Sleeping Giant, ,is a rugged traprock mountain with a high point of 739 feet (225 m), located eight miles (13 km) north of New Haven, Connecticut. A prominent landscape feature visible for miles, the Sleeping Giant receives its name from its anthropomorphic resemblance to a slumbering human figure as seen from either the north or south. The Giant is known for its expansive clifftop vistas, rugged topography, and microclimate ecosystems. Most of the Giant is located within Sleeping Giant State Park. The mountain is a popular recreation site: over 30 miles (48 km) of hiking trails traverse it including 5 miles (8 km) of the 23-mile (37 km) Quinnipiac Trail. Quinnipiac University is located at Mount Carmel's foot in Hamden.
Clingmans Dome is a mountain in the Great Smoky Mountains of Tennessee and North Carolina in the southeastern United States. Its name in Cherokee is Kuwahi or ᎫᏩᎯ, meaning "mulberry place." At an elevation of 6,643 feet (2,025 m), it is the highest mountain in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the highest point in the state of Tennessee, and the highest point along the 2,192-mile (3,528 km) Appalachian Trail. It is also the third highest point in mainland Eastern North America, after Mount Mitchell and Mount Craig.
The Taconic Mountains or Taconic Range are a range of the Appalachian Mountains, running along the eastern border of New York State and adjacent New England from northwest Connecticut to western Massachusetts, north to central western Vermont. A physiographic region of the larger New England province, the range includes notable summits, including its high point, 3,840 feet (1,170 m) Mount Equinox in Vermont, and 3,489 feet (1,063 m) Mount Greylock, the highest point in Massachusetts.
Mohawk State Forest, also known as Mohawk State Forest/Mohawk Mountain State Park, encompasses over 4,000 acres (1,600 ha) in the towns of Cornwall, Goshen, and Litchfield in the southern Berkshires of Litchfield County, Connecticut. As overseen by the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, the area is used for hiking, picnicking, and winter sports by the public, while being actively managed to produce timber and other forest products.
Pachaug State Forest is the largest forest in the Connecticut state forest system, encompassing over 27,000 acres (110 km²) of land. It is located on the Rhode Island border in New London County, and parcels of the forest lie in the towns of Voluntown, Griswold, Plainfield, Sterling, North Stonington, and Preston. The forest was founded in 1928, but most of the land came from purchases made later during the Great Depression. It is named after the Pachaug River, which runs through the center of the forest. The forest is part of the Northeastern coastal forests ecoregion.
Cockaponset State Forest is the second largest forest in the Connecticut state forest system, encompassing over 17,000 acres (6,900 ha) of land. Most of the land is in Middlesex County though some parcels lie in New Haven County. The forest is disjointed, and comprises land in the towns of Haddam, Chester, Deep River, Killingworth, Durham, Guilford, Madison, Clinton, Westbrook, Middletown and Middlefield.
Talcott Mountain State Park is a 574-acre (232 ha) public recreation area located on Talcott Mountain in the towns of Avon, Bloomfield, and Simsbury, Connecticut. The state park features the Heublein Tower, a 165-foot-high (50 m) mountaintop lookout. Access to the tower and its associated museum is via a 1.25-mile-long (2 km) trail that takes 30 to 40 minutes to walk. The park offers picnicking, views of the surrounding area, and hiking along the Metacomet Trail.
The Shenipsit Trail is a Blue-Blazed hiking trail located in Central Connecticut between 3.5 and 7 miles (11 km) east of the Connecticut River. It runs 50 miles (80 km) in a north-south direction. The southern trailhead is on Gadpouch Road in Cobalt, CT on the southern end of the Meshomasic State Forest. The northern trailhead is on Greaves Road past Bald Mountain and the Shenipsit State Forest in Stafford, CT. The trail runs primarily through the Shenipsit and Meshomasic State Forests, and Case Mountain, but also utilizes other public and private land holdings. The Native American name Shenipsit means at the great pool, referring to the Shenipsit Lake, which the trail passes by. The Shenipsit Trail is divided into three sections: South, Central, and North. The Shenipsit Trail is one of the blue-blazed hiking trails managed by the Connecticut Forest and Park Association (CFPA).
