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Letterboxing Northeast Western Boxes
Hike: moderately difficult but well marked. Approximately 5 miles/3 hours. Clues: easy. Westwoods is one of those urban jewels endemic to affluent Connecticut towns: 1000 acres of open space with a perfect trail system just waiting for letterboxes. Trails are blazed according to a simple system, which is lucky because there are so many routes and places to see in Westwoods that it can be quite confusing. North-south trails are blazed with circles (the "o" in north-south), and east-west trails have rectangles. Squares indicate alternate paralleling routes, while "x" blazes mark crossovers and are in the color of the trail they lead to. Some intersections are numbered. Whew, Yankee ingenuity! Directions: From I95 in Guilford, CT, take exit 57 and head east/north on Rt. 1. Turn right onto Peddler Lane (just past Peddler on Rt. 1 is Bishop's Orchard Farm Market, a good place to pick up a map of the Westwoods Trails, as well as a fresh snack for the hike). Westwoods parking area #2 is 1 mile down Peddler Ln on the left just after Dennison St, and has an info board with an excellent map of the trail system. Our path today will cross lots of trail intersections and will lead over a multitude of massive rock ledges, and rather than describe them in detail, these clues will just mention which trails to follow. Expect climbing, views, and marvels around every corner. From the parking area, follow the white-circle trail a short way before turning left onto the green-circle trail. After about 0.75 miles, turn right (west) onto the blue-rectangle trail, Westwood's main east-west route. After 0.5 miles, at intersection #34, turn left (south) onto the yellow-circle trail and follow it for about a mile to intersection #28. Turn right (south again) onto the white-circle trail and in a short distance emerge onto the Lost Lake overlook. With the island in the lake bearing 210 degrees, your first box is just 50 yards behind you in a cool ravine. To get there, return back up the white-circle northwards to turn right on the red-x trail. Just down the way you'll find a curiously balanced shard of rock. Turning right at 160 degrees, bushwack down into the ravine keeping a ledge of rock close on your left hand. The Lost Lake Letterbox is at the base of the south face of this small cliff, out of sight of the many picnic happy hikers at the overlook. Return northwards up the white-circle trail the length of the park, crossing straight over the familiar blue-rectangle, to intersection #22. Turn right (east) onto the green-rectangle trail and then left (north) onto the orange-square trail (if you reach intersection #12 on the green-rectangle, you've gone to far and have missed the orange-square). A short way up this trail, emerge into a relatively open area with a scattering fern and with another large outcrop of gneiss on your left. The Monument Letterbox is stashed in a jumble of rocks at the base of the south face of this cliff, just 25 yards or so from the path. Stamp in, then continue up the orange-square trail, join the orange-circle trail and head northwards another quarter mile. At the next intersection follow the white-circle trail over a terrific marshy boardwalk, and then up a hill and over the field to your waiting car.
A single letterbox piggy backed onto the three boxes planted by the ESAK family on the Tunxis Trail overlooking the Lake Compounce amusement park in Southington, CT. For the clues to the Fish Head, Marble Rock, and Jullian's Rock letterboxes, see: www.letterboxing.org/ma/fishhead.htm This is a very scenic (and steep) hike that will carry you up a lovely streamside trail to terrific views. Figure 2 1/2 miles and 2 hours. First, find the Fish Head and Marble Rock letterboxes per the ESAK directions. After climbing to ESAK's first "sizable bald granite summit with a log bench" and following the "narrow, twisting, easy path," come to a T-intersection. Turn to 030 and walk to a smooth-rocked, east-facing overlook with expansive views. Follow the blue trail a short way downhill. On the right you'll see a knee high chunk of stone with an overhanging lip on its' eastern face. There are a couple of small white birch trees in the foreground. Walk gently across the moss and find the Thrill Ride letterbox tucked into the rocks' south-facing overhang. Now return up to the T-intersection to find Jullian's Rock.
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