Cowles Park to Tariffville Gorge - East Granby, CT

Date Hiked: Tuesday, May 29, 2018
Estimated distance:  3.41 miles
Weather: 75°F, sunny and a bit humid
Resources: Cowles Park to Tariffville Gorge
Highlights of the trip:  Snake, view from the overlook, river
Progress toward NET Hike 50 Challenge: 10.5/50 miles completed

Hiked today with a couple of others from Cowles Park on Route 187 in East Granby, up to the lookout on the Metacomet Trail over Tariffville Gorge, down to the river, and back through Cowles Park to our cars.

As we were hiking along the ridge, before we got to the overlook, we came across a fairly large black snake.  He did not seem keen to move, so one of the others tried to gently move him along with her hiking pole.  He took exception to that at reared up and hissed.  It was a little nerve wracking even though I was pretty sure it was not a poisonous snake.  He eventually got fed up with us and moved off the trail.  Did I think to get my camera out while this was going on?  No.  Drat.  No snake pictures.

We got a great view from the overlook up and down the river and out across to the same Barndoor Hills we saw during last week's hike at Rattlesnake Mountain in Farmington.

Barndoor Hills in Granby are the two little humps in the middle of the picture.

The trail down to the river was much better marked than I remember it.  We came out on Tunxis Avenue not far from the powerline cut and then walked back up the road so that we could see the water flowing through the gorge.  There is a nice little sandy beach area that allows a good view of the river.  I believe you are advised against swimming there, though.  It would not be safe.

We walked back down the road and followed the trail between two homes back into Cowles Park.  Really, a nice little hike with the hard part over early and a reward of nice views.

If you go, I recommend looking at the map I drew in the post linked at the very top of the page, or getting an app that shows all the various trails in Cowles Park.  There are a lot of criss-crossing mountain bike trails and it could be confusing.  You want to stick to the yellow trail which goes north and then turns south.  When you get to a bench, you will head west on a trail out of Cowles Park, across the power line cut and up to the ridge.  Follow the blue blazes south to the overlook and then continue south on faded blue blazes down to the road.  A sign indicating the Orange Trail back into Cowles Park is on a post between two homes.  Follow that back to the bench at the yellow trail and back to your car.

Enjoy!

Rattlesnake Mountain

Date Hiked: Thursday, May 24, 2018
Estimated distance:  2.4 miles
Weather: 73°F, beautiful and sunny
Resources: CT NET: Section 16,
Highlights of the trip:  View, Will Warren's Den
Progress toward NET Hike 50 Challenge: 10.5/50 miles completed


I'm going to try and start blogging again.  We'll see how it goes.

Recently, I have joined a facebook group called Take a Hike! Farmington Valley.  Today, I joined five people from that group for a hike up Rattlesnake Mountain in Farmington.  They were a nice group of people and it was a good hike. 

We started our hike by parking along the side of Route 6 just east of Pinnacle Road.  There is a short trail that parallels the road before heading away from it.

There were several large rock outcroppings, but you have to get almost to the overlook before you come to Will Warren's Den.  Here is a short video from the kids at Farmington Alternative High School that talks about the mountain and Will Warren's Den.  In the video, you can see one of the boys crawling into the den.  The idea of doing that did not cross anyone's mind today.

The view from the overlook is fantastic and we were blessed with a beautiful clear day.  The picture below is a view to the south and shows East and West Mountains in Hubbard Park in Meriden.  The Tilcon quarry in Plainville is in front of the mountains.  We did not head over to Pinnacle Rock today, but it can be seen as a small outcropping just right of center.

Looking north, you can see the city of Hartford.

On our hike, we ran into another group that was hiking all the way through to Route 372.  Here, a few people are standing on the traprock ridge.  If you continued on the trail, you would go right down under these cliffs.  Later, when we got back to the parking lot, we saw two people carrying what looked like large black mattresses folded in half.  We asked what they were and they said they were crash pads for climbing.  I didn't notice that they were carrying any other equipment, so I assume they were going to be free climbing.  It would have been interesting to see.

One of the people I hiked with spotted a Lady's slipper on the trail.

Near the bottom of the trail, there was a small clearing that gave a good view to the north.  In the picture below, you can see the Barndoor Hills in Granby at the center of the picture.

We could not have had a better day for this hike.  I look forward to getting out more and getting some miles for my NET Hike 50 Challenge.