The hot, sticky humidity broke as Jay, Matt and I carpooled
up to New Discovery State Park to meet Steve in his lean-to for our Groton State Forest trail running adventure.
Severe thunderstorms were passing to the south, bringing cooler air
perfect for an evening run.
Steve was settled in Raven lean-to in New Discovery
campground.This quiet park is
exquisitely maintained with spotless toilet buildings, neatly raked campsites
and completely empty fireplaces. If you
are looking for a quiet retreat in a beautiful forested setting, New Discovery
is the campground for you. The greater
Groton area is phenomenal for a variety of outdoor pursuits, and will be
featured in additional blog entries by our crew. There is so much to explore.
We headed down Blake Hill Road a dirt road which conveniently
starts at the gated end of the campground road where Raven is located, in campground
loop B. A short way down Blake Hill
Road, Big Deer Mountain trail turns off on the right...which we managed to run right
past only to discover our error after a few more minutes of running. Oops! The
Big Deer Mt. trail runs through a pine plantation and later a nice mixed hardwood
stand. The forest is beautiful and
quiet, you feel like you really are in the middle of a peaceful retreat, an
undiscovered area. We passed some
interesting relics of Civilian Conservation Corps work, which is scattered
throughout the entire Groton State Forest. When I see a beautifully constructed fireplace out in the middle of the
woods, I cannot help but ponder what this place was like when it was
constructed, and what the plan for it was.
The trail stays pretty flat until around 1.1 miles, where
there is a trail intersection and the trail rises steeply the last half mile to
the summit of Big Deer Mountain. Views are fantastic from two rocky outcrops on
the top. You can see Peacham Pond, Lake
Groton, and Peacham Bog. It was overcast
while we were there, but on clear days you should be able to see the White
Mountains from the summit. There is also
a very impressive boulder at the top, a large glacial erratic appearing to be
dropped on its side by a receding glacier 10,271 years ago. There was a nice breeze on top, which was
great for keeping away the pesky deer flies which were otherwise in full force
during our run.
From Big Deer Mountain we dropped back down to the
intersection, where we turned left on the other Big Deer Mt. Trail, this one
leading to the Osmore Pond Trail. This
trail crosses a wetland area, with a series of puncheons that were a little
slippery, but easy to navigate and better than getting wet feet. This trail crosses a couple intersections; from
there you could connect to Big Deer State Park and the nearby nature center
located close to Lake Groton, a hub for many other trails. You could easily plan a really nice long
trail run starting from the same place where we started. (It would be a
spectacular run too!) We also crossed
the new power line trail, which is a new multi-use trail—it is wider and more
even terrain than the hiking trails we ran on and is worth an exploration.
We reached the trail to Little Deer Mountain and decided to throw
in another mountain. This was a quick
half mile ascent with wonderful views of Lake Groton and the surrounding
mountains. There are not many places in
Vermont where you can stand at a scenic vista and not see very many signs of
human beings. That combined with not
seeing anyone else on the trails makes you feel like you really are out on a
wilderness adventure.
From there we dropped back down to the Osmore Pond Trail,
which runs along the boulder strewn shoreline of this remote pond. This pond hosts a pair of nesting loons and
is a wonderful place to paddle around on. There are some beautiful remote campsites along the shore that would be
worth paddling (or hiking) into with your camping gear. From there we ran back to Steve’s campsite
where we enjoyed some Guinness (Brilliant!)
provided by Matt (trying to redeem himself after bringing Budweiser on the last
run), and watching Steve prepare his dinner. Reluctantly, Matt, Jay and I left
to head home.
Driving home we watched an enormous crescent moon rise over
the Green Mountains. Matt, who was the
sage of the day captured what we were all feeling when he said, “It is always
worth getting out the door.” Getting a few scratches on your shins, some mud on
your feet, beautiful views of Vermont and some free pizza with good friends are
the very best reasons to get out the door.
Post last updated at 08/26/24 at 9:00 AM The only park affected by the flashing flooding on 7/30/24 was Brighton State Park. The park is fully reopened on Wednesday, August 7th. Roads were damaged in the park, locally in the town, as well as the nearby state highway. Park staff have contacted affected reservations. All parks affected by the July 11 flood have reopened, although 3 parks still have reduced operations. This page will be regularly updated as more information is made available and road repairs are made. Swimwater results are current . Swim areas are posted when there is an increased risk of impaired water quality. For water monitoring results outside of Vermont State Park swimming areas, check out the Vermont Department of Health Cyanobacteria Tracker Map . Parks in the NE part of Vermont bore the brunt of the storm. Park visitors with affected reservations have been contacted by the parks. We apologize for this inconvenience. Our priority is to pro...
A park visitor emailed us this question today: Hi, I was walking in the woods behind my house in Fairfield, Vermont today and I noticed white foam on a number of our trees especially most of the yellow birch and also some hemlock. On some of the trees there was quite a bit of this foam. Is this something that we should be concerned about? I don't remember ever noticing it before. Thank you for your help. Rebecca Phelps, our Conservation Coordinator, replies: You are very observant, and what you were observing was Chemistry in action! What you saw on the trunks of these trees was the formation of a crude soap. It has been really dry for awhile in Vermont, and when it is dry particles from the air deposit themselves on the surface of tree bark (like dust). This dust includes bits of salts, acids and other particles in the air. When it rains, these particles dissolve into a liquid solution. Soap is essentially a chemical mixture of salts and acids formed into a molecule, and tha...
Educators, take your students outside this fall for a fun, interactive, hands-on educational field trip in a state park. There is no cost for these educational programs, you just pay an entrance fee of $0.50 per person. Guided field trip experiences are available at: Branbury State Park in Salisbury Groton State Forest in Groton Jamaica State Park in Jamaica Little River State Park in Waterbury Mt. Ascutney State Park in Windsor Quechee State Park in Quechee Experienced Park Interpreters will design an experience to fit in your curriculum. Some available topics include: Forest Ecology Tree and Plant Identification Benthic Macroinvertebrates Ancient and recent cultural history Civilian Conservation Corps history Predator-Prey Relationships Geology Mammals of Vermont Or request your own topic. Please contact Rebecca Roy, Interpretive Program Manager, for more information or to book your field trip today: Rebecca.roy@vermont.gov More information i...
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