CFPA Trails & The Blue Trails Challenge
CT Forest & Parks Association Trails 2006 –
“There are well over 800 miles of blue-blazed hiking trails in many different towns in little ol’ Connecticut. A 52 mile section of the Appalachian Trail also cuts across the Northwest corner of the state.
Sleeping Giant State Park Much of that is still true. I’d guess the CFPA trail network is closer to 1,000 miles now though, especially with the completion of the East-West Trail looming. And the AT is closer to 57 miles now. The CFPA will be releasing a new Walk Book in 2017 and have, of course, put everything online as well.
For decades, there existed something called the Connecticut 400 Clubwhich recognized those who have hiked all the CFPA trails of Connecticut. Since the “Club’s” inception, over 400 more miles have been added to the task, but no one bothered to update the name.
This is an interesting read; a old NYT article about the CT 400 when it was only the CT 400(500) not the CT 400(900 or whaterver it is) today.
Then in 2015, the CFPA changed things up and retired the Club. Now you can earn rewards by hiking various lengths of CFPA trails: 200, 400, and 800 miles. I’m okay with the change.
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Another recent change was the designation of The New England Trail as a National Scenic Trail. This includes the Menunkatuck, Mattabessett, and Metacomet Trails in Connecticut. (It continues north through Massachusetts to New Hampshire for a total of 215 miles.)
The Connecticut Forest and Parks Association not only maintains our trails wonderfully, the also fight the good fights with regards to our precious environmental resources in our small state.
The CFPA trails overlap with everything else you can imagine: Land Trusts, state parks, town trails, etc. This list is the official one from the CFPA’s site and Walk Books.
CTMQ’s All CT hiking table of contents is here.
The boys at Black Rock on the Mattatuck Trail
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CFPA Trails
Alain & May White Nature Trails, (2008) American Legion & Peoples State ForestTrails, (2007 & 2016) Appalachian Trail, (2011 – ) Aspetuck Trail Bigelow Hollow State Park Trails Case Mountain Trails, (2007-2016) Chatfield Trail Cockaponset Trail(s) (2009) Falls Brook Trail (2009) Field Forest Trails Finch Brook Trail Gay City State Park Trails (2009) Goodwin State Forest Trails (2016 – Hancock Brook Trail (2009) Hatchery Brook Loop Trails Hibbard Trail Highlawn Forest Trails Housatonic Range Trail Iron Trail Jericho Trail John Muir Trail Kettletown State Park Trails Lillinonah Trail Macedonia Brook State Park Trails Mattabesett Trail Mattatuck Trail McLean Game Refuge Trails Menunkatuck Trail Metacomet Trail Mohawk Trail Narragansett Trail Natchaug Trail Naugatuck Trail Nayantaquit Trail Nehantic Trail New England Trail Nipmuck Trail (2010 – ) Old Furnace Trail Pachaug Trail Paugussett Trail Pequot Trail Pine Knob Loop Trail Pomperaug Trail Quinebaug Trail Quinnipiac Trail Regicides Trail Risley Pond Loop Trail Salmon River Trail 3
Saugatuck Trail Scovill Loop Trail Shenipsit Trail Sleeping Giant State Park Trails Stony Creek Trails Sunny Valley Preserve Trails Tunxis Trail Whitestone Cliffs Trail Walcott Trail Waterbury Area Trails Zoar Trail https://www.ctwoodlands.org/blue-blazed-hiking-trails/trail-info
Cockaponset Trail and Cockaponset Forest Side Trails, 3/15/2009 Falls Brook Trail, 1/19/2008 Gay City Trail Network, 6/15/2009 & 6/24/2009 Hancock Brook Trail, 3/31/2009 Jericho Trail, 5/18/2009 Kettletown State Park Trails, 4/14/2009 Lillinonah Trail, 12/9/2007 Lone Pine Trail, 8/1/2008 The Mattabesett Trail, 5/23/2008 – 11/9/2008 (NET) McLean Game Refuge Trails, 10/12 – 13/2008 Muir Trail, 9/13/2008 Nayantaquit Trail, 7/8/2007 Paugussett Trail, 10/27/2008 Ragged Mountain Trail, 2009-2010 Regicides Trail, 1/6/2008 Salmon River Trail, 8/19/2007 Saugatuck Trail, 12/9/2007 Shenipsit Trail, and Shenipsit Area Trails, 11/24/07 – 5/16/2010 Sleeping Giant State Park Trail Network, 12/23/2010 – 10/21/2012 Sunny Valley Preserve Trails, 7/13 – 11/22/2009 The Tunxis Mainline Trail, and Tunxis Area Trails, 2/17/2008 – 10/21/2013 Whitestone Cliffs Trail, 3/31/2009 Wolcott Trail, 9/13/2008 Zoar Trail, 4/14/2009
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Accurately edited blaze on the Tunxis Trail in Barkhamsted
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In Progress:
Rainy day on the Quinebaug in Plainfield
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The 10 highest peaks in Connecticut – and my climbs of them.
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