Hike #28
Case Mountain Trails (White, Blue, Yellow/Grey, Yellow/Red, Grey/White, Pink, Yellow)
Date Hiked: 1/6/2013
Date Published: 1/23/2013
While on my “debacle-of-a-hike” in the Stony Creek Quarry Preserve down in Branford, I think I unearthed something sinister. That day, as I was trying to talk Roscoe off of a ledge (literally), I had done a lot of clearing away of snow and leftover leaves in an attempt to make him more comfortable with what I was asking him to do. And, in the process, I think I unearthed some kind of sickness/illness/plague. Of course, it could’ve just been that I was out in the cold for four hours sweating like crazy. But, I like the idea that I set loose some ancient plague upon the earth. In any case, the end result was that I (along with what seemed like the rest of the country) was soon dealing with the flu.
As a result of my sickness, I called out from work a few days after that hike (a Friday). And, even though I was feeling a little better by Saturday afternoon, I was still in no condition to hike. By Sunday morning, the morning of this hike, I was feeling better but still wasn’t sure if I would go hiking. Then, after eating far too much oatmeal, I was sitting at the computer desk in my office and Roscoe came in. I could tell that he wasn’t about to let me stay in the house both days of the weekend. So, I packed up my gear (but forgot my camera) and we headed out for a familiar place not too far from the house.
I had spent a lot of time on the Case Mountain Trails recently, but there were still a couple of trails in the southern end of the area which I hadn’t yet traveled. These trails didn’t count towards the CT400 so I left them off my original “list”. In hindsight, it is probably a good idea to cover them in case the Connecticut Forest & Park Association ever decides to add them to the CT400.
My initial plan for this hike was to take the white trail to the blue trail and follow that as far south as I could until I reached the red trail. With my chest congested, the initial mile or so climb up the white trail was a lot harder than I remembered. By the time I got to the top of the hill (and the left turn for the blue trail), I knew I had to adjust my plan. Rather than hike down the blue trail all the way to the red trail, I hiked it for another half mile or so and eventually made a right turn on to the yellow/grey trail. At this point, I was entering new territory.
The yellow/grey trail is nice, but it is similar to some of the other trails in the area. There are a few ups and downs…some lefts and some rights…an occasional rocky area…but, all in all, this isn’t very challenging stuff…even while still recovering from the flu. By the time I reached the trail, I had already ascended to the top of the ridge so the only real elevation change was a gradual descent.
Eventually, the yellow/grey trail comes to an intersection with the red trail…which comes back in from the left (deeper in the park) and changes over to the yellow/red trail on the right. I followed the yellow/red trail (which heads uphill…and back into the central region of the park) for about another half of a mile or so before making a slight right turn and taking the grey/white trail.
The grey/white trail (also new territory for me) is also nice. It is a little hillier than the yellow/grey trail, but still not anything overly challenging. There is a small chimney here in the middle of the woods (I was able to get a picture of it on a later hike), but nothing else of note.
Eventually, the grey/white trail makes its way out to the white (carriage) trail. I crossed over the white trail and hooked up with the pink trail. I
had traveled this trail before (on my very first Case Mountain hike) and knew that it would take me to the viewpoint on top of Lookout Mountain. Once I reached the viewpoint, I spent a few minutes enjoying the view (a view which my dad and I were robbed of on my last hike up here). Eventually, Roscoe and I made our back to the car via the yellow and blue trails.
Distance Hiked: 4.5 (flu-ridden) miles
Distance to 2013 Goal: 356.49 miles
Case Mountain Trails (White, Blue, Yellow/Grey, Yellow/Red, Grey/White, Pink, Yellow)
Date Hiked: 1/6/2013
Date Published: 1/23/2013
While on my “debacle-of-a-hike” in the Stony Creek Quarry Preserve down in Branford, I think I unearthed something sinister. That day, as I was trying to talk Roscoe off of a ledge (literally), I had done a lot of clearing away of snow and leftover leaves in an attempt to make him more comfortable with what I was asking him to do. And, in the process, I think I unearthed some kind of sickness/illness/plague. Of course, it could’ve just been that I was out in the cold for four hours sweating like crazy. But, I like the idea that I set loose some ancient plague upon the earth. In any case, the end result was that I (along with what seemed like the rest of the country) was soon dealing with the flu.
As a result of my sickness, I called out from work a few days after that hike (a Friday). And, even though I was feeling a little better by Saturday afternoon, I was still in no condition to hike. By Sunday morning, the morning of this hike, I was feeling better but still wasn’t sure if I would go hiking. Then, after eating far too much oatmeal, I was sitting at the computer desk in my office and Roscoe came in. I could tell that he wasn’t about to let me stay in the house both days of the weekend. So, I packed up my gear (but forgot my camera) and we headed out for a familiar place not too far from the house.
I had spent a lot of time on the Case Mountain Trails recently, but there were still a couple of trails in the southern end of the area which I hadn’t yet traveled. These trails didn’t count towards the CT400 so I left them off my original “list”. In hindsight, it is probably a good idea to cover them in case the Connecticut Forest & Park Association ever decides to add them to the CT400.
My initial plan for this hike was to take the white trail to the blue trail and follow that as far south as I could until I reached the red trail. With my chest congested, the initial mile or so climb up the white trail was a lot harder than I remembered. By the time I got to the top of the hill (and the left turn for the blue trail), I knew I had to adjust my plan. Rather than hike down the blue trail all the way to the red trail, I hiked it for another half mile or so and eventually made a right turn on to the yellow/grey trail. At this point, I was entering new territory.
The yellow/grey trail is nice, but it is similar to some of the other trails in the area. There are a few ups and downs…some lefts and some rights…an occasional rocky area…but, all in all, this isn’t very challenging stuff…even while still recovering from the flu. By the time I reached the trail, I had already ascended to the top of the ridge so the only real elevation change was a gradual descent.
Eventually, the yellow/grey trail comes to an intersection with the red trail…which comes back in from the left (deeper in the park) and changes over to the yellow/red trail on the right. I followed the yellow/red trail (which heads uphill…and back into the central region of the park) for about another half of a mile or so before making a slight right turn and taking the grey/white trail.
The grey/white trail (also new territory for me) is also nice. It is a little hillier than the yellow/grey trail, but still not anything overly challenging. There is a small chimney here in the middle of the woods (I was able to get a picture of it on a later hike), but nothing else of note.
Eventually, the grey/white trail makes its way out to the white (carriage) trail. I crossed over the white trail and hooked up with the pink trail. I
had traveled this trail before (on my very first Case Mountain hike) and knew that it would take me to the viewpoint on top of Lookout Mountain. Once I reached the viewpoint, I spent a few minutes enjoying the view (a view which my dad and I were robbed of on my last hike up here). Eventually, Roscoe and I made our back to the car via the yellow and blue trails.
Distance Hiked: 4.5 (flu-ridden) miles
Distance to 2013 Goal: 356.49 miles