Talcott Mountain of central Connecticut, with a high point of 950 feet (290 m), is a 13-mile (21 km) long trap rock mountain ridge located 6 miles (10 km) west of the city of Hartford. The ridge, a prominent landscape feature, forms a continuous line of exposed western cliffs visible across the Farmington River valley from Farmington to Simsbury. Talcott Mountain is part of the narrow, linear Metacomet Ridge that extends from Long Island Sound near New Haven, Connecticut, north through the Connecticut River Valley of Massachusetts to the Vermont border.
The Metacomet Ridge, Metacomet Ridge Mountains, or Metacomet Range of southern New England is a narrow and steep fault-block mountain ridge known for its extensive cliff faces, scenic vistas, microclimate ecosystems, and rare or endangered plants. The ridge is an important recreation resource located within 10 miles (16 km) of more than 1.5 million people, offering four long-distance hiking trails and over a dozen parks and recreation areas, including several historic sites. It has been the focus of ongoing conservation efforts because of its natural, historic, and recreational value, involving municipal, state, and national agencies and nearly two dozen non-profit organizations.
Bare Mountain, 1,014 feet (309 m) above sea level, is a prominent peak of the Holyoke Range of traprock mountains located in the Connecticut River Valley of Massachusetts, and part of the greater Metacomet Ridge that stretches from Long Island Sound to nearly the Vermont border. The peak rises steeply from the river valley 1,000 feet (300 m) below; its bald summit offers sweeping views. Bare Mountain is located within the towns of Amherst and South Hadley, Massachusetts. Part of its northeastern flanks are in Hadley and part of its southern flanks are in Granby. It is traversed by the 110-mile (180 km) Metacomet-Monadnock Trail.
West Rock Ridge or West Rock of south-central Connecticut, is a 7-mile (11 km) long trap rock mountain ridge located on the west side of New Haven with a high point of 700 feet (213 m). The ridge forms a continuous line of exposed cliffs visible from metropolitan New Haven and points west. West Rock Ridge is part of the narrow, linear Metacomet Ridge which extends from Long Island Sound near New Haven north through the Connecticut River Valley of Massachusetts to the Vermont border.
Nipmuck State Forest is a Connecticut state forest. Its 9,000 acres (3,600 ha) surround Bigelow Hollow State Park in the town of Union and include parcels in Stafford, Ashford, and other towns. The forest is part of a larger network of forest lands making up some 40,000 acres (16,000 ha) in all.
Natchaug State Forest is a Connecticut state forest located in six towns including Ashford, Chaplin, and Eastford. The Natchaug River runs from north to south along the western border of the main forest parcel. James L. Goodwin State Forest abuts Natchaug State Forest to the south. One of the forest units abuts Mashamoquet Brook State Park in Pomfret.
Mount Tom State Park is a public recreation area lying south of US Route 202 in the towns of Washington, Litchfield, and Morris, Connecticut. The state park occupies 231 acres (93 ha) on the southwest shore of Mount Tom Pond and is home to the Mount Tom Tower, which was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1993. It is managed by the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection.
The Meshomasic State Forest is located in East Hampton, Portland, and Marlborough, Connecticut, with smaller sections located in Glastonbury and Hebron. It is popular for mountain biking, hiking, and hunting. The Rangers Headquarters were located on Gadpouch Road in East Hampton.
Naugatuck State Forest is a Connecticut state forest consisting of five separate blocks in the towns of Oxford, Beacon Falls, Naugatuck, Bethany, Cheshire, Hamden, Seymour, and Ansonia. The five blocks are the Mount Sanford, East, West, Quillinan Reservoir, and Great Hill (Seymour) blocks.
Bolton Notch State Park is a public recreation area located in the town of Bolton, Connecticut, on the boundary between the Thames River and Connecticut River watersheds. The state park's 95 acres (38 ha) offer opportunities for hiking, climbing, and cave exploration.
Day Pond State Park is a public recreation area covering 180 acres (73 ha) in the town of Colchester, Connecticut. The state park abuts Salmon River State Forest and is managed by the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection. The park offers opportunities for hiking, swimming, shoreline fishing, picnicking and mountain biking.
Pomeroy State Park is an undeveloped public recreation area covering 200 acres (81 ha) just south of Willimantic in the town of Lebanon, Connecticut. The state park is a forested area used for hiking and hunting with no entrance, markings, or parking that abuts preserved farmland. It is under the management of the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection.
