As we head into the end of April and the temperatures begin to warm you might find yourself outside more and more often. If you're a fan of the trails you might notice some upgrades at several state forests, parks, and trails this summer.
Hop River State Park Trail
Stretching from Willimantic to Manchester, the Hop River State Park Trail runs for about 25 miles over the old Hartford, Providence, and Fishkill Railroad line. It passes through Windham, Columbia, Andover, Coventry, Bolton, Vernon, and Manchester.
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It's also a part of the East Coast Greenway, which runs from Calais, Maine to Key West, Florida.
New to the trail this summer will be updated signage including mile markers, town line markers, river names, street names, trail names (for vehicles), directional markers, and wayfinding/distance to signs.
Mile marker 0 will start in Willimantic and then continue through the Manchester Trail Head.
At larger trial intersections, you can expect to see signs like these:
All of the new signs are expected to be installed by June or July. You can learn more about the Hop River Trail by clicking here.
Local
Nepaug State Forest & Sky's The Limit Challenge
In addition to the upgrades along the Hop River Trail. The Nepaug State Forest in New Hartford will also see some new features coming in the form of a mountain biking trail.
For all the hiking lovers, there are plenty of hiking trails available in the state forest as well. DEEP has a challenge for you! The Sky's The Limit Hiking Challenge encourages hikers to visit as many state forests as possible!
Did you know there are 33 state forests in CT to choose from? As a part of the challenge, DEEP lists 15 locations from across the state, if you complete all 15 you can be entered to win a hand-carved hiking staff. To learn more about the program click the link above!
CT Trails Day 2024
Looking for something free and fun to do for the first weekend in June? There will be more than 175 events happening at trail and state forest locations across the state! It's the largest celebration of trails in the country.
The events are open to all and guided by people who are familiar with each location. There's hiking, biking, horseback riding, running, trail maintenance, kayaking and so much more! For more info on events and registration click on the image below.
Helpful Links!
Looking to explore Connecticut's parks and trails more? Here are some helpful links!
- CT State Parks Website: Connecticut State Parks and Forests (ctparks.com)
- CT Trail Finder Website: Connecticut Trail Finder: Explore Every Corner (cttrailfinder.com)
- CT No Child Left Inside Program: Connecticut No Child Left Inside
