This guide will give you everything you need to enjoy this trail including parking, pictures, gpx files and videos as well as some background history and hints and tips.
Super Speedy Summary
This 24 mile Trail used to be part of the Appalachian Trail in CT before it was diverted. As a result you get a ‘Raiders of the Lost App’ feel with a trail that gives you a historic look into the past. We didn’t see a single person on the two days we spent on trail and this is bound to be because of the ‘draw’ of the younger Appalachian ‘sibling’ nearby. This trail has some stunning views at both ends and three old Appalachian shelters tucked away on it but be warned, the lack of footfall means the overgrown foliage and neglected blue blazing in the northern half make this a very challenging trail. The 2 mile ‘tips’ at both ends are very steep and technical with superb views. If you want all of the best of this trail with less of the ‘filler’ then you may want to consider ignoring the northern half entirely.
In the Summer Bring bug spray. Bring A LOT OF bug spray.
In Depth Guide
The Mohawk Trail was established in 1988 and takes in the older part of the Appalachian Trail through CT that was diverted west of the Housatonic River. The trail is 24 miles long running from Cornwall in the south to Falls Village at its northernmost tip .
The trail is maintained by the CFPA and is part of their Blue Blaze Series of trails.
The trail has 3 shelters on it too making it ideal for a multi day trip. Going from North to South the shelters are at mile 4, 13 and 15.
History
The Mohawk trail is part of the old Appalachian trail and its heritage is still recognizable from the signs of old blazes, AT marker signs and shelters on the route. The current route now heads north on the west of the Housatonic River whereas this trail takes a longer lazy reverse C shape for 24 miles on the eastern side of the Housatonic.
The Mohawk Tribe
The Trail is names after the Mohawk people who are the most easterly tribe of the Haudenosaunee, or Iroquois Confederacy. They are an Iroquoian-speaking indigenous people of North America, with communities in northern New York State and southeastern Canada, primarily around Lake Ontario and the St Lawrence River. As one of the five original members of the Iroquois League, the Mohawk are known as the Keepers of the Eastern Door – the traditional guardians of the Iroquois Confederation against invasions from the east.
Historically, the Mohawk people were originally based in the valley of the Mohawk River in present-day upstate New York, west of the Hudson River.
North to South
Shona and I chose to do this trail north to south because it presented the best opportunity for overnight shelters to use around just over half way in. The information on this trail is scarce online but we found that there is a useable shelter with a wood burning stove 4.3 miles from the Northern terminus, and two useable shelters at mile 13 and mile 15 when travelling North to South. There is more info on the history of the Red Mountain Shelter here.
The Terrain
The views are spectacular but this trail is not an easy one. There are large climbs totaling nearly 6000ft of ascent across the trail and the rocks and scrambles can be very challenging. The initial climb up and down on the northern tip is very challenging and would be unwise in wet or icy weather.
Raiders of the Lost App
After the first few miles and a stunning waterfall as you head southwards on the trail you get steadily worn down by faded blue blazes, fallen trees, tricky terrain and relentless biting insects from the large ponds that the trail skirts. With huge cobwebs, little sign of footfall and Shelters that smell old and musty ( but in a nice way) the whole thing felt like something out of the Raiders of the Lost Ark movies.
The level of difficulty here is easily on a par with the Appalachian Trail itself and whilst some of it is enjoyable we think that simply starting at Red Mountain around 10 miles south from the northern end gives you the best the trail has to offer with far less of the sections that grinds you down, cuts you up and leaves you with a hatred of flying insects.
We started late in the day on the trail and as night fell we got to the 13 mile mark and found a very pleasant open wooded camping area with an ‘ex’ AT shelter just along the trail. We pushed on for Mohawk Mountain Ski Resort where the trail crosses the Mattatuck trail and another shelter sits at the 15 mile mark.
A Night in the Woods
We spent the night at the 15 mile shelter on the outskirts of the Mohawk Ski Resort, tying our food up into the trees further down the trail to avoid attracting bears and woke up at sunrise to find one of the best toilets I’ve seen on trail in the USA. It was clean and even had toilet paper in it! The view from the Mohawk Mountain Ski Resort is spectacular and we settled in to continue heading west on the trail towards Cornwall.
Shona recently discovered Citronella Repellent Coils and they are incredibly effective at keeping insects at bay so we used one at the entrance of the shelter all night.
