Bluff Point State park is considered the last undeveloped land on the coast of Connecticut. This very flat park has a interesting history, several sights and a huge beach that can only be accessed by foot. We did not try the mountain bike paths but saw more then a few.
We headed down here looking for a very flat hike... or rather a walk. I just got over cov19 and I was still nowhere near 100%. We took the main loop trail, up the ridge and back along the shore for a roughly 3.6 mile walk. We then visited Harkness memorial park before the rain to take a few quick photos. Total mileage, 4.2. This Rustic shoreline is CT at it's best
After going up the ridge line we found ourselves at the ruins of the old Winthrop house. This land owner had not only this entire state park but several other properties which he leased out for farming. The black berry's and apples are still thriving in the area!
The people who lived here would often have meetings and religious services near sunset rock. We were a little perplexed by the name since you most certainly can't see the sunset from this rock! It seems when the trees were cleared for farming though, this would have been a lovely spot for a view. Still, it's marked with a sign and you can climb it if you want :)
Most of Bluff points shores are rocky and representative of Connecticut's rustic shoreline. We were there on an overcast day and had most of the beaches to ourselves. The trails were quite busy with families so it was actually surprising how empty the beach was.
Bluff point also has a large sandy beach. It's chock full of shells but... yeah, still sandy. A popular topic online right now are the two sailboats washed ashore. We filmed the inside but it's full of trash. Hopefully there are plans to remove these, supposedly they washed up from a hurricane. Amazing how they stacked on top of each other with such a large beach!
Since we were in the are we decided to run over to Harkness Memorial State Park which is only ten minutes away.
[The way we drive]
This is another small and flat park that can be easily explored. The real draw of this park is the summer mansion of the Harkness family. Donated to the state in 1950, this incredibly impressive mansion is currently not open but you can walk around the grounds and peek in the windows. There are a number of other buildings on the property but due to the ongoing pandemic, most are closed. They are still worth exploring on the outside though!
The other big draw to this park are the phenomenal botanical gardens. Unfortunately we were to early in the season to experience these!
Many people come here just to see the gardens, so bring your camera and expect crowds during normal times. We had tried to get in here last summer and the park was at capacity by 11am!!
We also checked out the boardwalk down to the beach. Most of he beach is off limits currently due to the ground nesting birds but the view was still nice. Sadly we had to run back to the car at this point because of the rain.
Also note that this park, along with many other Connecticut state parks, have a fee for nonstate residents. We locals get in for "free" since we already pay a tax for the parks.
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