Case Mountain

Case Mountain can be easy if you take the Carriage Trail, but where’s the adventure in that? I could have been discouraged in my confusion and despairing of my abilities if I hadn’t googled Hartford Courant’s Peter Marteka, my favorite nature writer:

Manchester's Case Mountain recreation area . . . has a reputation of swallowing up hikers and mountain bikers so they have to dial 911 for a rescue. -January 11, 2009 

While hiking the Case Mountain trail system, be wary of the spinning heads of fellow nature lovers and mountain bikers. The spinning heads may be from trying to navigate the numerous trails that spread out across the park . . .  -November 14, 2000

Just looking at the printed map can make your head spin, but kudos to the town of Manchester for providing the map! Fortunately, most of the trails are well marked, but if not for my Runkeeper app, this hike might have been a bit daunting.

We began on the wide Carriage Path and then moved on to the pink-blazed trail, taking the left fork of the trail.

This is a loop trail that leads to the Lookout Mountain summit, with a view of Hartford and beyond. It’s a quick walk to a nice reward if you're pressed for time, as the total distance to complete this loop and return to your car via the Carriage Path is just over a mile and a half. We reached the summit in 25 minutes.

Some young hikers had spent the night at the summit and were rolling up their sleeping bags when we arrived. Their campfire was still smoking, and we joked about making S’more’s. Turns out they actually had made S’more’s and offered us some! We meet such nice people on the trails.

Rather than completing the pink loop, we took the yellow trail directly opposite of the view and came upon this interesting burl:

Next we turned right onto the blue-blazed Shenipsit Trail and headed toward the Birch Mountain summit. Unless we missed it, there is no view from the summit, and we moved on to the blue/yellow trail. The rocks along this path were impressive, and we found a great place for our devotional.

Deuteronomy  8:7 “For the Lord your God is bringing you into a good land –  a land with streams and pools of water, with springs flowing in the valleys and hills.” 

There is a moment in hiking that is especially pleasurable - boot removal. There's nothing like loosening the laces, pulling the boots off, peeling off sweaty socks, and reveling in the accomplishment of the day’s hike. 

We experience this in daily life too. During the ritual of removal at the end of the day - loosening a tie, removing dress shoes, or dropping a book bag to the floor - we may be tempted to be proud of what we accomplished that day. But we mustn't forget that we are created beings. God has given us the strength for what we have accomplished. 

On the trail we struggle to traverse mountains, but we are using legs created by Him. Those mountains we climb were created by Him, and they tremble in His presence. As we walk through life, we might wear the boots, but He wears the crown! (adapted from With God on the Hiking Trail by Nathan Chapman)

I had wanted to check out a grotto that is shown on the Runkeeper map. It’s not on a marked trail, so I missed it. But in studying the map at home, I realized that I happened to take a photo right where we should have turned. So if you want to see the grotto, turn right at this rock, which shows a blue/yellow blaze:

We moved on to the Case Mountain Summit. No view, but we still enjoyed the path. We met up with the blue-blazed Shenipsit trail again, headed back to the beginning, and then I got a little confused and almost took us back to the pink trail. Fortunately we ran into a hiker who pointed us to an unmarked trail that lead back to the Carriage Path. Following this trail brought us back to the path and to our cars.

This is the corrected route. The map can be found at https://runkeeper.com/user/SusanGayle/route/4449135

Address:  680 Spring Street, Manchester CT

Trail map:http: www.mdogct.com/documents/Casemountainmap.pdf

Length: 3 miles

Duration: 2 hours, 25 minutes

Difficulty level: Easy to moderate

Calories: 612

Belden Forest

Hopmeadow Street in Simsbury is a hopping place! This busy thoroughfare has a bit of everything - groceries, coffee shops, baked goods, wine, jewelry - and you will even find a forest where you can forget the hustle and bustle and enjoy a peaceful walk among giant pines.

We started on the first trail we saw and quickly ran into a "No Trespassing" sign.  We decided to walk little farther and see if we could find another trail, but ended up on a street. The trail wasn't on my Runkeeper app, but thankfully our friend Judy checked Alltrails.com and found it there. I downloaded the app and, muttering apologies to unseen homeowners, we traipsed through a back yard and found our way to the trail.

This was a nice trail, carpeted with pine needles. The height of the trees was amazing, and I don't know why I didn't think to take a picture that showed them reaching toward the sky. After a few minutes I was surprised to hear a siren, forgetting that we were in the midst of Simsbury.

We saw some interesting fungi along the way

Just as one can see shapes in the clouds, in the fungus we saw a golf ball, a flower, and a donut!

