A warm, English-Tudor style cottage built in the 1920s on the top of a meadow surrounded by…read moregardens. Fields filled with birds, butterflies and dragonflies. I wish I could describe it better... I'm not going to, because I'm tired. I guess you can always just look at the photos. Unless you decide to actually go and experience it for yourself. Either way...

Since moving to CT, we discovered a great program that gives a little incentive for visiting a…read morenumber of CT state parks, the DEEP Sky's The Limit Program. In 2017, Topsmead was among the parks listed, so we decided to go give it a visit. Winter was not the best time to visit, and it's hard to give it a really good/fair rating. The main farmhouse area was closed for the season, and the weather wasn't really great for hiking. It would be a great spot for cross country skiing in the winter, though. The outstanding negative at the time of our visit were the state of the toilets. They're pit toilets, which is fine, but they were not dug at all deeply, and if not for the freezing weather, I can imagine it would be rather unpleasantly fragrant. We'll definitely be visiting again and reevaluating at some point.

At first glance, a neighborhood park with a few cottages, a field, and a large dirt parking lot…read more The cottages were for the Girl Scouts based on the sign I saw on them. I was here for the playground so I walked across the field to the back and found it. I didn't realize there were parking in the back lot and closer to the playground. The fenced in playground was big and had plenty of swings and space for my toddler to run around. The weather was perfect (55 degrees in February) so there were a few other people there. There was snow on the ground in certain parts, so it was very muddy/slippery in some spots. A few of the playscapes were taped off with caution tape; I'm assuming they were broken. This park is on 200 acres of land and has many events. There is a 50 acre lake area. The spring fed lake is called West Hill Lake; people can swim, fish, and boat in it. In the summer, you will need to buy a beach pass. They also have tennis courts, sand volleyball courts, and basketball courts. Nearby and across the street, you can find the Franklin P. Kearney Conservative Trail. Overall, a great spot to get some fresh air and exercise. Hopefully they will fix the broken playscapes and it will be less muddy when it gets warmer soon.

Just not great. Has a lot that could be improved. Not well kept, run of the mill regular park.read more

This was another park on our list of the CT DEEP Sky's The Limit Challenge, which was highlighting…read morelesser known and obscure parks. This one definitely fits the bill! It doesn't even merit a full page on the DEEP website, although there's a good map on the page where it's listed. Also, the John Muir Trail (a CPFA Blue Blazed Trail) has a loop in the park, and connects across to nearby Paugnut State Forest and over to Burr Pond State Park. According to some research I did, this park used to have more improvements, back when it first opened in the 70s. You can find the traces of these if you take the blue trail south from the parking area - it follows a former road and then parking lot. This particular day, there had been a lot of snowfall, so we were snow hiking, first along the yellow trail and then some of the blue. There were also plenty of snowshoe and cross country ski tracks. Quite a few people were walking their dogs as well. There are no picnic tables here, no bathrooms as well. It's just super basic dirt parking here. There were lots of really cool streamlets and brooks feeding the East Branch of the Naugatuck River, which runs past the park as well. I would imagine that there's good fishing here. There are quite a number of trails in addition to the blue trail, so although they're not super long, there's a lot of interesting things to see. You could easily make a long hike of things here by taking the blue trail around this park and over to Burr Pond. Another nice little obscure park to check out!

This "Park" is an embarrassment. Anyone who gives it 5 stars seriously can't be trusted! I've been…read moreto many of CT's State Parks & Forests... This one is by far THE WORST. 1st - It sucks, don't bother. 2nd - This park is hard to find. 3rd - The parking lot is absolutely terrible. The entrance is rough, the parking lot itself is filled with potholes and there are several rocks that might damage a low riding vehicles undercarriage. 4th - Nothing is marked. I truly mean that. I wouldn't recommend this park's trails unless you have experience and a map saved on your smartphone or printed out. BECAUSE... 5th - Cell/Mobile service sucks here!!! I'm going back because I feel almost obligated to actually hike the trails. I didn't hike today mainly because I didn't have cell service... I also like to hike with knowledge of where I am. Maybe trails with signs would've helped...? Who knows. This park is so bad, it's almost laughable. I don't recommend going! Of course during the extreme heat you'll also fight nasty flies and ticks! So it's kinda like you're preparing for hell. That's probably the best way to describe this park, Hell! I took photos of hell, feel free to look.

If you need an outside local getaway, the Litchfield Community Field is a great place. There are…read moreseveral baseball fields, a walking path, playground, tennis courts, and pavilion. In non-Covid times, it must be hopping - there's a location for restrooms and concessions! I guess hot dogs for little league games? A much more authentic experience.

I wish I had been there to understand. Why is this little triangle a park? What madness proceeded…read morethe decision to pay money and order a sign designating this space a park? I'm not sure how you can even access it because it's IN the intersection. It's across from some houses and the Methodist Church. I'm not sure any of the three roads around it have a cross walk. I guess you could fit a chair to spend an afternoon breathing exhaust fumes and hoping everyone merges correctly?

This is not a real park. It is a traffic island. The "Welcome to Torrington Grier Park" sign was…read morededicated to my father in 1996. Should not be on any maps or apps as a park. He was well respected in the community and did a lot for the City of Torrington, including keeping the island free of trash. Over the years, other people and civic organizations have carried on the tradition to keep it clean. Neither the state nor the town paid for the sign. It was donated.

The Litchfield Green has a lot of history - I believe this is where King George stood before the…read morestatue was melted down during the Revolution. Now it's about two islands of grass with a few plaques and benches, surrounded by shops and a chaotic traffic system. There is an information booth that is staffed I believe more in the week. The Green has summer concerts, bring your own chair, and an annual craft fair. Parking is most okay, but when there's an event or summer weekend it's packed. There is a parking lot behind the storefronts, and now that the pandemic is over there are separate roads to enter and exit. (The pandemic saw the exit sacrifice for outdoor dinning, and getting out became a very careful drive) Cops do like to sit on the Green for stopping and cell phone citations, and will judge the drivers on whether they look like they belong. They do give that game away when they ask how long you've lived in a lower income city, and not only have you never lived there, they're literally reading your license with a completely different address. That's not really the fault of the Green itself though.

First time exploring this charming town, rich with history, Litchfield, CT…read more The Litchfield Town Green is a long park in the middle of the town center, going west and east. The park is split up into three sections, West Park, Center Park, and East Park. It is surrounded by restaurants, shops, religious buildings, historic homes etc. There are benches, Cival War cannon, memorials for the Cival War, World Wars, Korean, and Vietnamese wars. There were plenty of street parking throughout the area. The area was bustling with traffic and people. Overall, from first impressions, Litchfield gave me that charming New England town feel; their town green was also just as lovely.

This recreation and conservation area in Harwinton has a pond, playground, picnic pavilion, beach…read morevolleyball net, benches, and trails. The trails are used for hiking and mountain biking; trailheads are located at multiple locations, such as Bentley Drive and South Road. The trails were a little muddy and buggy since it just rained; it was easy to walk on with a few roots here and there. I saw a structure that looked a like a teepee. These trails are connected to the library, sports complex, and town hall. There were plenty of parking and the road going into the parking area was narrow and on a hill; it almost looked like a private driveway. The entrance was in front of a traffic light. We went to the playground shortly after it rained so it was damp. It was a small playground on mulch. There were a couple of slides, a handful of swings, and ladders. The pond was beautiful with all the water lilly pads and flowers; I saw quite a few fish. Per the town's website, it's stocked with trout every spring. There was an old looking tennis court; it appeared to be run down and taped off, so I'm not sure if it's open. Overall, a great conservation and leisure area.