Explore Ashford, CT

Town Parks

• • Ashford Memorial Park –★★– 1.3 miles – Simple loop hike along the Mt. Hope and walking track 
  • Langhammer Trail –★★– 1.2 miles – A short loop hike through the forest with a connection to Willington’s Ruby-Fenton Park

Land Trust

• • Joshua’s Trust
    • • Ashford Oak –★– No trails – A shell of its former glory, the former champion red oak is living out its remaining days
      • Church Farm –★★– 3 miles – A loop ‘Ledges’ trail on one side of Rt 89 and a ‘Meadows’ trail on the other
      • Fliegal Farm Woods –★– .5 miles – A short Fern Glade lollipop loop trail along the Old Connecticut Path
      • Friedman Forest –★★– 2.7 miles – A self guided tree identification walk with three loop options and a heron rookery
      • Iron Mine Valley –★★– 1.3 miles – An area mined for bog iron during the Revolutionary War with a short loop hike
      • Josias Byles Sanctuary –★★– 1.6 miles – A loop hike with a view of the marsh along the Mt Hope River at the site of one of Ashford’s original homesteads
      • Knowlton Hill Preserve –★★– 2.5 miles – From the serene hillside of a glacial drumlin explore 2.5 miles of trails passing the Knowlton Estate and local history on a self-guided hike
      • Rankin Preserve –★★– 1.5 miles – One of Joshua’s Trust’s newest trails past linked ponds to a loop through rocky ledges and sloping forest
      • Tinkerville Brook –★★– 1.2 miles – A hidden gem this loop hike passes the ruins of an old bridge along a brook named for the gypsies that camped along it

State Parks / Forest

• • Natchaug State Forest
    • • West Ashford Block – 1.2 miles – After crossing Rt. 74 enter designated “old forest” with steep slopes and dense mountain laurel
      • Perry Hill – 2.3 miles – Gradual terrain passes through land rebounding from a timber harvest
      • Pixie Falls – 2.1 miles – This section of the Nipmuck features old foundations, Pixie Falls, a stretch of the 400 year old Old Connecticut Path, and Ladies Room Rock

Blue Blaze – Nipmuck and Natchaug in Ashford

• • Natchaug Trail
    • • Natchaug: Lyon Rd –8 miles – A long secluded stretch along Bigelow Brook from Eastford into Ashford until the Natchaug’s north terminus
        
  • Nipmuck Trail
    • • Marsh Road – 2.7 miles – Rerouted in 2017 this long stretch passes the backside of a farm to meet old roads and Knowlton Brook before crossing Rt. 74
      • Natchaug State Forest: West Ashford Block – 1.2 miles – After crossing Rt. 74 enter designated “old forest” with steep slopes and dense mountain laurel
      • Natchaug State Forest: Perry Hill – 2.3 miles – Gradual terrain passes through land rebounding from a timber harvest
      • Turn right for a 0.7 mile road walk along Oakes Rd, cross Rt. 89 diagonally and head 0.2 miles down Iron Mine Ln
      • Pixie Falls – 2.1 miles – This section features old foundations, Pixie Falls, a stretch of the 400 year old Old Connecticut Path, and Ladies Room Rock
        • Camping Area just past Pixie Falls
      • Yale Forest: Eastford Road – 1.6 miles – A largely forgettable section that passes along a small ridge through alternating mountain laurel and open forest
      • Yale Forest: Boston Hollow – 4.2 miles – The most rugged stretch of the entire trail with a steep climb to a narrow vista then dense laurel, hills, and valleys
      • 0.1 mile road walk along Barlow Mill Rd
      • Yale Forest: Walker Mountain – 1.9 miles – This section heads up and up and up with a new spur trail to the Walker Mountain summit and then down through the Yale Forestry school

The Rest

• • Yale Forest
    • • Eastford Road – 1.6 miles – A largely forgettable section of the Nipmuck Trail that passes along a small ridge through alternating mountain laurel and open forest
      • Boston Hollow – 4.2 miles – The most rugged stretch of the Nipmuck with a steep climb to a narrow vista then dense laurel, hills, and valleys
      • Walker Mountain – 1.9 miles – Nipmuck Trail section heads up and up and up with a new spur trail to the Walker Mountain summit and then down through the Yale Forestry school