Date: Dec. 31, 2011
Report Type: TM Report:
Trail Name: Naugatuck State Forest
Town: Beacon Falls
Trail Conditions: An obstacle course of blowdowns
Observations/Information: I hiked in the Naugatuck Forest West Block in Beacon Falls, starting from the lower parking lot by Cold Spring Road. The trails are a mess of large and small blowdowns. On the woods road near the base of the waterfall, there are a number of large trees across the trail. Virtually everywhere there are tree crowns blocking the trail. I had brought my hand saw and ended up using it a lot more than I wanted to, cutting a fraction of the blowdowns out there, but making the trails considerably more passable than they were before we started. I went back with my larger handsaw, along with a friend who brought an axe, to clear three tree trunks along one trail. This was intended to be a hike, and ended up being an impromptu work party. The woods road near the base of the waterfall is showing an unbelievable amount of washout and erosion with a foot to two feet deep of gravel simply washed away.
If you go, I recommend starting from the trailhead at the junction of Rt. 42 (west of Rt. 8) at Old Litchfield Tpke. This trailhead bring you into the forest in an area of woods roads around the reservoirs where you can warm up before you hit the hills. Download a map before you go from http://www.ct.gov/dep/lib/dep/stateparks/maps/NaugatuckEastWestBlocksTrailMap.pdf
The forest is a great place to ride with a mixture of double and single track. Nothing is blazed and some roads and trails end unexpectedly, so pay attention to where you are going.
Trail Ambassador Name: Tom Ebersold
Trail Ambassador E-mail: bikehikekayak123 [at] sbcglobal[dot]net
How did you use the trail? Hiking/Walking
Trails Ridden: Various road and trails, none marked or named
Time of day: Morning
Time/Duration (hours): 3
Approximate Distance (Miles): 6 miles
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