243 acres in North Stonington, CT
Parking: Shoulder parking near 215 Wintechog Hill Rd, North Stonington, CT
Trail Map Trails: 1.5 miles Rating: ★★★★☆
Lantern Hill is the western terminus of the 16 mile Narragansett Trail which runs from North Stonington to the Rhode Island border. Lantern Hill is the best overlook in southern CT and provides great views especially in the fall.
From the parking along Wintechog Hill Rd the trail heads steadily uphill on rutted and eroded path. A trail soon comes to a fork with an option to head right towards the Two Trees Inn, straight to follow the base of the hill, or left to continue uphill on the Narragansett Trail. The trail gets steeper and reaches the rocky cliffs.
The overlook is about a half mile from the parking area and has views northwest over the Foxwoods compound and another with views east towards Wintechog Hill. The trail then descends down the back side of Lantern Hill. While the Narragansett continues left there is another short trail to a south facing overlook (my personal favorite) and a rough trail leading down to the quarrying operation allowing you to complete a loop around the base of the cliffs.
Continuing on the Narragansett will take you through the North Stonington transfer station. Blazes are few and far between, but taking an immediate left and heading up the driveway to cross Wintechog Hill Rd is the current route.
The next section of the Narragansett Trail was closed 2015-2022 but I believe has reopened in 2023.
The next section is 2 miles to Rt 2 and was technically closed though I had to learn that the hard way in 2019. The trail notice says this section closed in 2015 for “clearing important pastureland to conserve rare livestock breeds” and had planned to reopen by 2017.
A recent reroute leads you around an open field and through recent timber harvest to a clear cut near the summit of Wintechog Hill. At the clear cut is an electric fence which can be skirted for a quarter mile until it re-enters the woods on the opposite side. From here the trail is faint and unused, but passes through some great terrain. The trail is stopped by a few hundred feet of fencing. See my movie of the hike for the full experience.
Next Section: Cossaduck Bluffs
From ClimbRI.org,
The cliffs are about 30 to 70 feet in height. Most of the climbing is concentrated on the cliffs on the southwest side of the hill. The white quartzite here offers clean, juggy, vertical to slightly overhanging routes. The rock quality on the east side is not as good and loose rock is abundant. What route history is known is detailed below. Bring extra long webbing or a static rope to set up top rope anchors. There are a few routes that can be led with decent pro. Everything else is pretty run-out. All First Ascents (FA) refers to a route that has been led ground-up no falls or takes onless otherwise noted as a top-rope (TR) ascent. A system denoting quality of one to three stars is used.
Since the crash of my website the best history currently is here, The Story of the Yawgoog Trails, until I can recompile the info.
Peter Marteka - Lantern Hill in North Stonington lights the way to some of CT's best views (2022)
Peter Marteka - A View to the Sea and History (2009)
Last updated: April 6th, 2025 The information shown here is for general reference purposes only. exploreCT.org gives no warranty, expressed or implied, as to the accuracy or reliability of this data. Parking in all areas, whether designated here or not, is at your own risk. exploreCT.org is not responsible for any damage or loss to vehicles or contents.
F383+3M North Stonington, CT, USA
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