Scrolling through the list of the 2018 Sky’s Limit Hiking Challenge in Connecticut, I wanted to explore unknown parts of the state that would be new to me. I haven’t spent much time in the Windham County area, neighboring Rhode Island.  I really had no idea where I was going and there was not too much info on the park online. But, I convinced my girlfriend to drive over an hour with a promise of beers and off we went.

Old Furnace State Park is located in Killingly, CT. You will find the park entrance off Route 6 via Route 395. Ross Pond State Park is fairly close so my GPS took me there instead. If yours does the same, just keep going past that until you can take a left onto South Frontage Road and the park will be there on your left.  The blue-blazed trail of this park runs about 3 miles. This particular hiking challenge calls for 2 miles round trip until you reach the overlook from the cliffs at 200 feet over Half Hill Pond. With this view you get a great look of valley stretching into Rhode Island.

We finally found the parking lot and noticed there was mountain biking event going on. Apparently, this is a big mountain biking trail. I didn’t expect to see anyone. The hiking trail starts at the parking lot.  I used the trail located at ct.gov here . The path instantaneously takes you into the woods.

As we began, we crossed a small brook that led us to crossing a small footbridge.

The trail was fairly wide open until we reached an unmarked section ducking through a brush of bushes. We found ourselves questioning our direction. Eventually, a blue marker did appear.

From here the ascent started to get steep. About a mile into the hike, we saw the path break into two. Unfortunately, we kept going straight and that was not correct and saw some brown marked trails.

Thus, we circled back and took the path to the left which was the ridge along the pond. And, finally we found ourselves at the cliffs overlooking Half Hill Pond.  The pond was completely filled with water lilies.

We stopped here because the trail was pretty buggy and I didn’t think the rest of the trail would offer much. But if you want to continue, this will lead you down to the parking lot and boat ramp at Ross Pond to Squaw Rock Road where you turn around and come back.  If you are not from the area, the directions to the park could be difficult and the trail itself has areas that should be marked better. The hike itself was not hard. I would rate it easy. I would bring bug spray and pay very close attention for the blue markers. Looks like a good area to fish and maybe kayak as well. I’m sure this is a nice spot for locals but one time is probably enough for me.

The Review

Old Furnace State Park, Blue Trail, Killingly, CT (~2m): 2.5 out of 5.

HIKING FOR DONUTS

A blog for the outdoors foodie enthusiast

Hi, I’m Mark. I live in Connecticut. I take new trips every chance I get. A good trip has a great hike, great food, and something fun to do. My goal is to search out new trips and share them to inspire others to try something new and exciting.

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