Posted By auntie on March 28, 2019

4.5 miles; Stonington, CT

I know I kind of swore off this place due to all the dogs, and then it turns up on this year’s Sky’s the Limit challenge. Thankfully, it wasn’t at all bad today. One loose dog who had zero interest in me… he just wanted to run, run, run, along with his owner. And it’s a beautiful walk. So, maybe not so swore off after all.

Barn Island itself

I’m actually not sure which of those two big lumps of trees is Barn Island, but I do know that there is actually an island called Barn, and the wildlife management area is named after it.

The Trail

Even though the 2 required selfies for this challenge were pretty close to the parking area, I chose to do my usual 4 1/2 mile loop around the whole property. So between here and Harkness I got in 6 miles today. Not bad.

Track (click for details)

You can find out more about Barn Island Wildlife Management Area from this CT DEEP website. Actually, this page has a notice stating that “A comprehensive management plan is currently under development.” Huh. Check out item #6:

1. An inventory, habitat assessment, and management for species of greatest conservation need known or expected to occur at Barn Island, most notably, the New England cottontail;
2. A forest resources assessment;
3. How to respond to known threats to habitat quality, such as increasing recreational use, invasive species, and sea level rise;
4. Coordination of scientific research in ecologically sensitive areas;
5. Management of unauthorized encroachments along Barn Island’s property boundaries;
6. Address conflicts among sometimes disparate recreational user groups;
7. Prioritizing WMA property expansion/acquisitions;
8. Inventory and management of cultural resources;
9. Prioritizing facilities improvement needs, including improved access management; and
10. Fire break area management and maintenance.

Bet this will involve unleashed dogs, mountain bikers, hikers, and hunters.

For details on the 2019 Sky’s the Limit Challenge, see the STL website. As always, click the image above for details about this hike and to download the gps track.

Category: Connecticut, Walks and Hikes | No Comments »
Tags: 2–5 miles, CT, Stonington CT

Posted By auntie on March 28, 2019

1.5 miles; Waterford, CT

I have only been here once, at that was for the annual dinner of the Connecticut Forest and Park Association. So I didn’t really know what to expect.

I dunno. While I appreciate the fact that, after their deaths, the original owners of this place donated the property to the state, it just kind of left me feeling cold. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a gorgeous, stunning, beautiful place. But, geez, it must be nice to be richer than god…

Fisher’s Island or Long Island

Harness is… oh, I’ll just outsource the description to the CT DEEP.

Originally from Ohio, Edward S. Harkness was to become heir to a fortune initiated by his father’s substantial investments in John D. Rockefeller’s Standard Oil. Instilled at an early age with an ardent love for his fellow man and a feeling of responsibility for the wise and just use of the wealth at his command, Mr. Harkness was to bestow over two hundred million dollars upon wide-ranging philanthropies.

The mansion was purchased in 1907 by Edward and Mary Harkness. From 1918 to 1929, extensive work was done to the grounds by noted landscape designer Beatrix Jones Farrand (one of the founders of the American Society of Landscape Architects). The estate was left to the State of Connecticut in 1950 and became part of the State Park system in 1952.

Yeah, um, thanks.

Water Tower

It’s a lovely seaside mansion with extensive grounds and wonderful ocean views, which is the point, I gather, of this park’s “Sky’s the Limit” challenge, which required a whopping 7 selfies that included the water views from 7 different locations on the property. I think I got them all, although getting the water view was a little challenging from a couple of the designated spots.

Panoramic Water View (click to enlarginate)

It’s also apparently THE spot for local dog walkers. Saw tons of people with (all leashed, thankfully) dogs.

Gorgeous Japanese Maples

Now this was something that I could get behind. It was a little grove of gorgeous old Japanese maples. And it was over by the cutting gardens, which, I presume, supplied and likely still supply the mansion with fresh flowers on a daily basis. And the greenhouse. Nice.

Track (click for details)

You can find out more about Harkness SP from the aforementioned website, here. For details on the 2019 Sky’s the Limit Challenge, see the STL website. As always, click the image above for details about this hike and to download the gps track.

