2022-2-24, Leatherman's Cave, Hamden, CT

 On 2022-2-24, I visited the Hamden, CT, Leatherman's Cave and hiked some of the nearby Quinnipiac Trail.  I made an interactive map which shows my GPS track in pink and on which I put location numbers.  Here's a link to my interactive map: https://arcg.is/f0eKj0 .  Here's a static screenshot of my interactive map.  The Leatherman's Cave is on Hamden Historical Society property.  I didn't pass any "No Trespassing" signs, but I did cross private property twice on my route to the Leatherman's Cave.


I  parked at 1 which is at the northern end of one of the at least three paved sections of Paradise Avenue in Hamden.  This is a parking area for the blue-blazed Quinnipiac Trail, a Connecticut Forest and Park Association trail.

I headed westerly onto unblazed woods roads and then onto a dim trail that led to a mysterious rock structure, earthen dam, and small pool.  

2. Here's a picture of the rock structure.



2.  The small pool.




2.  The earthen dam.



From Location 2, I followed a small stream northwesterly and then headed off towards the coordinates I had for the Hamden Leatherman's Cave.  I determined that the easiest route would have been to go from 2 to 3 to 4 to 5.  5 is the Leatherman's Cave location.  Here's is a source of more information about the Leatherman: https://theairlandandsea.com/2019/04/the-old-leatherman-caves-guide.html .

5.  This is doesn't seem like much of a shelter.  And I don't know when the picture of the shelter in the guide (see the link above) was taken, or how we know that this was a place that the Leatherman stayed.  Conceivably, like the Leatherman shelter in Southington on the grounds of Camp Sloper, there was some sort of structure that made the rocks more of a shelter.
 .


5.  A view of the area of the Leatherman's Cave.




5.  The picture from the guide for easy comparison.



From 5, I headed off towards the Quinnipiac Trail staying within the boundaries of West Rock Ridge State Park, passing Location 6 and Location 7.  My route to the Quinnipiac Trail went along a ridge.  I was often walking through blueberry or huckleberry bushes and making my way around mountain laurel bushes, but it wasn't a very challenging bushwhack.

7. A view from the ridge.



8.  A rock on the ridge.



I got to the Quinnipiac Trail and headed northwesterly on the trail to the view at 9.

9.  This is looking southerly.  You can see downtown New Haven, Long Island Sound, and Long Island.




9.  The view to the southwest.



10.  On my way back, I took this picture to show that the Quinnipiac Trail, while well maintained, is not four feet wide --- hikers have to brush huckleberry or blueberry bushes, and mountain laurel bushes.  The big problem with this is ticks.  I don't know what the best equipment would be for widening the trail.



11.  I saw lots of evidence that the trail maintainers have been cutting blow-downs, but this blow-down was there on 2022-2-24.  Maybe the maintainers decided it wasn't a problem.



12. Evidence of extensive blow-down cutting.



13.  Just after I passed the intersection with the Connecticut Forest and Park Association Regicides Trail, I took a 91-foot unblazed trail to his view of New Haven.  Someone had done some tree cutting to open up the view.



14.  A blow-down.

 

15.  I followed the Quinnipiac Trail back to where I parked and kept going northerly onto an unmaintained section of Paradise Avenue.  Someone had arranged these rocks to facilitate fording Shepard Brook.



16.  The Trail turned southeasterly onto another unmaintained old road.  Despite the fact that the old road was sunken and ran downhill, erosion didn't seem to be a problem.



17.  The old road followed Shepard Brook.  The bottom of the brook was mostly a dark rock, but, here and there, a whitish rock was exposed.  Near this point on the trail, I found clumps of a grayish, crumbly rock that was surprisingly heavy.  Could it be lead ore?



18.  There was a roll of bags inside of the miniature outhouse.  Someone went to a lot of trouble.


















David Reik

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