I - Iron Mountain Preserve, South Kent, CT

Monday, July 25, 2016

I - Iron Mountain Preserve, South Kent, CT

 After a drive down Richards Road (I've been past it so many times on my commute, but never been down it!), and a few U-turns, I found Iron Mountain Preserve!

An unnecessary bridge in the middle of a drought!

 The hike started downhill, over several would-be creek crossings, but not in this drought! I lost the trail for a bit by an uprooted tree, but then found it again. That would be the theme of this hike:  a trail that is little-used, and even less-frequently maintained!

The aforementioned uprooted tree!

 The trail turned over-grown and a bit muddy. I startled a white-tailed deer in for a drink. 

 After crossing the first of several rock walls, I finally started the "lollipop" loop!

The start and end of the lollipop loop!

 The trail was easy-going enough, but started to climb to a height rather quickly. While there was not really a vista from the "summit" of Iron Mountain, it felt like an achievement to reach the top!

 

Not exactly the most well-maintained trail!

 

An unexpected glacial erratic!

All-in-all, this was a pleasant hike, but not too much that was particularly outstanding. There were no really unique habitats or wildlife sightings, no unique historical artifacts or structures, and no scenic vistas. According to the Kent Conservation Commission's "Kent Trails" guidebook, Iron Mountain was a source of mined ore, and the forests were used as charcoal for nearby ironworks. There were supposed to be obvious remnants of early charcoal pits, but as I didn't know what to look for, I didn't see any.

I'm glad it's protected land, but perhaps some interpretive signage could help hikers understand its historical significance. But any day in nature is a day well-spent!

Notable Sightings:
*Note: without cell-phone reception, I couldn't keep track of bird sightings with eBird

•  White-tailed Deer
• Glacial Erratic (boulder deposited by glacial retreat)
• Reishi Mushroom
• Bolete (mushroom)