tory den on tunxis trail

tory den on tunxis trail
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

I took a short vacation with my sister this weekend. The first hike we did was along the Tunxis in CT. This is a look at Tory Den.

mattatuck jericho junction

mattatuck jericho junction
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

I started my hike on the Mattatuck at Bidwell Hill Rd, and ended it on the Jericho Trail at Echo Lake Rd. This is the spot where the trails intersect.

It was a great day for hiking! Mosquitoes were out, but not too bothersome yet.

leatherman's cave

leatherman's cave
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

I went hiking in CT yesterday. This is a view from inside the leatherman's cave, at the junction of Jericho and Mattatuck trails, near Waterbury.

View over Myerhuber Pond

foliage
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

This is a view from the Mattabesett trail. The fall foliage is getting more scarce, lots of russet and gold now.

Mattabesett

Mattabesett
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

I went back to the Mattabesett trail for another hike today, the same logged section that I hiked a couple of days ago. I took a few more photographs of the areas where the trees have been cut down for documentation. They're even cutting down the blue-blazed trees - very rude!

Instead of turning back at the intersection of the Lone Pine Trail, I went for the same loop that I did a few years ago. This time, I did the loop counter-clockwise. The hike went more quickly: 3 h 5 min now, as opposed to 3 h 45 min back then. I don't know why it was faster this time, but I did kind of keep my head down because there are so many leaves on the ground that the footing is dangerous. This probably kept me going at a speedier pace.

Lost eyeglasses?

eyeglasses
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

I did a little hiking around Sleeping Giant today. Up near Hezekiah's Knob, to the side of the trail, I found a neatly folded pair of eyeglasses. I think they might be a cheap pair of reading glasses since I didn't find a name brand printed on them.

Anyway, I figured they'd quickly get damaged on the trail, so I picked them up and left them at the trailhead on Chestnut Lane, in the map box. I hope the owner will find them there.

Mattabesett mess

Mattabesett mess
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

I went hiking on the Mattabesett yesterday, east of Rt 77, in the area known as Broomstick Ledges. There is some logging going on at one section of that trail. There are trees cut down and stacked up everywhere, and a tractor is parked just off the trail too.

I wonder what's going on? I don't see anything listed at the CFPA site.

Mine island

Mine island
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

Today's hike: 2 h 10 min | 4.4 mi | 2 mph.

This section of the Metacomet is really quite beautiful. I should come up this way more often.

For more views along the Hanging Hills section, go have a look at Connecticut Museum Quest.

Black snake

Black snake
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

Up near Castle Craig, I met up with a black rat snake stretched out across the trail. It did not demonstrate any reaction to my presence. I photographed it from all sides and hiked on, giving it an admonition to be off the trail by the time I returned, which it was.

Castle Craig

Castle Craig
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

Today, I went for a hike along the Metacomet trail once again. After the ignominious events of last week, I felt the need to jump back on the Hanging Hills horse and prove that the Metacomet is no challenge for me.

I drove up to the parking lot of Hubbard Park, planning to hike up to Castle Craig from there. However, there was a suspicious character hanging around the lot, and I decided to look for a different parking spot. I drove up to the Castle itself, where there was plenty of parking and no suspicious characters.

I had planned to hike west, but was inattentive and hiked east instead. I didn't get lost, per se; that would have been really annoying!

I've hiked this section of the trail before... there are some very nice views up near the Castle. The day was excessively hazy, but I enjoyed the hike nonetheless.

View from the Metacomet

View from the Metacomet
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

My sister and I went hiking on the Hanging Hills section of the Metacomet today. I am mortified to admit that we got lost, and were saved by a charming and gallant gentleman who drove us back to where our cars were parked. Chivalry is not dead.

gravestone

gravestone
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

A gravestone in the ruined graveyard off the Woodtick Trail in Wolcott.

The gravestone reads
"In memory of Eunice
wife of
?uar Brocke
who died
March 11, 1833
AE.t. 81."

That is a long time ago.

Stele

stele
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

This is a closeup view of the stele in the graveyard off the Woodtick Trail. The engraving is partially obscured. It reads:

"Wiard
Seth Wiard
Died July 4 1870
AE. 60.
Jennette B. Co?es
??
Died ??"

Cemetery

gravestones
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

This evening I finally got the opportunity to take a hike along the Woodtick Trail, in Wolcott. I have been trying for the past week or so, but I could never find enough time, or a good parking spot.

The Connecticut Walk Book lists the Woodtick Trail as a side trail to the Southington section of the Tunxis Trail. The map in the book indicates that there is parking at the trailhead off Woodtick Rd, and the description says "Very limited roadside parking". "Very limited" is putting it lightly - in fact there is practically no parking at all. I actually did not park north of the powerlines as suggested in the book, but just south of them, to the west of Woodtick Rd. There is a very small dirt pull-off there. The unpaved ground beyond the road has eroded, so if you're not careful, you can get stuck by parking here. I pulled out in reverse to avoid that situation.

