2023 Year in Exploration

    Other Years: 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025

    2023 Stats

    • 211,304 site views
    • 24.3% of the state explored, that’s 482 out of 1,983
    • Explored 99 locations this year, 52 new to me and 47 I’d been before
    • Added 88 new locations to the map, 29% of the state is represented
    • 4 movies and 4 newsletters published

    Recommended Hikes of the Year

    Blog Summaries

    Hiking

    January
    • Moss Tract – Quick return visit after discovering it’s hidden waterfall to check out the south section trails
    • Quinebaug Trail – Thru hiked the trail on a warm January day for about 17 miles round trip overlapping with heavy dirt bike presence
    • Hidden Valley Preserve – Revisited this great property hitting all the highlights from cave to river view to overlook
    • Steep Rock Preserve – The trail to overlook was closed on my last visit so I returned for it’s fantastic view before returning once more to the tunnel
    • Giuffrida Park – Hiked the Metacomet Ridge and returned along the reservoir in the standard rugged loop
    • Westfield Falls – Quick stop on a cold windy day to check in on the falls
    • Sleeping Giant State Park – Rehiked some of my favorite trails since I didn’t visit the Giant at all in 2022
    February
    • Mount Higby – Hiked this section of the Mattabesett Trail on a rainy morning and made a movie of the views
    • Lewis Farm Bird Sanctuary – There are a fair number of trails tucked in this small property, I particularly enjoyed the curved bridge over the river here
    • Will Warren’s Den– The trail was a bit of a mud pit in the spring, but the views are always worth it
    • West Mountain Property – Caught Cathles Falls and the great overlook but didn’t have time to complete the full loop here
    • Mary Edwards Mountain Property – The first view is the best view, the trails are rugged, and I couldn’t have been more pleasantly surprised
    • Godard Preserve – Connected down to this preserve from Mary Edwards and the trails along the brooks provide peaceful hiking
    • Sunset Rock State Park – Hiked this to discover that you’re exploring Crescent Lake and its trails and the state park property is untrailed to the north, but a great overlook from the ridge line
    March
    • Mansfield Hollow – Combining different loops here, still trying to discover new things at one of my most visited state parks
    • Pigeon Swamp – Rehiked this property after a couple years on a sunny spring afternoon, trails were exactly the same as I remembered
    • Dismal Brook Wildlife Preserve – Lulled by the initial trails I was drawn in by the history and love the deep woods cabin and pond view
    • Schoolhouse Brook Park – Rehiked sections on either side of the road to see that mountain bike trails have been developing over the years
    April
    • Sherwood Island State Park – First visit to one of CT’s uber popular beach parks, fun to walk the beach without the crowds
    • Trout Brook Valley – I feel like I only got to explore a tiny portion of this large and varied park 
    • Kilkenny Rock – One of the few sections of the Metacomet I haven’t done before, fun hike that overlaps significantly with mountain bike trails
    • Mono Pond State Park – Stopped here for a quick hike on a breezy morning
    • Cotton Hollow Preserve – The ruins have been protected, but now the harder work of fundraising to preserve them begins
    • Holcomb Farm – Explored what I could here, but access to the majority of trails washed away with a bridge that has yet to be replaced unfortunately
    • Dewey-Granby Oak – First visit to this majestic old former champion tree
    • Katan Ensor and Old Messenger Road Preserves – This new preserve is a real gem connecting multiple parcels, but the views were all fogged in due to rainy weather
    • Shelter Falls – Last hike here was in 2018, this time I found an abandoned stretch of trail down to a small pond 
    • Sperry Falls – Got the timing just right to see these rare falls roaring after heavy rains
    • Mahoney Pond – Poking around these old woods roads to find a simple forest loop
    • Cedar Wood Preserve – Still a work in progress, but interesting trails that feel longer than their length
    • Barrett Preserve – This property felt tucked away despite being surrounded by private property, the streams and bridges were a nice surprise
    May