Category: Connecticut, Easy Walks, Walks and Hikes | No Comments »
Tags: 2 miles or less, CT, Waterford CT

Posted By auntie on March 24, 2019

6.3 miles; Middletown, RI

There were 634 participants in this walk/run. I came in dead last. Ask me if I care.

We had a beautiful, if somewhat cold day for this and the scenery was to die for. Fun way to spend the day.

At the Starting Line

This walk/run or run/walk thing started at Second Beach in Middletown. It was in the high 40s at start time, with a very brisk wind coming in off the water.

Norman Bird Sanctuary

The course for a stretch skirted the boundary of the beautiful Norman Bird Sanctuary. There was a large flock of resident crows that was very interested in what all these humans were up to.

Cool Bird Mask

And speaking of birds…

Sachuest Point Road

The race culminated in a quick out-and-back to Sachuest Point, a National Wildlife Refuge, and home for a part of the winter, at least, to a much-photographed Snowy Owl.

Track (click for details)

The course took us through waterfront neighborhoods with absolutely gorgeous homes, and by St. Columba’s Chapel, a beautiful stone church dedicated in 1886. You can read more about it, here.  As always, click the image above for details about this hike and to download the gps track.

Category: Rhode Island, Walks and Hikes | No Comments »
Tags: 5–7 miles, Middletown RI, RI

Posted By auntie on March 20, 2019

1 miles; North Stonington, CT

It’s been a while since I was able to get up here for the Equinox celebration in my town. Glad I got back to it. It’s always a strangely thrilling experience hiking up in the dark, and this year we had a full moon, too.

Morris Dancer and Full Moon

It was darned cold this morning, but thankfully no snow or ice, and despite the full moon, I still needed the flashlight on my cellphone to navigate the trail.

The Westerly Morris Men

Not sure why this troop is all men. Is it a Thing? Are ladies allowed to join? The musicians (concertina and penny whistle) were ladies. [Ed. yes, it’s a Thing, at least in the UK, according to this 2011 Telegraph article: www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/8469817/Morris-men-must-allow-in-morris-women-but-not-to-dance.html]

Here is their first dance. They did several more before we all trooped back down the hill.

Track (click for details)

You can find out more about the Westerly Morris Men from their website. As always, click the image above for details about this hike and to download the gps track.

Category: CFPA Trails, Connecticut, Walks and Hikes | No Comments »
Tags: 2 miles or less, CT, North Stonington CT

Posted By auntie on March 17, 2019

12.1 miles; Charlestown and Richmond, RI

I wasn’t sure until almost the last minute whether I’d do this again. I will miss Day 4 and Day 6 this year due to prior commitments. Alas, no completion patch for me this year… This hike was harder than I expected, even with the aggressive neighborhood walking I did last week.

Mel and Bob

My friends Mel and Bob are hiking it again this year, which makes me very happy. They are so much fun to talk to that I break my longstanding rule about not talking while hiking.

Perfect Day

We got a perfect and perfectly clear day. It was so clear we could see not only Block Island, but the Block Island wind farm. Uh, again, you will have to take my word for that, as this is another of my usual crappy lo-res iPhone shots.

Boardwalk in Burlingame

This section of the 6-day trek starts at Blue Shutters Beach in Charlestown. From there you walk about 1 3/4 miles on the roads, crossing Route 1, before entering Burlingame State Park. After a stretch walking through the southern end of the park (watch for blazes, as there are tons of crossing mountain bike trails through here) and then through a part of the campground, the N-S trail connects with the yellow-blazed Vin Gormley Trail, which it follows until just past the “rock climbing” portion, where it takes a divergent left turn to cross Buckeye Brook Road and enters Burlingame Wildlife Management Area. The trails through the WMA are a little less developed, and contain a lot of rocks and water. Finally, the trail leaves Burlingame at Burdickville Road, then following Shumunkanuc Road, Kings Factory Road, and finally coming back to the meeting point at Meadow Brook Pond on Route 91, a distance of nearly 3 miles on roads. Not my favorite part, but as I’ve said before, if you’re going to do long trails, you’re going to do some road walking. No way to avoid it.

Roland Dedication

I hope someday this will be a granite marker, and not just painted wood, because without the efforts of Roland, this trek would not be possible.

