and-back because i’m still nursing a sore muscle in my calf. the first part of this trail was on the blue-blazed pachaug trail, and aside from the usual atv and dirt bike damage, both of these trails were really interesting. they went through an abandoned farm and by an old mill site which beavers have turned into a beaver pond. and the view from the rock is quite impressive.
you can see the old mill site in the above photo. according to the connecticut walk book, this was a “sap mill,” in which an acid was extracted for use in making a black dye for textiles. the mill is on the eastern side of the white-blazed pharisee rock trail.
on the western side, opposite the mill site, the book describes a wildlife marsh, but local beavers apparently had other ideas, and have turned it into a beaver pond. the water level is several feet above the level of the trail, which is kind of an odd feeling. for me, the water is almost at eye-level.
this is the view from pharisee rock, looking southwest towards route 49 and ekonk hill in sterling. you can just make out the back of a huge barn across a large field. good thing i got here when i did, though, because once the trees leaf out you won’t be able to see much at all.
i’ve added this hike to the hikefinder.
[…] last time i hiked this trail, i commented on a beaver dam which kept the water level of the pond well above the height of the trail. well, the beaver dam is beginning to leak, and the trail is getting eroded and soggy. […]
[…] and i also wanted to scratch another trailhead itch. back in april of last year, when i hiked the pharisee rocks trail, i started from this same little picnic area across from porter pond in sterling, and at that time […]