Yesterday, Debbie and I ran the Pequot Trail out and back (16 miles). We went north to south and back in about 2 hours and 49 minutes. It was a good effort on a rough day. I don’t think I could have picked a worse time for a hard run. We started at 2:30 P.M. when it was 85 degrees Fahrenheit and 90% humidity. I worked until noon, before making the hour drive from our home in Bolton, so getting going was very hard.
It took me about four miles to even feel like running, but by the point, I was committed. Debbie sort of dragged me along on this one. We had to pick up Dahlia at Camp Yawgoog in Rhode Island after her dinner. After being empty nesters for the past week, the run was one last opportunity to do something together. My original plan was to take Friday off and do the run in the morning, but storm planning and other work priorities got in the way. I was fortunate to leave at noon and credit Team HORST for covering me.
This was a new trail for both of us, though I spent a lot of time in this area during my youth. Lake of Isles Scout Reservation is where I spent many of my summers. The camp is now defunct as it was acquired by the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation as part of their Foxwoods holdings. Lake of Isles is now the name of one of their golf courses. I have many great memories from my years at Scout camp.
The Pequot Trails goes right through that area.
The Connecticut Walk Book description of the Pequot Trail:
Length: 8 miles
Towns: Preston, Ledyard
Trail Overview: The Pequot Trail connects Ledyard with Preston and offers occasional views of the Thames River valley as well as a few gradual climbs, old pastures, and overgrown woods roads. At an elevation of 330 ft., Rose Hill is the highest point on the trail. The trail passes through Preston’s Lincoln Park, a recreation area with a jogging track, facilities and multiple ball fields. The trail even follows part of Lincoln Park’s dog walking trail to Rose Hill Rd. Between Rose Hill Rd and the trail’s southern terminus keep your eyes peeled for at least four geocaches and one letterbox. Near the southern trailhead is the Mashantucket Pequot Burial Ground, which is not open to the public and should not be entered. The southern trailhead is within walking distance (by road at this time) of the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Museum and Research Center, the Mashantucket Pequot Reservation and the blue-blazed Narragansett Trail.
Near the northern terminus, the trail follows and crisscrosses power lines in a few places. Soaring hawks are often seen above a pair of beaver-inhabited wetland ponds that surround a small rock ridge. Just south of this ridge is a mysterious historical area called Hellgate. Nearby land deeds can be traced back to ownership by the Mohegan Sachem Uncas. Hikers of the Pequot Trail will be surrounded with local history.
The trail was a mix of horribly overgrown singletrack, badly overgrown old farm roads, and a few sections of asphalt road. Even the tarmac sections were moderately overgrown! The them was overgrown with lots of prickers. There was no way around them and we both got torn up pretty bad.
With the humidity, we were soaked to the bone and I had some rough chafe in various spots which didn’t hurt during the run, but it is impairing my typing at this moment! There was about 1,900 feet of elevation gain and the terrain was rugged with lots of rocks, roots, blowdown, and other debris on the trail.
Even the powerline section was overgrown. We have had one of the wettest summers on record and that has contributed to the extra vegetation growth. We had a massive storm on Thursday which dumped up to five inches of rain on parts of Connecticut, so the trail was quite muddy in spots.
So, both that trail conditions and my personal condition weren’t conducive for a hard effort, but Debbie pulled me along. We ended up trading time on the front, alternating the lead based on whether it was climbing (me) or descending (her).
The last four miles were pretty ugly as we started to run low on water and the late afternoon sun penetrated the haze. That warmed things up even more. When we finished, we were both spent. We had parked on Wilderness Acres Dr., a dead end road that was 1/4 mile from the trailhead. After the run, we sat on our bike rack as I poured gallons of water on my head in an attempt to cool off.
After toweling off, we drove to Hopeville Pond State Park and took a dip in the murky water. It wasn’t very satisfying. After that, we stopped for a quick meal at Chinese restaurant in Griswold, and then continued to Yawgoog where we reunited with Dahlia. We enjoyed the end of camp show at the amphitheater. We were thrilled to see her but its was also work. After hauling her foot locker back to the car, going through all the checkout procedures, and driving home, it was 11:30 P.M. when we crawled into bed.
Life Adventures 