The trail looped around and we ended where we should have began and came face to face with a nice big sign that we missed when we started.  I felt a little silly having missed it, until we reached the bottom of the hill. There I realized that it is barely visible from the parking lot.

A nearby bench was the perfect place for our devotional time.

John 10:27 "My sheep listen to my voice; and I know them, and they follow me." 

Today we have the luxury of listening to the radio through apps on our smartphones, but there was a time when getting good reception on an AM radio station took some finagling. We would walk around the house pointing the radio this way and that trying to get a good signal. Sometimes we either had to settle with the static, crackles and whistles that accompany a weak signal or give up and turn the radio off.

Sometimes the voice of our Savior can be drowned out by the static of living in a fallen world. And when we get frustrated we are tempted to give up listening. But Jesus promises that we can recognize his voice. Scripture encourages us to tune in to Him and and eagerly listen for Him. We need to make every effort to keep the distractions of the world turned down in order to clearly hear His divine voice. Being in the wilderness or on the trail is a great way to be in touch with God because it lacks those worldly distractions. But even when we can't get to the mountains we can make sure we are tuning in to Jesus, being attentive to what God has to say, and keeping our minds clear so that we can hear His voice.

This was a short hike, so a few of us decided to cross the street and head to the Farmington Canal Trail on Iron Horse Boulevard. Just across from Jim Gallagher Way we found another trail, walked just a few minutes and came to an enchanted path.


After a few minutes more the trail narrowed and, not in the mood for bushwhacking, we turned around and took a brisk walk on the trail beside Iron Horse Boulevard.

While Belden Forest is a small trail, it's a nice oasis to visit when you have a limited amount of time. According to Peter Marteka, the yellow-blazed trail takes you to the top of a ridge where you can view the town. We missed this view, so I'm sure there's more to explore at Belden Forest.

Boy Scout Hall

Address:  Boy Scout Hall, 695 Hopmeadow Street, Simsbury - Entrance is directly opposite Drake Hill Road. Park to the right of the Boy Scout Hall


The trail begins on top of the little hill to the right of this building.

Runkeeper Route: https://runkeeper.com/user/SusanGayle/route/4440621

Length: 1.37 miles

Duration: 1 hour,

Difficulty level: easy

Heublein Tower Via Hazen Park

Update 4/17/18
We did this again without spotting cars. Up and back without a problem. This hike is becoming a favorite of mine. Funny that I thought it was so hard the first time.

Update 5/3/17
In spite of the fact that only one person wanted to repeat this hike (and it wasn't me), we did it again! My issue was not going up, but going down. So we spotted cars, beginning at Hazen Park and ending at the Heublein Tower parking lot. This makes for a very nice short hike. 

The rope mentioned below was gone, and it made me realize that my state of mind has more bearing on a situation than does reality. The first time we did this, we thought it would not have been possible to continue without the rope. This time we were wondering, is this where that rope was? It didn't seem that bad. Did using a rope make it seem steeper than it was? Still, the small loose stones would make me leery of descending, and I'm glad we spotted cars.

Stats for our second trip: 

Length: 2.5 miles

Duration: 1.5 hours

Calories burned: 448

Difficulty Level: Easy to moderate 

8/20/16

Taxi! Taxi! Can we please call a taxi?

There are several ways to get to Heublein Tower, and I was curious to try this route. My curiosity has been satisfied. Been there, done that, won’t do it again. Keep in mind that all things are relative, and we are of a "mature" age. A gentleman who was easily traversing the terrain passed us along the way.

The trail starts out great. Up up up, but not too steep. A nice workout on a path carpeted with pine needles and bordered by ferns.

But the up up up becomes steep steep steep, and I began to have my doubts about the trip down. It's not the physical challenge that concerns me - that was not the problem - it's the fear of injury that caused me to hesitate. Our group decided to press on, and press (and pull) on we did! My iPhone doesn't begin to show how steep this is.

Bless the soul that put this rope here, otherwise we would not have been able to continue

They thought I was kidding when I suggested we call a cab!

Beauty along the way

Our reward!

It was a gorgeous day, and we could see all the way to Mount Tom and beyond. A pavilion with picnic tables provided shelter from the sun, and we enjoyed a nice breeze during our devotional time. This isn't the devotional I shared, but I feel it's appropriate for this hike: 

It’s hard to set aside the time to exercise daily. But if we condition ourselves with daily exercise, we’re able to keep up the pace when we find ourselves making our way up a steep incline on a trail. We don’t usually have to be in great shape to do our daily tasks, but we’re going to need conditioning if we’re going to tackle the mountains. 

