The banks of the Connecticut River, in Hartford and East Hartford were not maintained and…read moreovergrown. The area was under utilized despite the beautiful river view. In the early 80s, they cleaned up the area and connected four parks via the Riverwalk. This area gave me Waterplace Park Riverwalk, in Providence, RI vibes. The other parks are Charter Oak Landing, Riverside Park, and Great River Park. There is a bridge that connects the city with East Hartford, it goes over the river and connects it to the Great River Park. I visited this place during the Taste of the Caribbean and Jerk Festival. The place was clean and large with beautiful views of the river. The CT Science Museum is also connected. It's a great venue for different events; food trucks, vendors, and live bands. It was spacious and we enjoyed walking around and seeing the river.

The Mortensen Riverfront Plaza hostess's the Jerk Festival every year. I come every year to enjoy…read morethe festivities, food, and my favorite, the riverfront. The riverfront is beautiful. While enjoying the riverfront, you can enjoy your food, listen to music, and enjoy all the boats coming in and out of the dock. It is truly relaxing. I always end up staying at the riverfront for hours. This year the festival was packed and the lines were very long. It was maybe an hour wait for each truck. This year I passed on the food since this my fifth year here and I really didn't feel like standing in the lines. The festival truly is a great event and I look forward to coming each year.

This Canton Land Trust trail is located around 22 West Rd. There is street parking on the side of…read morethe road that can fit about 2 to 3 vehicles. It's in a nice neighborhood. The trailhead is across the street from the parking spots. You can make it an out and back trail by turning around at the blue marker. We continued to the orange trail to do the loop. It's about a 1 mile loop and I'd say it's moderate. The best feature was the Cherry Brook, so serene. Con: so many mosquitoes at 3 pm on a summer afternoon, so bring those insect repellents. There were some ascends and descends, not too hard of a hike. There was one narrow part with a steep drop by the river, so be careful. My kids and I were able to enjoy it and it took us about an hour since we stopped at the brook and have little legs lol.

This is a Cute trail to take a hike on! Beautiful in every season. The Waterfalls here are so…read morepeaceful and relaxing. You can hike all the way around the dam or just walk right up to the waterfalls. Dividend Pond - Hiking & Outdoors Located in Rocky Hill, Connecticut, Dividend Pond is now a scenic nature preserve with hiking trails looping around the Upper and Lower Ponds. Trails are about 2.5 miles total, moderate difficulty, and pass historic mill ruins from the 1600s-1800s. Billings & Spencer Co. - Hartford, CT's 19th‑century industrial powerhouse! Known for drop‑forged hand tools and innovative machinery, this company helped shape American manufacturing. Many of its historic factory buildings still stand today, now repurposed for the community. Founding and Early Years (1869-1873) In 1869, Charles E. Billings and Christopher M. Spencer, both former workers at Colt's Armory, partnered to found a company initially focused on manufacturing metal goods. Toolmaking and Drop Forging Billings & Spencer specialized in drop-forged mechanics' hand tools -- things like wrenches, pliers, vises, and machinist tools -- and ultimately became one of the leading tool manufacturers in the United States.

Quiet little hiking area. Waterfalls and a loop around the park…read more There are a few bridges and mostly flat terrain, but near the mill area is steep with stairs and small inclines.

Bunker Hill Trails are owned by Canton Land Conservation Trust (CLCT). The trailhead is on Bunker…read moreHill Road in Canton. There was parking on street, on the shoulder; maybe one or two cars can fit, tops. There was a sign showing where the trail starts. There were two trails; red and yellow (Scout Trail), 1-mile out & back and easy, based on their website. There are 54 acres with three parcels; Sweeton Pasture acquired in 2006, 4-acres donated by the Goodwin family in 2018, 12-acres purchased by CLCT in 2020. We went on a weekday evening and it was quiet. The bugs weren't too bad, I think because we had bug spray on. The trail was hilly, rocky, with tree stumps; some spots were overgrown. A pair of good hiking sneakers and a walking stick would've made this walk a little bit better. I am not a professional hiker by any means, but they labeled this trail as easy and in my opinion it was more moderate. There were steep inclines and declines on the trail; I wore my baby so that added an extra element. The woods were peaceful and the brook was exquisite. There was a brand new looking wooden bridge that goes over it and takes you through the yellow trail. Overall, an okay trail that needs more blazing in some spots. If you like a little bit of a challenge and sweat, I recommend it.