Track (click for details)

You can find out more about the North-South trail from this rather old and slightly link-rotty website called HTML Outdoors Planet. There is also some very good info on “The Trek” website. But by far the best guide to the North-South Trail is published by the Great Swamp Press. It is, unfortunately, out of print right now, and essentially unavailable as a used book. It is, however, available from the Rhode Island Library system. As always, click the image above for details about this hike and to download the gps track.

<– SEE ALSO, 26TH N-S TRAIL TREK, DAY 5  DAY 3 (2.5) –>

Category: Rhode Island, RI North South Trail, Walks and Hikes | 3 Comments »
Tags: Charlestown RI, Over 10 miles, RI, Richmond RI

Posted By auntie on February 23, 2019

3.1 miles; East Lyme, CT

It’s been a tad over 7 years since I last hiked here, and I guess I really didn’t see that much of it the first time because I found a whole ‘nuther set of trails that went over the Amtrak tracks and to a gorgeous old building that fronts the beach. Also, I did a DIY nose job on myself by walking into a tree limb that crossed the trail. More on that later…

Four Mile River

I decided I’m going for the 2019 Sky’s the Limit hiking challenge put on by the Connecticut DEEP. See the link for details. I grouped the 14 hikes into 4 bunches, based on their proximity to one another, and the first group I chose to hike is the closest to home, and includes Rocky Neck State Park, Harkness Memorial State Park, and Barn Island Wildlife Management Area.

For Rocky Neck, instead of doing the normal thing and going into the main entrance, I chose to park in a little lot across from a KOA campground on West Main Road and hike in from there. I’m a rebel like that.

Amtrak

Not showing you my selfies, sorry. But let me know if you need scary pictures to frighten your children or grandchildren into submission.

I hiked down the blue trail, which hugs the western edge of the park and gives several nice views of the Four Mile River and the coastline, including the first Selfie Spot at “Tony’s Nose.” I still don’t know who Tony was. There was a sizable parking lot at the end of the blue trail which I was pretty sure wasn’t the main parking area, and there was a bridge that led from that over the Amtrak tracks. Once again managed to catch the northbound Acela on camera as I crossed the bridge, because of course I crossed the bridge. There was a large, no, huge old building on the other side and I was curious to see where the bridge went.

Gorgeous Facade

This is the Ellie Mitchell Pavilion. From the state’s website:

The historic stone Ellie Mitchell Pavilion dominates the park’s western shoreline.  In the 1930’s, relief agencies constructed the curved masonry building of native materials and crafted supporting pillars with wood cut from each of the state parks and forests.

It’s beautiful, isn’t it? You’d never guess it looked like this from the railroad tracks side. I didn’t see the supporting pillars of wood because it wasn’t open, and I’m guessing they’re inside the building. Which, by the way, you can rent.

Shoreline and Picnic Area

Then you turn around and there’s a panoramic view of Long Island Sound, fronted by a large grass picnic area and a gorgeous white sand beach. Wow, I really had no idea.

Marsh

Anyway, after marveling over the once-overlooked ocean overlook, I moved on to the second Selfie Spot, the marsh near the main parking lot, then continued up the trail, opting, at the intersection, for the white trail which follows Brides Brook.

Cool Old Red Blaze

Brides Brook

The white trail along Brides Brook was lovely, and fairly straight and level, and I was marching along at a good clip, eyes on the ground, when suddenly *WHAM*!!!! Yep, I was so focused on the ground and where I put my feet that I forgot to watch for overhanging tree limbs. The fact that I always wear a hat with a visor made the situation worse, because I quite literally never saw it coming.

I saw stars for a moment, and my nose promptly started gushing blood. And when I say gushing, I mean I was so quickly blood-covered all down the front of my shirt and pants I decided to skip the other two STL sites and just go home, before I got arrested on suspicion of murder. I must have lost a pint before the gush slowed to a trickle.

And I used to have this bump on the bridge of my nose that always kind of annoyed me… well, not anymore. I squashed it flat.

Track (click for details)

You can find out all about Rocky Neck State Park from the CT DEEP website. For details on the 2019 Sky’s the Limit Challenge, see the STL website. As always, click the image above for details about this hike and to download the gps track.

Category: CFPA Trails, Connecticut | No Comments »
Tags: 2–5 miles, CT, East Lyme CT