Introducing French's Hill

Painting new trail blazes during a January thaw

A substantial new trail is in progress this winter at French's Hill, also known as French's Farm. It's located in the White Hills opposite East Village Park and above Indian Well State Park, although it does not connect directly with the latter. An out-and-back hike over the new loop will cover 1.5 miles, and there's an option for taking a short spur trail to a dramatic hilltop meadow. 

Progress Map (click to enlarge)

Trailhead parking is located at the end of a short drive with an entrance that is opposite the mailbox for #46 East Village Road. The entrance is easy to miss, but there is a good-sized parking lot at the end of this drive.  Under the drive and parking area is a solid base of crushed stone created by the local developer from whom a small section of the French's Hill Open Space was acquired. It all became overgrown and you would never know there is crushed stone underneath it all, but it's there. 

"Before": The crushed-stone driveway in early December
(there is crushed stone under the grass)

"After": The drive was cleared back enough
so trail volunteers and staff could park

The drive entrance back in 2006, believe it or not.

Mark Vollaro cutting back the overgrown parking area

The 111-acre open space property is dominated by a cleared hilltop that rises 100 feet above East Village Road. This is no typical Connecticut rocky hilltop, but is a classic drumlin that formed when a pile of sediments were molded and compacted underneath a glacier.  It's the highest point around. You can look east across the Housatonic River Valley, or turn west and watch the sun set over distant hills.

The flat top of French's Hill is the highest point in all directions

The flat top of the drumlin is tilled for corn and the eastern slopes grow hay.  During the offseason, people are free to stroll about the open hilltop, but the area should be avoided during the growing season since the land is licensed to a local farmer. 

Looking east across the Housatonic Valley

From the top of French's Hill the land slopes gradually eastward towards the Housatonic River, dropping 550 feet in less than a mile. The hillside was compacted first by the glaciers and later by livestock, and water tends to stay near the surface rather than sink in. This is challenging terrain for a hiking trail. Parts of an old ATV track that was constructed illegally in 2012 were incorporated into the new trail system for the time being to keep things simple. 

Mark & Luis clear a massive blowdown where the footing is less bad
along a stone wall

The routing was chosen in December before the ground froze at time when ground conditions are typically at their worst.  There are still stretches of trail that will be muddy for much of the year. It was unavoidable. Over time, these areas may be "hardened" with stepping stones or helped with bog bridges. In the meantime, hikers should come prepared with proper footwear, especially during Mud Season. 

The lower meadow

The terrain was often found to be a bit drier near the old stone walls. Sometimes one side was much higher and drier than the other side, which can happen over time when the uphill side is tilled for crops.

 

Deceased Long-Tailed Weasel

There's a lot of wildlife at French's Hill. Deer, turkey, and coyote are all over the place. A frozen weasel was found under the powerlines, probably dropped by a hawk based on the puncture wound on its neck.  The spot has been nicknamed "Weasel Way." Staff with the Connecticut DEEP collected the weasel to use in a study. There are two type of weasels in Connecticut: short-tailed and long-tailed. They are hard to tell apart, but all the short-tailed weasels turn white in the winter and only some of the long-tailed weasels do, so this would appear to be the latter. These tiny but fierce predators eat mice and rabbits and ducks and anything else they can kill. 

"Weasel Way" - a complex junction of farm roads 
under the powerlines

"Weasel Way" is the most potentially confusing part of the new trail. Farm roads and meadows and the powerlines all come together in a complex offset intersection, and hikers will need to pay attention. For the winter, the trail route is marked with survey tape that says "TRAIL" on it in Sharpie. Later one we'll get some 4x4 posts and arrows. 

Stay tuned! We expect to do more clearing of the trail and parking area, paint some blazes, and maybe improve some of the wetter spots and the weather and time allows.