Daily conditioning is also important when following Christ. Although we might go through an ordinary day without running into difficult temptations or faith-testing trials, we never know when hard times are on their way. Life's ups and downs require that we strengthen our faith on a daily basis. 

We set aside time for exercise to grow physically, and it’s the same with our Christian journey. If we are not separating ourselves from the world on a daily basis for conditioning and strengthening in Christ, we might find our ability to keep the pace compromised when the trail leads us out of the valley and over the difficult mountains. 

Sometimes life’s trail is difficult, but God will provide the strength needed to make it through. Ask Him for the self-control to prepare as best we can for the mountains that sometimes stand in our way. (Adapted from “With God on The Hiking Trail”)

Psalm 119:15-16:  I meditate on your precepts and consider your ways. I delight in your decrees; I will not neglect your word.

I love the challenge of going up a steep hill. I love the feeling of those muscles firing and my heart racing. But going down is scary. I injured my shoulder five months ago. My visits to the physical therapist are winding down, and I am finally close to regaining full function. I didn’t want to take chance on re-injuring that shoulder. There’s a very easy route down the mountain, but that route would leave us three miles away from our cars on Hazen Road. That's three miles walking in the hot sun on pavement. I seriously wanted to take the easy route down and call a cab, but I was voted down. So onward and downward it was!

My friends still referred to me as their “fearless leader.” I told them I will accept that title with some exceptions. I am fearless . . . as long as there is nothing to be afraid of! Especially snakes, spiders, bears, sheer drop offs, and steep descents!

Trail Map: http://www.avonlandtrust.org/x/public/trails/Skyline.pdf

Address: 60 Hazen Drive, Avon

Length: 2.5 miles

Duration: 2 hours

Calories burned: 623

Difficulty Level: Difficult

Valley Falls Park

With trail map in hand and printed step-by-step directions for the Valley Loop Trail, we started out great: Pass pond on the left and waterfall on right, check. Cross 2 bridges over spillways, check. Climb stairs, check. Turn right up to rail bed, check. Turn right onto rail bed, OOPS!

I had decided ahead of time to take a left rather than a right and hike the white-blazed Lookout Trail. And we did fine. So far it had been a nice hike. We found the overlook, which provided a beautiful view, in spite of the graffiti.

Don't turn around yet! There's another view ahead.

Can you imagine this in the fall?

The Lookout Trail is not a loop, so we began to backtrack. My plan was to turn left at the fork and catch the Valley Loop Trail without going all the way back to the rail bed. What I didn't know is that there are some unmarked trails. We took the first left, but there were no blazes, so we returned to the white trail and tried again.

With several unmarked side trails that confused us, we ended up returning to the rail bed in order to get back to the Valley Loop trail.  The rail bed is a bike trail, and some very nice bikers tried to help. The trail map indicated a soccer field. People were sending us to soccer fields at nearby schools. No one we chatted with thought that there was a soccer field in the woods. But we actually did reach the field. It does exist! It even has a port-a-pot!

I was curious as to how the players reach this field. Do they have to hike? I found out that it is listed as a practice field for lacrosse. Players park at the end of Boulder Crest Lane and then take a path through the woods.

Anyway, back to the hike. I'm glad we pressed on, because we came to a lush field of ferns.

After drinking in these glorious surroundings, we made our way back to the trailhead. We were almost there when we took another wrong turn! We really should have turned around. You know, hindsight . . .  Instead, not realizing that the stairs were nearby, and I mean REALLY close by, we made our way down this steep hill. There were no good-sized rocks or tree roots, just dirt - which can be slippery when going downhill. We weren't taking any chances and slid down on our behinds. 

The photo doesn't begin to capture how steep it is. It looks like we are sitting on flat ground, but trust me. We wouldn't be sliding down if we thought we could manage it on our feet! We had a laugh when we reached the bottom and saw the stairs just to the left of the steep drop. 

We returned to our cars hot, sweaty and tired. We treated ourselves with a reward - Rein's New York Style Deli. They have gluten free foods that are prepared separately. No worries about cross contamination. What a feast for this celiac!

And then off to home, where I can view our route on a bigger screen and see where we went wrong.  After a hike like this, there's usually a slap-on-the-forehead "doh!" moment and this was no exception. Now that I've been there and wandered around, I'd like to give it another try and do it right, closely following the step-by-step directions. Or I'll hike to the overlook and back, a one-mile round trip, just for an excuse to visit Rein's Deli!

