2021

2021 Year in Exploration

Other Years: 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 20192020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023

Stats

  • 65 locations explored
  • 156,419 views to the site
  • 1285 hours of my movies watched on YouTube
  • 3 TV interviews for WFSB
  • 1 podcast on Backyard Road Trips
  • Several hundred pages delisted from Google Search and a few hundred brought back

The story of ExploreCT’s 2021 falls into two halves.  The first half was firing on all cylinders exploring new places, updating the site, writing newsletters, making movies, and befriending new people.  The second half saw the site be delisted by Google for not loading fast enough according to their updated ‘Core Web Vitals’ and a resulting massive drop in traffic.  It was technical to fix and I don’t think fully resolved but Google’s algorithms have made connections back to my site.

[expand title=”Hikes by Month    |expand|” tag=”h3″]

January

February

March

April

May

June

July

August

September

October

  • All hikes outside CT

November

December

[/expand]

Spignesi WMA

★☆☆☆☆

41.712963, -72.067512

James V. Spignesi Jr. WMA Connecticut Wildlife Management Area 524 acres in Scotland, CT Parking: Medium sized lot near 210 Pudding Hill Road, Hampton, CT Area Map …

Schmid Overlook

★☆☆☆☆

41.738309, -72.263433

Schmid Overlook Joshua’s Trust 20 acres in Coventry, CT Parking: Shoulder parking near 88 Flanders Road, Coventry, CT Trail Map         Trails: 0.6 miles   …

Kongscut Mountain

★★★☆☆

887 Goodale Hill Rd, Glastonbury, CT

Kongscut Mountain / Phillips Cave Loop Connecticut State Forest 1,100 acres in Glastonbury, CT Parking: Small pull of near 887 Goodale Hill Rd, Glastonbury, CT Trail Map …

Legend Wood

★★★☆☆

41.489036, -71.876836

Legend Wood / Wyassup Lake Connecticut State Forest / Blue Blaze Trail in North Stonington, CT Parking: West End: Small lot at Wyassup Boat Launch East End:…

Halls Pond

★★★☆☆

92 Kennerson Rd, Eastford, CT, USA

Halls Pond Connecticut State Boat Launch 1.5 acres in Eastford, CT Parking: Small lot and shoulder parking near 92 Kennerson Rd, Eastford, CT Boat Launch Map   …

Boston Turnpike Trail

★★★☆☆

145-101 CT-198, Pomfret Center, CT 06259, USA

Boston Turnpike Trail Eastford Town Park / Connecticut State Forest 104 acres in Eastford, CT Parking: Small lot near 145-101 CT-198, Pomfret, CT Trail Map     …

Rose Hill WMA

★★☆☆☆

77-5 Thomas Rd, Ledyard, CT, USA

Rose Hill Wildlife Management Area Wildlife Management Area 692 acres in Ledyard, CT Parking: Hiking Trail Parking: Shoulder parking near 77-5 Thomas Rd, Ledyard, CT Other Parking:… Read more…

Mountain Laurel Sanctuary

★★☆☆☆

41.955897, -72.209270

Mountain Laurel Sanctuary Connecticut State Forest 337 acres in Union, CT Parking: Shoulder parking on Snow Hill Rd, Union, CT Trail Map       Trails: Less than…

Lombardi Ridge Preserve

★★☆☆☆

106 School Rd, Bolton, CT, USA

Lombardi Ridge Preserve & Bobcat Woods Bolton Land Trust 90 acres in Bolton, CT Parking: Shoulder parking past 106 School Rd Bolton, CT Trail Map        Trails:…

Pigeon Swamp Preserve

★★☆☆☆

41.667067, -72.175020

Pigeon Swamp Preserve Joshua’s Trust 135 acres in Lebanon, CT Parking: Shoulder parking near 181 Babcock Hill Rd Lebanon, CT Small lot near 75 Pigeon Swamp Rd…