Connecticut

Connecticut's Charter Oak Greenway | Photo by TrailLink user ctaci

Top 10 Trails in Connecticut

Posted 05/17/21 by Gene Bisbee in America's Trails | Tagged with Best Of, Connecticut, Top10, Trail Destinations

Railroads and canals both played huge roles in Connecticut’s early economic development. Today those corridors serve as trails for bicyclists, walkers, equestrians and others seeking quality time outdoors. Many are heavily wooded, creating shade on hot summer days and colorful displays in the fall. They also provide alternative transportation opportunities for commuters in the Constitution State’s largest cities. Long-distance travelers will find 98 trail miles of the 3,000-mile-long East Coast Greenway within the state’s borders, as well as segments of the New England Rail-Trail Spine Network.

Schuylkill River Trail through Valley Forge National Historical Park | Photo courtesy Montgomery County Planning Commission | CC BY SA 2.0

Pathways for Patriots: 10 Rail-Trails with American Revolution Sites

Posted 07/03/19 by Maggie McAden, Laura Stark in America's Trails | Tagged with Best Of, Circuit Trails, Connecticut, History Happened Here, IHTC, Maine, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, TrailNation

The Fourth of July is a holiday celebrated with barbecues, fireworks and family. It is also a time to reflect on our country’s history, and what better way to do that than by exploring a historical rail-trail? From battle sites to hidden histories, rail-trails are an accessible way to celebrate our nation’s birthday and uncover pivotal moments in our past. Here are 10 Rail-Trails with American Revolution Sites.

Missisquoi Valley Rail-Trail in Vermont | Photo by Dennis Coello

A View From … New England in Autumn

Posted 10/13/17 by Laura Stark in America's Trails | Tagged with Best Of, Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Trail Destinations, Vermont

In the northernmost reaches of New England, nature’s autumn spectacle begins to whisper through the trees of Maine, Vermont and New Hampshire in late September before peaking mid-October. Fall comes later to the states farther south—Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island—generally arriving in mid-October and lasting to early November. The region has an abundance of extraordinary rail-trails on which to experience this temporal artwork at a stroll or gentle roll. We’ve listed some of our favorites here.

In Windham, the Hop River Trail meets the Air Line Trail on this bridge over the Willimantic River. | Courtesy Connecticut DOT-DEEP

Connecticut’s Hop River State Park Trail

Posted 01/19/17 by Laura Stark in America's Trails, Trail Use | Tagged with Connecticut, Tourism , Trail Destinations, Trail of the Month

It’s hard to pick a favorite season to experience the Hop River State Park Trail, set amidst the dense forests of Eastern Connecticut. Sections of the 20-mile rail-trail dive through steep rock cuts that seep moisture, giving the feeling of air conditioning in summer and freezing into glistening ice falls in winter. Maples and oaks bring fiery autumn hues and, in the spring, trilliums and other wildflowers speckle the brush with color. Add three tunnels and a covered bridge and the trail’s picturesque backdrop is complete.

In Connecticut, Shoreline Greenway a Story of Local Spirit and Generosity

Posted 03/13/13 by Laura Stark in America's Trails, Building Trails | Tagged with Connecticut, Local Organizing, Trail Communities

You mightn't think it, but writing about trails can be a pretty life-affirming experience. More often than not, the stories of how our trails get built are stories about community spirit, the volunteer ethic, neighbors helping neighbors and local people using plenty of elbow grease, ingenuity and determination to build something of long-lasting good.

Pretty in Pink: Connecticut's Shoreline Greenway Trail

Posted 02/25/13 by Laura Stark in Building Trails | Tagged with Connecticut, Design Strategies, Local Organizing

Like the fabled road to Oz, Connecticut's Shoreline Greenway Trail, will have an unusual and distinctive color: pink. The source of that delicate hue, crushed granite from the local Stony Creek quarry, was once used for the base of the Statue of Liberty, fitting given that each of the four towns that the trail traverses—East Haven, Branford, Guilford and Madison—have representatives in the trail's governing body in a system that was designed to be both democratic and inclusive from the outset.

Photo of ribbon cutting on the Charter Oak Trail © Hartford Courant

Connecticut On a Roll As the Trail Gaps Disappear

Posted 01/16/13 by Rails-to-Trails Conservancy in Building Trails, Policy, Success Stories | Tagged with Champions, Connected Systems, Connecticut, Products of Good Policy

Driven by a supportive governor and a forward-thinking state department of transportation that is conscious of the role of biking and walking in modern planning, Connecticut has done some great things in recent years to connect, and expand, its network of trails.

Photo © Eric Barr/Vernon Patch

New Thanksgiving Traditions Form Along America's Rail-Trails

Posted 11/26/12 by Jake Lynch in Trail Use | Tagged with Community Events, Connecticut, Encouraging Trail Use, Health and Active Living

We are all familiar with the traditions of the Thanksgiving holiday - the food, football on TV, catching up with friends, and the leftovers, of course. But it is great to see energetic Americans starting new traditions, creating their own Thanksgiving rituals that add to the spirit of togetherness that the holiday is all about.

Photo © Hartford Courant

Connecticut Finally Celebrates the Little Bridge That Could

Posted 04/12/12 by Rails-to-Trails Conservancy in Building Trails, Success Stories | Tagged with Champions, Connecticut

Peter Marteka, the hiking and outdoor recreation columnist for the Hartford Courant in central Connecticut, wrote earlier this month about the newly built Andover covered bridge. Marteka is certainly not the only person to have wondered from time to time whether the much-anticipated bridge over what has come to be known as the 'Andover Gap' along the Hop River State Park Trail would ever be complete.

Farmington Canal Heritage Trail, Connecticut

Posted 04/01/12 by Rails-to-Trails Conservancy in America's Trails | Tagged with Connecticut, Heritage and Restoration, State and Federal Programs, Trail Destinations, Trail of the Month

When it comes to layers of history, few pathways can top the Farmington Canal Heritage Trail. This central Connecticut corridor started life as a waterway, then turned into a railroad, then became a multi-use trail. Lately, it's become a crucial link in an ambitious 3,000-mile greenway from Florida to Maine.