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| View of New Haven from the top of West Rock State Park CT |
In this blog I discover a superb trail in Connecticut called the Regicides Trail which has a strong and interesting link to The Monarchs Way in the UK which I hold a Fastest Known Time on. I discover ‘Chicken of the Woods‘, scramble along the edge of a huge rocky ridge and sample some superb brewery Tap House Beer at either end of the Trail.
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| The Regicides Trail Connecticut |
I now live in New Haven in CT in the USA. This little City is surrounded by the countryside and I’m less than a mile from 2 national parks so its a trail runners dream. The Regicides Trail starts in West Rock State Park and is about 7 miles long. Regicides is a BBHT or Blue Blaze Hiking Trail maintained by the state. Connecticut now has over 800 miles of blue marked trails. They are similar to the National Trust Trails maintained in the UK.
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| Lee-Stuart Evans on the Regicides Trail in Connecticut |
The Regicides Trail is named after Whalley and Goffe who were two of the 50 people that signed the death warrant of Charles I in England. They famously hid in the area and escaped capture when his successor Charles II retook the throne and sought revenge for his fathers execution. The ‘judges’ as they are known famously hid out in a Cave at the top of West Rock State Park known as the Judges Cave.
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| Judges Cave Regicides Trail Connecticut |
I love the link between the USA and UK that this trail holds. In the UK I have travelled the entire Monarchs Way in full twice, following in the footsteps of a 19 year old future King Charles II who was on the run. Here in the USA I find another trail, this time with Government men being pursued by the Kings men and again, like Charles II evading capture through the cunning and help of locals.
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| The Blue Blazes marking the Regicides Trail Connecticut |
In the UK most national trails are marked sporadically on posts and gates with an official looking small plastic badge for the trail. Its all very polite and British. In the USA the major trails are marked with coloured (note my spelling) blazes. These are literally oblongs of paint on the trees and the rocks. Unlike the polite sporadic UK cousins these blazes are often very frequent, and in fact most of the time you can see 3 or 4 blazes at any one time. Its a runners dream for speedily blasting along a trail and means you can concentrate on your footing rather than regularly keep checking maps. The downside is that USA trails are poorly mapped online in general, and one of my biggest surprises here was the lack of a definitive contour, feature and trail map such as the UK Ordnance Survey Map. Although frustrating it does add to the ‘frontier’ feel and excitement to find many trails where you have literally no idea where they go!
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| Trailmixers running the Regicides Trail Connecticut |
Last weekend I got the chance to meet up with some of the local runners called the CT Trailmixers a few of which I had met before on the Ragnar Trail. I set off an hour earlier than them because I’m still finding the heat and high humidity a huge problem with doing any kind of speedy running. My girlfriend Shona organises a ‘Beer Loop’ run from New Haven to a brewery called the Counterweight Brewing Co and then back to New Haven via another trail to finish at the New England Brewing Co.
Both brewerys have a ‘tap house’ that basically means they can serve beer on the premises. I sampled some great dark beers at Counterweight and then headed off again at the back of the pack slightly more ‘relaxed’ for the return loop. We returned by another trail that was off the ridge and passed the beautiful Wintergreen Lakes.
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| Wintergreen Lakes Connecticut |
On the more familiar trails closer to home I noticed loads of different types of fungus on the trees, one of which was pointed out to me as a very sought after delicacy called chicken of the woods. I didnt eat it but apparently …it tastes like chicken.
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| Chicken of the Woods in Connecticut |
We finished the run at NEBCO ( New England Brewing Company) for more great beer and Pizza. Whilst I sat with the Trailmixers I realised how much fun I had, but just how different the trail conditions and humidity are here and how much it affects me. Its going to take me a while to get my running gear and body used to the trails here.
There are 800 miles of blue blaze trail in CT. I suspect this mini adventure has given me the taste of what the area has to offer and perhaps the challenge of running all the Blue Blaze trails in CT in the 2 years that my Visa lasts for. My next plan is to do a weekend on the Appalachian Trail, which has about 50 miles running through Connecticut.
I maintain the Regicides Trail and most of the other trails at West Rock Ridge State Park. The state park map has all the trails clearly shown, although not with contour and elevation data. That kind of information can be found on open street map. A couple of corrections. There are no national parks in Connecticut. West Rock is a state park. East Rock Park is a New Haven city park. The major lake at West Rock is Lake Wintergreen, sometimes known as Wintergreen Lake. My website has detailed information about the park.
Hi Tom, nice to hear from you. Am I right in thinking that The Appalachian Trail through CT is a national park ? as well as Weir Farm National Historic Site? The New England Trail? The Washington-Rochambeau National Historic Trail? Quinebaug & Shetucket Rivers Valley National Heritage Corridor? This blog was written a while back when I first came to CT, since then I’ve spent some time on the CT trails and still come to love ‘Reggie’ near me as one of my favourites. Perhaps my newer trail guide about regicides here is probably more relevant now – https://theairlandandsea.com/2019/04/regicides-trail-guide.html Regards L-S
The website did not show up in my previous posting:
https://westrocktrails.blogspot.com/