    • Bush Hill Preserve – Did nearly a full loop of the property and stopped to explore the barn tag sale land trust fundraiser
    • Stony Brooke Park – Hiked the northern stretch of trails, some of which are pretty overgrown
    • Shafran Conservation Area – Last hike here was in 2018 and not much has changed, the cool clear streams here are perfect
    • Tower Hill Preserve – Caught this just a couple days after its grand opening to find a well crafted trail with a surprise hidden waterfall
    • Blackledge Falls – Quick hike up to the falls and then connected into the southern edge of Gay City before looping back
    • Bigelow Hollow – Hiked the western perimeter and then along the East Ridge Trail, the parking was packed but we didn’t seen another person
    • Pixie Falls – Backpacked out to see the well-crafted fairy house above the falls and did an overnight at the nearby backpacking site
    June
    • Thru-hike of the Shenipsit Trail – Hiked all 50.2 miles over two days during peak mountain laurel bloom
    • Peterson Park – The start of the Mattatuck Trail here is perfect riverside trail
    • Allanach-Wolf Woodlands – Finally revisited one of my old favorites to find trails have been officially extended and connect to Wolf Den Land Trust property
    • Codfish Falls / Fenton Tract – Finally connected these two thanks to a fallen tree over the Fenton River to check out the rerouted Nipmuck Trail
    July
    • Woodtick Recreation Area – Great first hike doing the full loop around the Scoville Reservoir with great sights along the way
    • Simpson Woods – Revisited this property after a couple years to find that trails are slowly getting overgrown
    • Mt Hope Park – Still a short beautiful hike along the river, but still a shame the beavers have flooded the full loop connection
    • White Memorial Conservation Center – Did the classic boarkwalk hike, which had a couple flooded sections, but removing my shoes gave me the boardwalk to myself
    • Camp Columbia State Park – Last hiked this in the winter, so visited again in the summer, most just visit the tower so the hiking loop is overgrown
    August
    • Risley Park – A few years since my last visit, enjoyed the trails, enjoyed the bench on the far side of the pond even more
    • Gay City State Park – Hiked the blue trail out to its Shenipsit connection and then back through the center of the park
    • Goodwin State Forest – Out on the Natchaug Trail again, highlight of the hike was an owl among the pines
    • Camp Aya-Po – Always try to rehike this one whenever I’m in the area
    • Dart Hill North Hockanum River – First hike on the Hockanum River Trail as odd as Steve from CTMQ says but certainly has its moments
    • Oakland Trail Hockanum River – Jumped onto another section soon after, great loop hike on both sides of the river
    • Dart Hill Park – A third section, stayed on theme – odd but has its moments too
    • Coney Rock – Quick afternoon hike with a view
    September
    • Talbot WMA – Didn’t have time to hike the full loop, so enjoyed the walk down to the river bend and back
    • Nathan Hale State Forest – Despite intending to, I’ve never done the same hike here twice, a few miles through the woods and a stop at the farmer’s market
    October
    • Dunhamtown Forest – Rehiked this loop after a few years and not a bit has changed
    • South Meadows River Trail – First of hike of this work in progress, some pavement, some grass, some mud, curious to see how it develops
    • Whetten Woods – I’d forgotten how short this loop is, so hiked it twice
    • Metcalf Nature Preserve – First hike of this short figure eight loop
    November
    • Moss Sanctuary – An easy morning hike
    • McCann Family Farm – Despite hiking Whitaker a few times, I’d never jumped over to these surprisingly rugged trails
    • Avery Farm Nature Preserve – First hike of this great loop that’s just challenging and varied enough
    • Crystal Ridge Trail – First hike of this new town trail, the area has potential but the trail needs more use
    December

    Boating/Fishing

      • Halls Pond

    Disc Golf

      • Davis Forest
      • Columbia Rec Park
      • Ecker Hill
      • Nichols Field
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    Hi, I’m Matt.

    I’m building ExploreCT to be the guide for all your outdoor adventures. All the trails, views, and waterways this great state has to offer.

    Now get out and explore!

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