Bigelow Hollow State Park
41°59′41″N 72°07′43″W / 41.99472°N 72.12861°W / 41.99472; -72.12861[1]
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Bigelow Hollow State Park is public recreation area in the town of Union, Connecticut, in the Quinebaug Highlands.[3] The state park's 516 acres (209 ha) border Nipmuck State Forest on the east and west and Mashapaug Lake on the north. The park and forest are located in a large hollow or depression approximately 700' below the surrounding ridgelines. They are managed by the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection.
Surroundings
The state park is a significant feature of the Last Green Valley National Heritage Corridor[4] and is part of one of the largest unbroken forest tracts in Connecticut, which includes 9,000 acres (3,600 ha) in the Nipmuck State Forest, 7,800 acres (3,200 ha) in the Yale-Myers Forest, 13,000 acres (5,300 ha) in the Natchaug State Forest, 8,000 acres (3,200 ha) of the Norcross Wildlife Refuge, and the 7,000 acres (2,800 ha) of forest held by Hull Foresters. The state park was carved out of Nipmuck State Forest by the State Park and Forest Commission in 1949.[3]
Activities and amenities
The park has been described as "[r]emote by Connecticut standards," where a map and orienteering skills may be useful as the park is mostly evergreen at lower elevations and trails can be lost in the thick forest density.[5] The park and forest have over 35 miles (56 km) of trails, including several around 92-acre (37 ha) Breakneck Pond,[6] a secluded lake only accessible by foot. A boat launch and picnicking facilities are located on 25-acre (10 ha) Bigelow Pond[7] at the entrance to the park and on 287-acre (116 ha) Mashapaug Lake,[8] which is found near the end of the park's main road.
Fishing is offered in summer and winter (ice fishing). The streams, ponds and lakes feature stocked as well as native trout, small and large mouth bass and pickerel.[9] Backcountry camping is allowed in Nipmuck State Forest.[10] Snowmobiling trails begin in the state park and continue into the state forest.[11]
References
- ^ a b "Bigelow Pond". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior.
- ^ "Appendix A: List of State Parks and Forests" (PDF). State Parks and Forests: Funding. Staff Findings and Recommendations. Connecticut General Assembly. January 23, 2014. p. A-1. Retrieved March 20, 2014.
- ^ a b "Bigelow State Park". Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection. Retrieved August 3, 2024.
- ^ "The Last Green Valley National Heritage Corridor". National Park Service. Retrieved October 7, 2017.
- ^ "Bigelow Hollow State Park". MTBR. Archived from the original on January 3, 2010. Retrieved March 20, 2014.
- ^ "Breakneck Pond" (PDF). Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection. Retrieved October 7, 2017.
- ^ "Bigelow Pond" (PDF). Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection. Retrieved October 7, 2017.
- ^ "Mashapaug Lake" (PDF). Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection. Retrieved October 7, 2017.
- ^ "2024 Fishing Guide" (PDF). Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection. April 24, 2024. p. 12. Retrieved August 3, 2024.
- ^ "Backpack Camping". Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection. Retrieved August 3, 2024.
- ^ "Snowmobiling in Connecticut". Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection. Retrieved August 3, 2024.
External links
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- Bigelow Hollow State Park Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection
- Bigelow Hollow State Park Map Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection
- v
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- Above All
- Air Line
- Beaver Brook
- Becket Hill State Park Reserve
- Beckley Furnace Industrial Monument
- Bennett's Pond
- Bigelow Hollow
- Black Rock
- Bluff Point
- Bolton Notch
- Brainard Homestead
- Burr Pond
- Camp Columbia
- Campbell Falls
- Chatfield Hollow
- Collis P. Huntington
- Connecticut Valley Railroad
- Dart Island State Park
- Day Pond
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- Higganum Reservoir
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- John A. Minetto
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- Quaddick
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- Quinnipiac River
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- Ross Pond
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- Scantic River
- Selden Neck
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- Sherwood Island
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- Stoddard Hill
- Stratton Brook
- Sunnybrook
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- Talcott Mountain
- Tri-Mountain
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- Wadsworth Falls
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- Wharton Brook
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- Barber Pond WMA
- Barn Island WMA
- Bartlett Brook WMA
- Bear Hill WMA
- Belding WMA
- Bishops Swamp WMA
- Black Pond WMA
- Candlewood Hill WMA
- Cedar Swamp WMA
- Charles E. Wheeler WMA
- Cromwell Meadows WMA
- Durham Meadows WMA
- East River Marsh WMA
- East Swamp WMA
- Eightmile River WMA
- Franklin Swamp WMA
- Goshen WMA
- Great Harbor WMA
- Higganum Meadows WMA
- Housatonic River WMA
- King's Island Coop WMA
- Kollar WMA
- Larson Lot WMA
- Little River Fish and Wildlife Area
- Lord's Cove WMA
- Maromas Coop WMA
- Meadow Brook WMA
- Menunketesuck WMA
- Messerschmidt WMA
- Newgate WMA
- Nod Brook WMA
- Nott Island WMA
- Pease Brook WMA
- Plum Bank WMA
- Quinebaug River WMA
- Quinnipiac River Marsh WMA
- Ragged Rock WMA
- Raymond Brook Marsh WMA
- Robbins Swamp WMA
- Roger Tory Peterson Wildlife Area
- Roraback WMA
- Rose Hill WMA
- Ross Marsh WMA
- Salmon River Cove and Haddam Neck WMA
- Sessions Woods WMA
- Simsbury WMA
- Skiff Mountain Coop WMA
- James V. Spignesi WMA
- Stanley Works WMA
- Suffield WMA
- Talbot WMA
- Tankerhoosen WMA
- Wangunk Meadows WMA
- Wopowog WMA
- Zemko Pond WMA
- Aspetuck Reservoir
- Barkhamsted Reservoir
- Beaver Dam Lake
- Candlewood Lake
- Easton Reservoir
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- Hemlock Reservoir
- Hop Brook Lake
- Lake Lillinonah
- Mansfield Hollow Lake
- Means Brook
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- West Hartford Reservoir
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- Lake Zoar
- Aspetuck Land Trust
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- Saltonstall Mountain
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Forest/Parks
- Bear Mountain Reservation
- Beardsley Park
- Burr Farm Protected Open Space
- East Rock Park
- Gurski Farm Protected Open Space
- Happy Landings Protected Open Space
- Lighthouse Point Park
- Lillinonah Woods
- Mill River Park
- Old Bridge Sanctuary
- Pleasure Beach
- Roosevelt Forest
- Salt Meadow Park
- Seaside Park
- Webb Mountain Discovery Zone
- Webb Mountain Park