You can access the Woodtick Trail via the powerline trail, or walk a little further north along the road to get to the trailhead. This is not a spectacular trail; it seems to be used by dirt bikes quite a lot. I only saw tracks of dirt bikes on the trail, no sign of boot prints at all. The trail is loose and gravelly for as far as I took it, which is not far.

Following the trail, you very quickly come to this ruined cemetery. I was filled with sadness as I walked through this graveyard tonight. I think it was the sign of all these ruined headstones, perhaps vandalized or maybe only aged. The dates on the graves are as old as the early 1800's. It was somehow painful to think about those people long dead.

Despite the ruination, the graveyard is not abandoned. I saw a few little flags planted around some headstones, and one very new, large tombstone - but still with dates from the 1800's.

Coginchaug Cave revisited

Today's hike: 2.3 h | 5.8 mi | 2.5 mph

Weather: spectacular, cool, dry. I did the Coginchaug Cave section of the Mattabesett today, starting at Harvey Rd and going out to Old Blue Hills Rd. I guess the last time I was there was about a year ago on July 8, 2006.

After crossing Higganum Rd, I began to hear the voices of hikers ahead, and slowed my pace because I didn't want to run into them.

After hiking for about five more minutes, I felt a sharp pinching pain on my right ankle. I looked down to see about 10 yellowjackets grasping tightly to my socks and boots (left and right). Obviously, one had managed to hit my ankle with its stinger! I began frantically to brush at them with a stick. They seemed incredibly determined to finish me off, even at the cost of their lives, and would not easily release their grip on my socks. At some point I began to notice a few flying around, so I took off at a dead run down the trail!

I stopped again soon to continue brushing them off my feet. I do not understand why they went for my ankles. My socks were a kind of heather blue and my boots are brown. Do yellowjackets find those colors particularly provocative? I can't understand why they didn't land on my skin, but I'm glad that they didn't. Anyway, I started off running again, when it seemed there were still a bunch flying around me.

Soon thereafter, I almost ran straight into a crowd of hikers. They asked if I had been stung and one guy noticed a yellowjacket on my (olive green) shorts! Apparently this group of hikers had just been through a similar experience with the yellowjackets. I asked if they knew why these insects had attacked - I've never been attacked by yellowjackets, although they do sometimes bother me when eating outdoors. One hiker thought that someone at the front of the group must have disturbed a nest of them, though it wasn't really clear what happened. Perhaps there was a yellowjacket nest built in the ground along the trail? Scary stuff.

I crossed through the group and moved onward quickly, hoping to leave them behind because I had planned to hunt for a letterbox up ahead. I kept my pace fast, got to Coginchaug Cave, and found the letterbox quickly, retrieving it and moving off into the woods to stamp in. The hikers began arriving shortly after that, but I don't think they noticed me where I was sitting. Since I couldn't rehide the box at that point, I left the letterbox at my hideaway and circumvented the hikers via a side trail, hiking on out to Old Blue Hills Rd. By the time I got back, the hikers had left and I could hide the box back where it belonged - whew!

I wasn't sure how long the yellowjackets might hold their grudge, but apparently things were back to normal soon, since the trip back was uneventful. The sting on my ankle hurt a lot at first, but by the time I'd hiked to the Cave, it was feeling a bit better. This evening it only hurts a tiny bit, on occasion, and I can hardly see where I was stung. I regret that I panicked when seeing the critters on my socks. I wish I'd had the presence of mind to pull out my camera and get a photo.

Crescent Lake and Castle Craig

Crescent Lake and Castle Craig
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

I never get tired of this view over Crescent Lake, with Castle Craig off in the distance.

Today I went letterboxing by Giuffrida Park, hiking around Crescent Lake and all the way up to Chauncey Peak and back again. Nice day for it, although it is still too humid. There was a breeze, which helped.

Naugatuck Trail hike

Trees
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

Today's hike: 4 h 30 min | 11 mi | 2.4 mph.

I did most of the Naugatuck Trail today. I've been there before, but this time I also went letterboxing. While I only hiked for four-and-a-half hours, I was out there for about eight hours, with lots of letterboxes to hunt down! Whew. I'm wiped out.

The Naugy Trail was peaceful and pleasant, not a soul around. The heat was excessive, but other than that the day was perfect. Well, except for the fact that I picked up a deer tick! Yargh!

Black Pond

Black Pond
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

Another day of letterboxing. The weather was far from perfect, but once I reached this great view of Black Pond, high up on Beseck Mountain, there was a nice, constant, cool breeze.

Shagbark hickory

Shagbark hickory
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

Another look at the shagbark hickory. The leaves are pinnate (i.e. feather-like), with three, five, or seven leaflets.

Shagbark hickory

Shagbark hickory
Originally uploaded by wereldmuis.

Nature lesson for today: This is the trunk of a shagbark hickory tree.