2020

2020 – Year in Exploration

Other Years: 201620172018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023

Stats:

  • 1 website complete crash
  • 6 months rebuilding
  • 99 locations explored
    • Coming back to update this with a breakdown
  • 150,878 website views
  • 1,017 hours of YouTube movies watched
Story of 2020

  • exploreCT.org’s 2020 mirrored the tumultuousness of the real world. I had the stirrings of server problems at the end of 2019 continuing through January and February until [The Great Crash] came in March.
  • I was forced to delete my site, lose my backups, and rebuild from square one
  • Rebuilding was much slower than I expected taking a full six months to get [Back to 100%]. But, the site was stronger, faster, better; or so I thought.
  • In the Fall, cleared from rebuilding the site, I had a list of changes accumulated that I was looking to fix. I would update one aspect, fix a gap, tweak and customize only to realize doing so had broken elements of my site and exposed weaknesses I didn’t know where there.
  • These broken elements and weaknesses were technical jargon filled messes. But, I treated it like a puzzle in a video game. I had to solve this puzzle by reading notes left by others (questions in online forums) piecing the disparate information together while figuring out how it applied to the unfamiliar style of puzzle in front of me. Let me tell you, it was SO satisfying to finally unlock the puzzle and fix the issues.
  • Heading into 2021, the site is (for now) at its best point ever and well positioned to in breadth, depth, and usefulness.

Mono Pond State Park

★★☆☆☆

41.678741, -72.310645

Mono Pond State Park Reserve Connecticut State Park / Scenic Reserve 218 acres in Columbia, CT Parking: Medium sized lot near 120 Hunt Rd Columbia, CT Trail Map …

George Waldo State Park

★★★☆☆

457 Purchase Brook Rd, Southbury, CT 06488

George Waldo State Park Connecticut State Park /  Scenic Reserve 150 acres in Southbury, CT Parking: Small lot at 457 Purchase Brook Rd, Southbury, CT Trail Map   …

George Dudley Seymour State Park

★★☆☆☆

82 Clarkhurst Rd, East Hampton, CT, United States

George Dudley Seymour State Park Connecticut State Park 222 acres in Haddam, CT Parking: Small lot at the end of Clarkhurst Rd near 82 Clarkhurst Rd East…

Mansfield Hollow State Park

★★★★☆

41.765018, -72.178339

Mansfield Hollow State Park Connecticut State Park and Wildlife Management Area 251 acres in Mansfield, CT Parking: A number of lots and pull offs along Bassett’s Bridge… Read more…

Talmadge Tract

★★☆☆☆

41.841828, -72.240032

Talmadge Tract / UCONN Moss Forest / Royal Knowlton Preserve Willington Town Park / Blue Blaze Nipmuck Trail / UCONN 602 acres in Willington, CT Parking: Small…

Union Hill Preserve

★★☆☆☆

41.559085, -72.555055

Union Hill Preserve Middlesex Land Trust 8 acres in East Hampton, CT Parking: Shoulder parking near 77 Middle Haddam Rd East Hampton, CT Trail Map       …

Ross Pond State Park

★★☆☆☆

41.771477, -71.869135

Ross Pond State Park Connecticut State Park 314 acres in Killingly, CT Parking: Medium sized lot at the end of the forest road near 223 Ross Rd Danielson,… Read more…

Quinebaug Lake State Park

★★☆☆☆

41.774605, -71.888103

Quinebaug Lake State Park Connecticut State Park 181 acres in Killingly, CT Parking: Small lot near 59 Shepard Hill Rd, Danielson, CT Trail Map       Trails: 2…

Black Rock State Park

★★★☆☆☆

41.653222, -73.096907

Black Rock State Park Connecticut State Park 444 acres in Watertown, CT Parking: Two lots at 2065 Thomaston Rd, Watertown, CT Trail Map           Trails:…

Nipmuck : East Terminus

★★☆☆☆

41.7519540, -72.1605640

Nipmuck Trail – East Branch Terminus CFPA Blue Blaze Nipmuck Trail 2.28 miles in Mansfield, CT Parking: Large dirt lot at 28 North Windham Road, Mansfield, CT Trail…