Address:  300 Valley Falls Road, Vernon CT.

Trail map:http://www.vernon-ct.gov/parks_rec/Vernon_Rails-to-Trails.pdf

Length: About 2 1/2 miles

Duration: 1 1/2 hours

Difficulty level: Difficult

Calories: 606

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Sweetheart Mountain

Update 10/3/15: We planned to repeat this yesterday, but were disappointed to see "no trespassing" signs that kept us from taking the path to the view of Nepaug Reservoir. There are new blazes, so the official trails are well-marked.  There is view of Collinsville on the red-blazed path, which is not shown on the runkeeper map below. Without the detour to the Nepaug overlook, this was a very short hike.


I tried to restrain myself from remarking that this is a sweetheart of a hike but I couldn't, because this hike is aptly named. It really is a sweetheart of a hike.

The trail begins with a nice steady climb. Not too steep or difficult, but enough to get your heart pounding. Soon we were enjoying the sight of mountain laurel, which was in full bloom and in abundance.

This used to be the site of Canton Ski Club, which closed in the 70s, and the rusted machinery is still there.

We left the trail to find the lookout. Fortunately, members Agnes and Emma knew the way, as this trail is not blazed. (You can follow our path using the Runkeeper app.)  This short trail brings you to a view of Nepaug Reservoir. Naturally, we chose this spot for our devotional. 

Hebrews 12:1-2 . . . let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith.”

There’s a big difference between my style of hiking and backpacking. Something happens to me after about five miles. It’s not that I feel like I can’t go further, I just don’t want to. I’ve had my fill and I’m ready to go home. I want to take a shower, don clean clothes, sit in a comfy chair, and have a cup of tea. I only scratch the surface of the hiking world.

Backpackers and thru-hikers, on the other hand, have a lot of miles between them and the comforts of home.  They put up with extended periods of cold. Or heat and humidity. They go without showers. They eat trail food. They sleep on the ground. They go without comfort and convenience to follow their passion.

In Matthew 16:24 Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.” Walking with Jesus step by step - running the race and fixing our eyes on Him - takes us out of our comfort zone. In the physical world, a short hike is a wonderful thing. But in the spiritual realm, let's have the passion of a thru-hiker, give up our comfort zones and say, “Yes, Lord yes, to your will and to your way.

This is the perfect jaunt for a busy day, as we reached the lookout in 30 minutes. The parking area can be a little tricky to find. Go west on Bridge Street until it dead ends into Dunne Avenue. Turn right onto Dunne and then turn left:

https://runkeeper.com/user/SusanGayle/route/4269977

Address:  84-98 Dunne Ave, Collinsville
Runkeeper Route: https://runkeeper.com/user/SusanGayle/route/4269977

Trail map: Visit http://www.cantonlandtrust.org/trailsSweetheartMountain.html

Length: 1.68 miles

Duration: 1 hour, 15 minutes

Calories burned: 357

Difficulty level: moderate

Wadsworth Falls State Park

Mountain laurel is in bloom, and we wanted to go to Wadsworth Falls to see what was rumored to be one of the largest laurels in the state. One of our members grew up in the area and vouched for the fact that it used to be much larger. Expectations aside, it is still beautiful.

The hike begins with a narrow slight ascent and then opens up to the orange-blazed Main Trail. For this trip we chose to stay on the Main Trail (which passes by the giant laurel). About a quarter-mile past the famed laurel, there is an option to take a side trail to the right and pass Little Falls, which is a steeper trail. Both trails require a brief walk along Cherry Street in order to get to Wadsworth Falls. (For those who don't wish to hike, parking near the falls is available on Cherry Street.)

The falls are stunning, with plenty of ledges to sit and enjoy the roar. A perfect place for our devotional.

“Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” (2 Corinthians 4:16-18)

Breaking in new hiking boots requires a major adjustment and sometimes involves blisters and pain. In the beginning, they can offer as much inconvenience as they do great support and protection.

Sometimes the blessings God gives us require changes in our lives. From a change in careers to different living situations, God may want us to move in a new direction of serving Him. Changes don’t come easily to most of us.

Paul’s life is a great example of this. After God called him, he was blinded for three days, then God restored his sight. Paul went from persecuting Christians to being a Christian. He moved from a life of living the law to one of living in grace.

Paul went through many hardships because of his faith, he was stoned, shipwrecked three times and beaten with rods three times. On 5 separate occasions he received 39 lashes.

