Non-CFPA Trails

I held off from creating this page for a long, long time. But over that time, I came to learn there are plenty of nice and interesting trails around Connecticut that are not managed by the CFPA. Of course, there are plenty of trails around here that aren’t worth my time to write about – or yours to read about. I’ll make those determinations as this section develops.

I won’t be as hardcore about being a completist with much of the list below, as there’s really just no need to be. There are certainly some trails and trail networks though that certainly DO deserve my full, obsessive attention. These are the ones that recognize completers with official certificates, patches, hats or whatever. You better believe I’ll be completing them.

Also, if the Land Trust or whatever publishes a top-notch trail guide, I’ll try to do them justice by completing those trails as well.

These will include the many trails on various Land Trust lands, Nature Conservancy land, town parks, Audubon tracts and whatever else is out there. There are so many trails that this page is pretty much impossible to have a comprehensive listing, but what the heck, that’s what I strive to do.

shade-swamp
Shade Swamp Sanctuary Trails, Farmington

Feel free to let me know about others I may not have listed here. There is a bunch of overlapping stuff here with State parks and other organization’s lands and stuff. Eh, we’ll figure it out together.

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  • There are 90 or so Land Trusts in the state. Maybe 80 of them have accessible hiking trails. Here they are – Land Trust Trails
  • For State Park Trails, Go Here.
  • We have Audubon Society lands and Nature Centers with trails. I’ve combined them into one section here.
  • The Nature Conservancy has some land and trails too. Check it out.
  • Never heard of the South Central Regional Council of Governments or the South Central Connecticut Regional Water Authority? Well, they have a ton of land with a ton of trails. The RWA trails require an access permit and the SCRCOG trails encompass some land trust trails and stuff. It’s all very confusing, but I hope to sort it out here.
  • And finally, there are a bunch of town owned tracts and other difficult-to-place trails and networks. So they get their own page here.
  • For now, I’ll keep these sections below on this page.

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    Trails with Rewards:

    Mattabesset Trail (CFPA) – Completion patch! (Done)
    Sleeping Giant State Park trails (CFPA & SGPA) – Completion patch and certificate! (Done)

    Metacomet Trail (CFPA) – Completion patch!
    Steeprock Hiker’s Challenge – lapel pin and certificate!
    Quinnipiac Trail – (CFPA) Completion patch!
    Appalachian Trail Connecticut Section (ATC)
    Ives Trail (Bethel, Danbury, Ridgefield) – Completion patch!
    Branford Trail, Branford – Completion Patch!
    Burlington Trail Master – Completion Patch and Certificate!

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    Rails-to-Trails, Canal Trails, Greenways

    There are an insane number of these things – and more in the works.

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    Canoe/Waterway Trails

    There are more than you think.

    Essex Canoe/Kayak Trail
    Housatonic Valley River Trail
    Quinnipiac River Canoe Trail
    Mattabesset River Canoe/Trail
    Mystic River Water Trail
    Norwalk Islands Canoe/Kayak Trail
    Old Lyme Canoe/Kayak Trail
    Willimantic River

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