Giuffrida Park
598 acres in Meriden, CT
Parking: Medium sized lot near 800 Westfield Rd, Meriden, CT
Trail Map Trails: 24.8 miles Rating: ★★★★★
Giuffrida Park is one of the great parks of Connecticut for its mix of trails, beautiful overlooks, and peaceful settings. There are easy trails around the Bradley Hubbard Reservoir (formerly Crescent Lake), a two mile section of the Mattabasett Trail, and many loop options of varying difficulty.
Hiking
Mattabesett Trail – 3.6 miles
- This section of the blue blaze Mattabesett Trail is part of 235 mile New England Trail. It travels in a U-shape entering the park from the northeast side of the park, climbing to the traprock ridge overlooks, and heading south along the quarry towards Chauncey Peak. There are fantastic views of Castle Craig, the Hanging Hills, and Sleeping Giant.
- The trail has been rerouted off Chauncey Peak since about 2017 and now descends on a series of well-built rock step switchbacks to the southern end of the reservoir before working along the flat western side of the water and then up to the next set of ridges for more overlook views to the west.
- Heading north: Lamentation Mountain State Park
- Heading south: Wilcox Woods
White Trail – 1.5 miles
- The white trail is a flat to gently rolling trail around the reservoir. The trail follows the water closely nearly the entire way shaded for much of the way by old pines and provides many views up to the traprock ridges across the water.
Red and Yellow blazed trails provide connections between the major trails and there are plenty of side and unblazed trails to explore at the north end of the park.
History:
Established as a park in 1967. From the park’s brochure,
“Giuffrida Park was originally part of an area farmed in the late 1600’s and early 1700’s by Jonathan Gilbert and later Captain Andrew Belcher. This farm, the first European settlement in this region, became known as the “Meriden Farm”, from which the whole area eventually took its name.”
According to a history of the area, travelers came to the western edge of the mountain in 1735 in search of gold, but never found any.
The park is named for the late Dr. Francis Giuffrida who practiced medicine and surgery and had one of the largest practices in Meriden. He also served as team physician at both city high schools and had a passion for helping children and teenagers. He was a World War II Navy and Marine Corps veteran who was awarded a Bronze Star.
Links:
- Peter Marteka – There’s A Safer Route To The Top Of Chauncey Peak In Meriden, One Of The Area’s Best Overlooks (2018)
- Peter Marteka – A Park With A Nice Back Story (2010)
- Peter Marteka – Giuffrida Park In Meriden Offers Golden Opportunities (2010)
- CTMQ – Mattabesett Trail: Section 1 (2008)
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Last updated October 18th, 2024
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