Trying to stay out of the afternoon heat, and stick close to home, so I drove out to Penwood State Forest in Simsbury / Bloomfield, Connecticut today.
I've been running and hiking in Penwood since 1990. It is a rugged landscape, with traprock throughout most of the trails.
I was fortunate to act as a volunteer with Connecticut Forest and Park's "Ridgerunner" program during the summer and fall of 2014 at Penwood. I conversed with over 300 visitors that summer, gathering demographic data from them, and giving back park information and a positive attitude.
The big "selling" point of the Metacomet-Monadnock Trail from my 2014 Ridgerunning experience was that it had become part of the New England Trail (NET) network. The New England Trail is a 215-mile long-distance hiking trail from Long Island Sound in Connecticut to the Massachusetts & New Hampshire border (no Monadnock or on to Sunapee for the NET!).
The big "selling" point of the Metacomet-Monadnock Trail from my 2014 Ridgerunning experience was that it had become part of the New England Trail (NET) network. The New England Trail is a 215-mile long-distance hiking trail from Long Island Sound in Connecticut to the Massachusetts & New Hampshire border (no Monadnock or on to Sunapee for the NET!).
My plan was to go out on the Orange and Yellow Trails south from Wintonberry Road, and take the Blue Blazed Metacomet Trail back north. I navigated the Yellow and Orange just fine, but when I arrived at the park road I was tuned out and took the park road to Lake Louise, missing the turn for the Blue Blazed Metacomet Trail.
I followed the park road to the summit, and from there grabbed the Metacomet for the remaining loop back. 6.5-miles in 1:23:00, with 1550' of climb. It didn't get hot until the last mile or so.
I followed the park road to the summit, and from there grabbed the Metacomet for the remaining loop back. 6.5-miles in 1:23:00, with 1550' of climb. It didn't get hot until the last mile or so.
