Three Sisters... Three Disappointments Bethany Land Trust's Three Sisters Preserve, Bethany & Naugatuck May 2024 Hiking newly acquired, newly trailed properties is great. You get to be one of the first people to see and experience something new. Hiking newly acquired, newly trailed properties is terrible. You … [Read more...]
The Corner Tavern
Ur In All The Best Joints The Corner Tavern, Naugatuck February 2023 This page exists for one reason and one reason only. Okay, two reasons. And here they are: That's right. Urinals. Massive porcelain urinals. I had heard about these things for years. On beer related podcasts, among friends, and of … [Read more...]
Al’s Hot Dog Stand (Closed)
Relish Connecticut's Bounty Al's Hot Dog Stand, Naugatuck April 2022 Al's closed in February 2024 to make way for an expanded gas station. I started "completing" the Roadfood "Eat Before You Die" list what? a decade ago? I actually plowed through the 60 or so places that was still open and then Michael and … [Read more...]
Naugatuck State Forest Intro
Naugatuck State Forest Ansonia, Beacon Falls, Bethany, Cheshire, Hamden, Naugatuck, Oxford, Prospect & Seymour Naugatuck State Forest consists of five separate blocks in the towns listed above. They are not necessarily all connected either. Basically, when you drive up Route 8 through the valley south of Waterbury … [Read more...]
CTMQ’s Guide to Naugatuck
Everything Naugatuck I’ve been exploring and writing about Connecticut since 2006. After a decade, I began compiling CTMQ guides for each town in the state. I plan on “completing” Naugatuck CTMQ-style... as well as the other 168 towns, cities, and boroughs in Connecticut. That is the ultimate goal of CTMQ. If … [Read more...]
Naugatuck’s Town Trails
Naugatuck’s Town Trails Some of you may find it surprising that there are a lot of worthwhile hiking trails in Naugatuck - and the whole Naugatuck River Valley actually. I know, I know, there are some of you out there with some version of a vision of what "The Valley" is all about. Perish the thought. So I … [Read more...]
314. Naugatuck Historical Society Museum
Where "Giving Nauga a Noogie" Isn't Weird Naugatuck April 2, 2016 I rarely revisit museums. With so many hundreds of them around the state, it just isn't feasible. I often get emails informing me of a new exhibit at some long-ago visited museum, but what can I do? However, I will be revisiting the Naugatuck … [Read more...]
Hillside Intermediate School
Three Sides to Every Story Hillside School Naugatuck One of my favorite things about writing CTMQ is when I pop into (yet) a(nother) town historical society museum, go through the motions, and then am stopped in my tracks by a town place or fact that just blows my mind. Such was my experience at the small … [Read more...]
Concept of Freedom Trail: Naugatuck
Gunntown Passive Park Gunntown Road, Naugatuck True story – I was weaving my way from downtown Naugatuck through the hills west to Oxford one day. I had Damian with me and had stopped at a park so he could relieve himself. I was wholly unaware of Gunntown Park, but made a mental note that there were trails to … [Read more...]