I’ve written a guide to Wild/Stealth camping here and a Multi Day Kit List here.
After Mohawk Mountain you are treated to more rolling forest and farms and the Cathedral Pines Preserve is beautiful but has rather a lot of ‘widow makers’ hanging precariously in the trees caused from other falling trees and a tornado from 1988.
After Cathedral Pines you are treated to a stunning landscape as you walk along the road before beginning the brutal ascent up Coltsfoot Mountain.
Sources of Water on Trail
Despite if being a hot July and some streams showing signs of being dried up or low we found that there was plenty of opportunity to fill up water bottles in streams throughout the trail.
Wildlife
Perhaps the isolation or lack of footfall accounts for the diversity of wildlife we saw on trail, but being there during a very hot and humid July may also have played a part. This is the most Butterflies, Toads and Salamanders I’ve seen ( often a sign of a healthy unpolluted environment) as well as scores of bats at night hunting insects drawn to my headtorch, skunks and rabbits. There are also a lot of birds too in the woods.
Coltsfoot Mountain
The terrain on the ascent is brutal and unrelenting but the scenery is stunning as you climb. You basically zig zag up a massive rocky slope and overhang with terraces of boulders and outcrops. Once up on the top at 1400ft you don’t get much of a view, but amble along the top is wonderful and towards the end of the ridge you come across Echo Rocks. There is some hint online that there was an area called Baldwin Caves up there, but evidence of it and a the trail leading too it seem to be sparse.
Cornwall Country Market
At the southern tip within a mile of the finish is Cornwall Country Market. This little Oasis of a store has a super deli and we enjoyed a great breakfast there before finishing the last mile which climbs up to meet the Appalachian Trail there.
Shona was also the first woman to submit a time for this trail to the Fastest Known Time website so holds the current female record despite our slow enjoyable pace and overnight stay.
Summary
This trail is tough but rewarding. I love that it gives you a look back into the past for the AT and many hikers will love the isolation and lack of others on it. This isolation comes with a price in the form of the state of the trail which is not for the feint hearted. Navigation is tough in places with overgrown areas, fallen trees, long faded blue blazes and ferocious biting insects. Some of the climbs are challenging and technical too, but if you are willing to persevere there are views and areas on this trail that are stunning and well worth it. The shelters on trail make doing this in 2 days possible, but I would also suggest considering starting this trail at Red Mountain and heading south to get the most out of it with far less of the ‘tough bits with little reward’.
The more adventurous can use the Appalachian Trail to ‘complete the loop’ and get back to where you started. This makes a loop of around 35 miles and would take a strong hiker 2 days to complete.
I cannot stress enough how much bug spray you need to bring.
Parking
There are a large number of parking points along the trail. We parked at the northern terminus by the school and left the other car parked in Cornwall by the bridge.
Northern Terminus parking here
Southern Terminus Parking here
Distance and Elevation – 24.3 miles 5800ft
Garmin GPX file download here
Thanks for this post! I, too, found it hard to find information on this trail so this was incredibly useful. We camped at the Mohawk State Forest Lean-To #3 (same as you – naming convention from this map https://portal.ct.gov/-/media/DEEP/stateparks/maps/backpacking/MohawkCampSite1pdf.pdf) and used it as the starting point for 2 out-and-back day hikes. The first day we started at the Mattatuck/Mohawk Jct and hiked on the Mattatuck, with a swim in Mohawk Pond. The second day we returned to the junction and continued on the Mohawk trail (so we were hiking north to south – but the westerly part of the trail). We thought these sections of the trails were well-marked. After exiting Cathedral Pines on the Mohawk trail, we had a question as to whether we should continue through the tiny parking lot to the rest of Cathedral Pines…but don’t! Seemed like it would have been very, very difficult given the number of downed trees. Instead, look across the road (Essex Hill Rd) and see a sign partially hidden by vines pointing you to the right. Follow the road to the bottom of the hill, and then continue straight (you won’t see a blaze for a bit – and when you do it will be on the back of a speed limit sign). It turns out it’s better marked in the opposite direction…I recommend stopping under the big blazed tree – there is a nice bench which provides both a lovely rest and a lovely view.
Thank you again for your post!
Great to hear from you and enjoyed this trail as much as I did. I agree that small section of ‘naturaly looked after park’ with all the fallen trees has become something of a potential hazard now with the number of hanging widowmakers. Safe Trails ! L-S