2021-1-22, Neck River, Madison, CT

 On 2021-1-20 and 2021-1-22, I visited the upper Neck River area in Madison, CT.  I made an interactive on which I put location numbers that I will refer to below.  Here's a link to the interactive map: https://arcg.is/10efiL  Below is a static screenshot of the interactive map.



1.  Where I parked on a fairly quiet street, Princess Drive.

The 2021-1-20 pictures.

2. This was a Madison Land Conservation Trust preserve.  Most of the trails, like the one that this rock shelf was on, were blazed blue.


3.  This is a tributary to the Neck River.

4.  The Neck River is visible below from this point on an orange-blazed trail.


5.  Another tributary to the Neck River.


6.  The Madison Land Conservation Trust posts maps at many points in their preserves.  Supposedly, I was at point 19C, but the actual configuration of trails near here didn't correspond with what was displayed on the map.

7.  I followed a blue-blazed trail into another Madison Land Conservation Trust preserve.  The second preserve was south of Route CT-80.  

8.  The mountain laurel was encroaching on this blue-blazed trail near here.


9.  Another stream crossing.


10.  Here is a screenshot of the .pdf version of the map that is posted in the preserve.  Reality differs significantly from the posted map in three areas that I have marked with an "A," "B" and "C."  I have tried to show that actual situation on my interactive map.


10.  I made a map with blaze color shown.  Unblazed trails are shown as brown.





11.  Rocks along the red-blazed trail.

I went back to the area on 2021-1-22.

The 2021-1-22 Pictures.


12.  



5.  Another picture of this little stream


13.  Madison has a lot of moss.


14.  There were painted over blazes over this stretch of trail.  It looks like there used to be blue blazes here.


Intersection 45 feet north of 14.  This is looking southerly.  So what used to be blue is now red.

On 2021-1-24, I participated in a New Haven Hiking Club hike at the Upper Neck River preserves.  I overlaid my GPS tracks from my three visits, plus Tom Ebersolds track, on a screenshot of the Madison Land Conservation Trust .pdf map of the Neck River Uplands North preserve.  Either the map was never very accurate, or there have been several significant changes to the trail layout since the map was created.



David Reik

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