Nassahegon State Forest
1,093 acres in Burlington, CT
Parking:
- Small pull-off near 158-498 Stone Rd, Burlington, CT
- Shoulder parking near 506 George Washington Turnpike, Burlington, CT
- Small lot near 600 George Washington Turnpike, Burlington, CT
Trail Map Trails: 16 miles Rating: ★★★☆☆
Nassahegon State Forest in Burlington preserves over 1000 acres and is known for its fish hatchery, extensive mountain bike trails, and colonial history. I’ve yet to find a high quality trail map but Alan Perrie has done great work on suggesting loops and offers specific loop maps here on the Burlington town site.
Hiking
- Blue/Purple – Punch Brook Trail – 1.6 Miles
- The blue/purple trail starts from George Washington Turnpike heading down into a gully and weaving between mountain bike trails to reach a bridge crossing over Punch Brook (this trail being half of the Punch Brook Loop). The trail gains a bit of ground, crosses Punch Brook Road and through some dense understory to the junction with the Blue/Red Trail. The trail then switchbacks up a steep hill, along the backside of private property, and over a couple hills to reach a majestic stand of pines from an old plantation. The trail then climbs through a rocky ledge to join the Blue/Yellow Trail
- Blue/Yellow Trail – 9.4 miles
- I’ve hiked from the 1.5 miles between the two connections with the blue/purple trail the rest is unexplored. In the northern stretch the trail is largely wide old woods access roads until meeting Punch Brook Road, after crossing it becomes a narrow winding path through the pines over hilly terrain. Immediately south of George Washington Turnpike it becomes woods access roads again.
- Blue/Red North Trail
- Blue/Red South Trail
- Blue/Orange Trail
Mountain Biking
History
There are at least a dozen different parcels here owned by the state the majority of which were purchased by the state sometime around 1943 and the most recent being in 2004.
This state forest was featured in the 2024 Sky’s the Limit Hiking Challenge.
Links
- DEEP Forest Management Plan 2016 – 2026
- Peter Marteka – Old Jail, Transient Camp In Wilds Of Burlington (2018)
- CMTQ – Nassahegon State Forest Intro (2008)
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Last updated November 4th, 2024
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