In Corinthians we see that Paul saw these troubles as light and momentary. Much like a new pair of boots, a new direction with Jesus or a new blessing He gives might be an inconvenience or might even be incredibly difficult for a while. But we would rather break in new boots than wear worn-out shoes. When God brings blessings our way, we’ll be better suited for the journey if we remember that change is sometimes uncomfortable, but always works together for our good (Romans 8:28). Adapted from "With God on the Hiking Trail" by Nathan Chapman

After enjoying the falls, we returned to the Main Trial and then turned right onto the blue-blazed Little Falls Trail. I was momentarily confused by the sign marking the trail, but we saw the blue blaze and knew we were headed in the right direction

The blue-blazed trail leads to White Birch Trail, thus the sign at the entrance to the trail.

We turned left onto the red-blazed Cedar Loop Trail, which dead-ends at the purple-blazed Bridge Trail.

Sign at the intersection of Cedar Loop and Bridge Trails. We turned left and headed to our cars at this junction.

This is a lovely park with clean restroom facilities, picnic area, and a nice beach with swimming allowed. Weekend and holiday fees are $9 for residents and $15 for nonresidents. There is no charge for weekday access.

The Middletown Trail Guide provides a detailed description of each trail: http://www.middletownplanning.com/documents/mdtntrailguide.pdf

Our route is found at https://runkeeper.com/user/SusanGayle/activity/804962760?activityList=false&

Address: 727 Wadsworth Street, Middletown CT

Trail map: http://www.ct.gov/deep/lib/deep/stateparks/maps/wadsworth.pdf

Length: 3.82 mi

Duration: 1 hour, 45 minutes 

Difficulty Level: Easy with a slight incline

Peoples State Forest, Barkhamsted

I love a good climb. Not in the way of mountain climbing (drop-offs scare the daylights out of me). But a nice steep rocky climb on a hillside is a fun challenge, and taking the Falls Cut-off Trail in People’s State Forest provides this very thing. 

Nature column writer Peter Marteka describes this trail as "about as strenuous and difficult a hiking ascent as there is in the state." According to my app, our snail’s pace at that point was a laughable 1 hour and 20 minutes per mile. But we thoroughly enjoyed it. If you prefer to skip this climb, turn right onto the blue trail rather than going left onto the red/blue Falls Cut-off.

The climb takes you along a trickling waterfall

We turned left at the wooden bridge to join the Robert Ross trail which leads to Jessie Gerard, and were soon treated to an amazing view known as Grand Vista.

Grand Vista

Our devotional was based on Matthew 5:14 “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.”

When on a hiking trip, it’s important to keep your backpack as lean as possible. A candle lantern is small and lightweight and provides light to read by in the evenings. One would think you would need to carry several candles, but the same candle can be reused by taking the melted wax surrounding the base, placing it near the small flame and molding and shaping the warm wax until it looks as good as new. What seems to be worthless melted wax becomes a brand new light.

God uses us to illuminate a dark world with His love. Like the candle, however, we can burn out. Isn’t it incredible that although the world may see a dying candle, our heavenly Father takes our lives and reshapes them. There is nothing worthless in the kingdom of Heaven. No one is so far gone that he or she is tossed in the scrap heap. God wants us to return to Him, even when we feel all used up. He will find a purpose for what we view as unusable when we allow Him to mold and reshape our lives. (Adapted from "With God on the Hiking Trail by Nathan Chapman)

A little farther along was another beautiful overlook

Chaugham Lookout

With its 11 miles of trails, there are many options for hiking in Peoples State Forest. In the interest of time, we left the Jessie Gerard when we came to Quarry Road and turned right onto Warner Road which led us back to Robert Ross/Jessie Gerard. Although I loved the steep climb on the way up, going down is another matter entirely. We passed up the Falls Cutoff trail, crossed the wooden bridge and descended via Jessie Gerard.

This hike definitely goes on my list of favorites. I look forward to returning in the fall when the leaves change!

Our route, available at https://runkeeper.com/user/SusanGayle/route/4315328

Directions: Follow Rte 44 west through New Hartford.  Take right on Rte 181. At the stop sign, take a right on the bridge that goes over the Farmington River and a quick left on East River Rd.  You will pass the entrance on the right to the People's State Forest Park and continue until you see the trail sign for Jessie Gerard (north of the Agnes Bowen trail).  Park along the street

Trail Map: http://www.ct.gov/deep/lib/deep/stateparks/maps/peoples.pdf

Length: 2.53 miles

Duration: 2 hours, 7 minutes

Calories burned: 653

Difficulty Level: Difficult if taking Falls Cut-off, otherwise it's moderate