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CTMQ > New Post

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CTMQ's Guide to Suffield

Book Review: Connecticut Cryptids

December 4, 2024 by Steve 1 Comment

Tales From the Cryptids Connecticut Cryptids, Patrick Scalisi & Illustrations by Valerie Ruby-Omen (2023) Never judge a book by its cover. And, usually, never judge a book by its Goodreads reviews. But always judge Goodreads reviewers by their idiotic reviews: That has to be one of the least self-aware … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Books, Movies, People, & Stories, Everything Else, New Post Tagged With: books, Connecticut Books, Connecticut History Books

First Steel Mill in US

December 3, 2024 by Steve 1 Comment

Hard as Steel... to Write First Steel Mill in US, Simsbury This is the oddest thing. Every now and again, I'd be talking Simsbury history to someone. Y'know, like we all do at parties and such. And I'd hear, "the first steel mill in the country was in Simsbury," and I'd be like, "oh yeah? cool" and file it away for … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Everything Else, New Post, Superlatives Tagged With: Firsts Onlies and Oldests, Industrial History, Simsbury

Barkhamsted: Complete!

December 2, 2024 by Steve Leave a Comment

Barkhamsted: Complete! Royal Coachman Tavern at the Old Riverton Inn Here is the CTMQ Guide to Barkhamsted with my list and stories about everything I’ve done there! After a decade of writing CTMQ, I decided to try to “complete” towns. In that decade of traveling and writing, I had already done a lot of … [Read more...]

Filed Under: New Post, Town Completion Celebrations Tagged With: Barkhamsted

Eaton/Dix Intersection

November 29, 2024 by Steve Leave a Comment

Don't Blow It Eaton/Dix Intersection, West Haven November 2024 ***Warning!*** Not the usual CTMQ content. You can guess from the title of the page where it's going. You've been warned. My wife and I used to always take at least one day off from work together to "go do stuff" on or near one of our fall … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Everything Else, New Post, Towers, Bridges, Forts, Tunnels, Roads, Canals, Dams, Fishways, Airports, & Ferries Tagged With: CTMQ After DArk, Hoang, Roads and Tunnels, West Haven

Saville Dam, Barkhamsted Center & Hollow

November 27, 2024 by Steve 5 Comments

Damn! No, really... Damn! Saville Dam & Barkhamsted Center, Barkhamsted September 2024 The Saville Dam is surely a top 10 Connecticut beauty spot. If it didn't require a walk in order to get the perfect shot, I'm sure it would be top 3. As it is, you still have to wait in line on weekend days in October in order … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Everything Else, Houses, Communities, Libraries, & Businesses, New Post, Towers, Bridges, Forts, Tunnels, Roads, Canals, Dams, Fishways, Airports, & Ferries Tagged With: Abandoned and/or Unique Communities, Barkhamsted, barkhamsted historical society, Canals and Dams, Industrial History, Rarely Open

Still Brook Open Space

November 26, 2024 by Steve Leave a Comment

Still There, Still Hikeable, Still Brook Still Brook Open Space, Simsbury November 2024 I've lived in West Hartford since 2001 and in that time, I've seen my town sell every available acre to developers. At the same time, I've seen nearby Simsbury spend town money on protecting open space and woodlands from … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Hikes, Bikes & Paddles, New Post, Town Land Hikes Tagged With: Simsbury

Adjutant William Campbell Memorial

November 25, 2024 by Steve Leave a Comment

Bloody Hell Adjutant William Campbell Memorial, West Haven November 2024 I've had this memorial on my radar for a while. I always had it in my head as the only memorial in the US honoring an enemy combatant. Which, if true, is both weird and fascinating. But now that I've been to the Adjutant William Campbell … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Everything Else, New Post, Religion, Cemeteries, Monuments, Statuary, Greens, & Outdoor Sculpture & Art, Superlatives Tagged With: Dubious Claims, Firsts Onlies and Oldests, Hoang, West Haven

Tree House Brewing

November 22, 2024 by Steve 1 Comment

The Magic (of) Tree House Tree House Brewing, Woodstock November 2024 The first half of this page is a cut and paste from my page about this place when it was just a cidery. Since I separate cideries from breweries, there simply must be two separate pages on CTMQ. I’m at a bit of a loss here. On the one hand, … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Breweries, Food & Drink, New Post Tagged With: Farms, tree house, Woodstock

Tree House Farm Trails

November 21, 2024 by Steve Leave a Comment

Go Climb a Tree Tree House Farm Trails, Woodstock November 2024 No one is coming here to hike. Heck, no one is coming here to drink or purchase and then accidentally hiking. And that's fine, because the "hiking" here isn't so much hiking but just strolling down farm roads through the plantings at the Woodstock … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Hikes, Bikes & Paddles, New Post, Town Land Hikes Tagged With: Farms, privately owned trail, tree house, Woodstock

Nipmuck Woods

November 21, 2024 by Steve Leave a Comment

Nipping up to Stafford to Tuck in the Woods Northern Connecticut Land Trust's Nipmuck Woods, Stafford November 2024 Here's a good example of the challenge of what I do with CTMQ. Although, in fairness, I do this to myself. I "completed" Stafford in 2017. It felt good. Granted, Stafford isn't exactly a bustling … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Hikes, Bikes & Paddles, Land Trust Hikes, New Post Tagged With: Northern Connecticut Land Trust, Stafford

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