~*~ Bluff Point Dayhike ~*~

Groton, CT

Date: January 29, 2005

Hikers: Dad, Vicki & Kim

Mileage: 4, roundtrip

I went up to Connecticut for the weekend to visit my Dad and my step-mother, Vicki. My Dad suggested we go for a little day hike out to Bluff Point in Groton. Of course, I had neglected to bring any decent shoes to hike in, or socks for that matter (something I am notorious for). We made a side trip to the Crystal Mall in Waterford and EMS where I picked up a new pair of Merrell trail shoes and some Smartwool Hikers. The shoes were comfortable almost instantly, something that doesn’t always happen for my blister prone feet.

Bluff Point is popular in just about any month. During the summer, it is a haven for people looking to get some sun and swim. We used to go there when I was younger and either walk or canoe out to the point itself. I can remember spending hours swimming out to the little “islands” and seeing my first horseshoe crab (though I’m quite sure it was dead).

On this day though, it’s cold and there is a nice thick layer of snow covering the park. The cars at the trailhead have ski racks on them and there was a couple fixing their bindings on their cross country skis. I can imagine with enough snow, there would be snowshoers out and about as well. Although the air was cold, it was a beautiful day with sharp blue skies and little wind.

The hike is neither strenuous nor difficult, it is merely enjoyable. You follow an old park road (where vehicles are no longer allowed) for about a mile and half into the woods. The water in the little cove was frozen solid and the sun shining off of the ice was almost blinding. Lots of tracks in the snow indicated that many others had the same idea as us in the past few days. Little streams flowed through the trail in sections, mostly frozen but still trickling along. For some reason, I have been utterly fascinated by streams and ice in the winter.

As we came up to the Point itself, the sun was shining so brightly up in the noonday sky. The protection that we had from the woods around us became clear as we climbed up to the point and were greeted by freezing winds in every direction, and no place to really get away from it. The string cheese we brought for a snack was good, but trying to open those little plastic wrappers with icy hands proved to be a challenge in itself.

From Bluff Point, you can see three states: New York, Rhode Island and Connecticut. The water off the point was crashing against the rocks below and the peaceful frozen scene from the cove was a memory. Although being out there is relaxing, it is a reminder of how cold the wind is when it comes whipping off Long Island Sound. It even looked bone-chilling. I stood there thinking of the Penguin Plunge and how I was happy that I had jumped into the Susquehanna River in PA rather than into the Atlantic Ocean in CT on New Year’s Eve.

We stayed on Bluff Point for 20 minutes or so before we decided to return and head back to the car. I was ready to go, my cheeks and hands stinging from the cold. Once we were back on the trail and under protection of the trees again, it warmed us up a bit as we walked on. I was worried a little about my knee that I had hurt over Martin Luther King weekend on the A.T. in PA but it didn’t give me any trouble and my new Merrell’s were great! My feet stayed warm and dry, despite marching through the snow.

It always amazes me how peaceful and different the woods seem in the winter months. It’s quiet, cold and silent, with the exception of the occasional chunk of snow falling from high tree branches and landing with a thud on the ground. It was a nice little hike and chance to get out for some fresh air. I hadn’t been to Bluff Point in a long time, and had never been in the winter so it was fun to see it again and for the first time, all at once.

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