Monroe is a town located in eastern Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 18,825 at the 2020 census. The town is part of the Greater Bridgeport Planning Region.
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.
Chatfield Hollow State Park is a public recreation area occupying 412 acres (167 ha) that lie adjacent to Cockaponset State Forest in the town of Killingworth, Connecticut. The state park offers hiking trails, a swimming beach, trout fishing, mountain biking, rock climbing, and picnicking areas. Park attractions include 6.67-acre (2.70 ha) Schreeder Pond, Indian caves, historic sites, a restored water wheel, and a reproduction covered bridge. The park is managed by the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection.
The Metacomet Trail is a 62.7-mile (100.9 km) Blue-Blazed hiking trail that traverses the Metacomet Ridge of central Connecticut and is a part of the newly designated New England National Scenic Trail. Despite being easily accessible and close to large population centers, the trail is considered remarkably rugged and scenic. The route includes many areas of unique ecologic, historic, and geologic interest. Notable features include waterfalls, dramatic cliff faces, woodlands, swamps, lakes, river flood plain, farmland, significant historic sites, and the summits of Talcott Mountain and the Hanging Hills. The Metacomet Trail is maintained largely through the efforts of the Connecticut Forest and Park Association.
Ragged Mountain, est. 761 feet (232 m), is a traprock mountain ridge located 3 miles (5 km) west of New Britain, Connecticut, in the towns of Southington and Berlin, Connecticut. It 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 mountain, a popular hiking and rock climbing attraction located between metropolitan Hartford and Meriden, is known for expansive vistas, vertical cliff faces, mountain ridge reservoirs, unique microclimate ecosystems, and rare plant communities. Ragged Mountain is traversed by the 51-mile (82 km) Metacomet Trail.
Bradley Mountain, 700 feet (210 m), is a traprock mountain located 3 miles (5 km) west of New Britain, Connecticut, United States, in the towns of Southington and Plainville. It 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. Bradley Mountain, popular as an outdoor recreation destination in the metropolitan Hartford/ New Britain area, is known for its clifftop scenic vistas overlooking Plainville Reservoir, unique microclimate ecosystems, and rare plant communities. Bradley Mountain is traversed by the 62.7-mile (101 km) Metacomet Trail.
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.
Rattlesnake Mountain is a traprock mountain, 750 feet (230 m) above sea level, located 9 miles (14 km) southwest of Hartford, Connecticut, in the town of Farmington. It 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. Rattlesnake Mountain, a popular outdoor recreation resource of the metropolitan Hartford area, is known for its cliff-top scenic vistas, unique microclimate ecosystems, and rare plant communities. Will Warren's Den, a boulder cave located on the mountain, is a local historic site. Rattlesnake Mountain is traversed by the 51-mile (82 km) Metacomet Trail.
The Blue-Blazed Hiking Trail system, managed by the Connecticut Forest & Park Association (CFPA), and the related trail systems documented in the two-volume 19th Edition of the "Connecticut Walk Book" comprise over 800 miles of hiking trails in Connecticut.
The Tunxis Trail is a 79-mile (127 km) Blue-Blazed hiking trail "system" that traverses the western ridge of the central Connecticut Valley. The mainline trail is not completely contiguous, notably there are two gaps of several miles.
The Naugatuck Trail is a 6.8-mile (10.9 km) Blue-Blazed hiking trail "system" in the eastern central-lower Naugatuck River Valley in New Haven County, Connecticut, USA. It is almost entirely contained in the Naugatuck State Forest. The mainline trail is primarily east to west with three short side or spur trails. Composed of four trails, at its western end the trail ends with a section alongside Route 8 and the Naugatuck River. During the 1930s and 1940s, it was much larger. But post–World War II housing developments of the Connecticut Blue-Blazed Trails, led to its drastic reduction.
The Paugussett Trail is a 14-mile (23 km) Blue-Blazed hiking trail "system" in the lower Housatonic River valley in Fairfield County and, today, is entirely in Shelton and Monroe, Connecticut. Much of the trail is in Indian Well State Park and the Town of Monroe's Webb Mountain Park. The mainline trail is primarily southeast to northwest with three short side or spur trails.
The Aspetuck Valley Trail is a 5.9-mile (9.5 km) Blue-Blazed hiking trail in the Aspetuck River Valley area of Fairfield County in the towns of Newtown, Easton and Redding Connecticut.
The Housatonic Range Trail is a 6.2-mile (10.0 km) Blue-Blazed hiking trail in the Housatonic Valley Region of Litchfield County in the town of New Milford in the Candlewood Mountain and Gaylordsville Connecticut sections. The north-south axis of the trail parallels the Housatonic River through private land and land trust parcels. The Housatonic Range Trail is maintained largely through the efforts of the Connecticut Forest and Park Association, which provides online Blue Trail maps.
The Zoar Trail is a 6.5-mile (10.5 km) Blue-Blazed hiking trail "system" in the lower Housatonic River valley in Fairfield County and is entirely in the Sandy Hook section of Newtown in the lower block of Paugussett State Forest.
The Kettletown Trails are a 4.6-mile (7.4 km) Blue-Blazed hiking trail "system" in the lower Housatonic River valley in Fairfield County and are in the towns of Southbury and Oxford -- primarily in the Kettletown State Park and the Jackson Cove recreation area belonging to the town of Oxford.
The Webb Mountain Discovery Zone is a 170 acre park and outdoor learning center in Monroe, Connecticut, United States. The adjacent 135 acre Webb Mountain Park connects up to a 13.5 mile trail network.
Haley Farm State Park is a public recreation area that preserves Colonial-era farmland as open space in the town of Groton, Connecticut. The site of the state park once formed part of the lands granted to Governor John Winthrop and later became a dairy farm. The park's 267 acres (108 ha) are connected to the adjacent Bluff Point State Park by way of a pedestrian bridge over railroad tracks. Park activities are restricted to bicycling and walking. The park is managed by Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection.
Johnnycake Mountain is the highest peak in Burlington, Connecticut at 1,161 ft and the 7th highest peak in Hartford County at the foothills of the Berkshires. The summit reflects the historical usage as a significant portion of the area was cleared of trees for farming; however, it is now developed with single-family homes. From the summit, one can see the Farmington River Valley and Heublein Tower to the east. The blue-blazed and white dot Tunxis Trail traverses the mountain, leading to a network of other trails in nearby Sessions Woods Wildlife Management Area and Nassahegon State Forest.
