Quaddick State Park
116 acres in Thompson, CT
Parking: Medium sized lot near 818 Quaddick Town Farm Rd, Thompson, CT
Trail Map Trails: 1.5 miles Rating: ★★☆☆☆
Quaddick is a mixed use park in the northeastern corner of Connecticut. It has a good sized beach and swimming area, boat launch, and hiking trail. The reservoir is 408 acres and reaches north to the Thompson Speedway for a length of over three miles. It is right next to Quaddick State Forest for an additional 550 acres.
Hiking
The red loop trail can be accessed from multiple points within the park though most commonly near the beach area. The trail hugs the water line offering a couple secluded picnic tables among the pines along the water’s edge. The trail then works through dense forest back to the open fields by the pavilion.
As the trail turns towards Quaddick Town Farm Rd there is a mysterious shallow concrete basin. I’m hoping a bit of research will turn up its use, but unknown currently. The trail goes through what must be an old pine plantation and then crosses the road.
On the other side of the road the pines are older and they gradually give way to hardwoods climbing to a ridge covered in young beech trees. This backside of the loop is much less traveled with short overgrown stretches and a couple blow downs, but all easily navigable. There used to be access to the adjacent LeClair Preserve, but trails there are closed and only hints at the connector remain.
The trail recrosses the road (not a car in sight either time for me) and follows Poor Farm Brook back to the park roads.
Swimming
For current water quality alerts for Quaddick, visit CT Beach Status Report
Boating
Quaddick Reservoir is 408 acres with a max depth of 18′ broken into two sections by Brandy Hill Rd. Though a quick search tells me it’s actually three distinct sections (easy to miss the northernmost section), 2.5 miles long, and originated with the completion of a dam on the Five Mile River in 1865.
History:
Established as a state park in 1951 after originally being developed as a Forestry recreation area. The site of the state park was originally a fishing area of the Nipmuck Indians and then was Thompson’s town farm where elderly residents of the village spent their reflective years.
Links:
Boston Kayaker – Quaddick Reservoir
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Last updated May 15th, 2021
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