West Rock Ridge SP

   

Date: Oct. 31, 2012
Report Type: TM Report:
Trail Name: West Rock Ridge SP
Town: Hamden
Trail Conditions: A carpet of small branches
Observations/Information: This was my first post-Sandy look at West Rock. The trail were in generally good shape with a carpet of small branches along the trail, plus about half a dozen limbs that were about 4 inches in diameter. I blazed the gravel road part of the Red Trail, which means the Red Trail is now totally reblaze. Plus I did some minor storm clean up, including a poison ivy covered tree. I did some storm cleanup on the Red-White Trail, as well. If this is an indication of the entire park, it's a promising sign.

I had an encounter with a hostile Doberman. The owner tried to reassure me by saying that he was not a harmful dog, but the dog was running around growling with his hackles up, and not letting the owner leash him. Finally, the owner caught the dog, leashed him, and thankfully I did not see them again. Two other people with quiet dogs were also out there.

The three photos show as follows: a medium-sized pine tree limb on the Red Trail where the Red-White Trail crosses it just north of the open field by Farm Brook reservoir off Hill Street; fresh Red blazes at a turn in the trail, and a White blaze that someone painted on the Red Trail. I found a couple of White Blazes and covered them with Red until I can get back and cover it more thoroughly with a blending color. For the record, unauthorized blazes are vandalism. I chose NOT to darken the old blazes on the tree, as that only preserves them. Instead, I let them fade naturally. While the contrast is visible up close, from a distance, the old blazes are not very visible.
Trail Ambassador Name: Tom Ebersold

Trail Ambassador E-mail: bikehikekayak123 [at] sbcglobal [dot] net
How did you use the trail? Hiking/Walking
Trails Ridden: Red and Red-White
Time of day: Afternoon
Time/Duration (hours): 4
Approximate Distance (Miles): 2 miles
Images/Photos: New red blazes, 10-31-12.jpg
2nd image: Red Trail limb, 10-31-12.jpg
3rd Image: White paint on Red Trail, 10-31-12.jpg
4th Image: