Only a gallon of gas or so away is the Connecticut portion of the Metacomet-Mattabesett Trail traversing about 101 miles of mountain summits, forested glades, vernal pools, lakes, streams, and waterfalls--including some of the most rugged and diverse landscapes in southern New England. The Mattabesett Trail wanders from River Road in Middletown to the Berlin Turnpike. The Metacomet Trail follows the traprock ridge from the hanging Hills of Meriden to the Massachusetts border.
The bedrock of the Metacomet range is a produce of volcanic eruptions when the African and American continental plates pulled apart during the Triassic and Jurassic Periods. Some of the remains of these eruptions are considered globally rare. The Metacomet Range is one of the best places in the world (outside of Hawaii and Iceland), and the only area on the eastern seaboard with a developed trail system, to view a broad array of well-preserved volcanic and sedimentary features. It is also on the blue-blazed trails of the Metacomet Range that one can see the remains of one of the 19th century pest houses where those afflicted with smallpox were sent to die.
Source: Connecticut Walk Book and Metacomet-Mattabesett Trail Natural Resource Assessment. Maps of the trails are available in the library.
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