I was in the area and was looking for a playground. This one popped up. There are soccer, baseball,…read moreand softball fields. A bocce court, pavilion, picnic tables, and walking paths. There is a basketball court too. The playground was nice and large. I counted about 20 swings, a playscape, little free library, a rock structure for climbing, and another pavilion. I love the walking paths, it's shaded and many people running and walking on it. Overall, such a lovely park!

I love the stone tower! The first time I came here the place seemed enchanted, covered with…read morethousands of ladybugs flying around and all over the actual tower. They were also bees and other things buzzing around dragonflies and such. That was in October of 2024. We went back yesterday (April 7th 2026) there wasn't anything flying around, but it still was a magical place to go. lol. It's a great place to go for people who don't really wanna do a huge hike. Very easily accessible and pretty.

"All along the watchtower Princes kept the view…read moreWhile all the women came and went Barefoot servants, too" (Bob Dylan) Want to take a very cool and very short hike that ends at a spectacular water tower? If so, you'll love this 15 minute hike that runs about .6 mile out and back. There's a fascinating history behind Camp Columbia State Forest. Between 1885 and 1983 Columbia University held engineering and surveying classes on the property. In fact, a summer program at the camp was mandatory for engineering students. I also learned that Columbia University President Dwight Eisenhower spent time at the camp watching football practices and hunting. Some important stuff was invented and created here. Want an example? Sure you do. Well how about the concrete roof over Madison Square Garden? That engineering breakthrough was pioneered here. World War I saw the US Army train their officers and hold mock infantry assaults here. Student interest in the "Camp Experience" fell in the 1960s and combined with changes to the engineering curriculum, Columbia ended their use of the Camp. For the next 20 years or so, they used it on special occasions but eventually closed it in 1983. By 1989, many of the camp buildings had deteriorated so badly that the town declared them as public hazards and they were demolished in a controlled burn training exercise. In 2000, the state of Connecticut bought the property for $2.1 million. The outbound trail has a very slight incline, and be careful of the tree roots and rocks, or you may end up on your face. Also, be careful of a few downed trees that rudely block the trail. We saw two very cool things on the trail. The first was an old abandoned building, probably a camp meeting house. The roof was partially open from wear and tear, The front door was wide open, and we saw there was quite a bit of spray painted graffiti inside. The other cool thing we saw was a 60-foot cylindrical water tower with an observation platform, a gift of Columbia's Class of 1906. The front door to the tower was open as well, and if you're more adventurous than we were, you can walk up those stairs to another door that leads to an exterior cylindrical staircase. The scenery along the trail is very pretty with lots of wild flowers and berry bushes. (The park is on West St in Morris, CT. I submitted the address correction to Yelp)

This 266 acre park just opened in June 2026 after some renovations; it's on the Farmington and New…read moreBritain line. There is a playground, splash pad, picnic pavilions, trails, boating, and fishing. It's a beautiful park. We went to the splash pad and the kids loved it. The view of the water was nice too. There was ample parking. Overall, worth a visit!

They are working on cleaning it up and getting it more things for families to use besides just…read moreboating but it's nice to stroll around

"In and around the lake" (Roundabout - Jon Anderson and…read moreSteve Howe) While walking roundabout the lake at Stanley Quarter Park I realized a few things. #1 - You can't blame a goose for being a goose. #2 - You can't blame a few hundred geese for doing what a few hundred geese leave behind, basically a lot of #2. #3 - As a result of #2, you can't blame me for docking this post for a fifth star. Pretty much across the street from the University of Central Connecticut College's campus you'll find this gorgeous park with a big lake, a multi-station fitness trail, and a nice and easy 0.6 mile looped walking path around the lake. The path took us over a few stone and wood bridges and gave us a great look at hundreds of geese and what looked like seagulls. The geese were everywhere - in the water, on the grassy hills, frolicking and flapping their wings in the lake, and honking so much they made us laugh. But the problem we encountered was the byproduct of those hundreds of geese and the ensuing mess they leave on the path around the lake. You'd better watch your step very carefully or you'll be walking into globs of goose shit. It was everywhere, and there was a shit ton of it. Now like I said, ya can't blame a goose for doing what a goose does, but I feel like someone at the municipal level has badly dropped the ball by not better maintaining things.

Very nice park , there is a nice walking trail around the pond and the playground is very fun for…read morekids.