Cotton Hollow is a genuine gem located in Glastonbury CT. Consisting of two separate and very unique trails, this little 80 acre preserve deserves more recognition. Once a thriving area with many Mills, only some small ruins still exist as nature reclaims the land.
I found myself with a few hours free on a Thursday afternoon, and with a little digging I found Cotton Hollow. It wasn't on my radar at all, quite honestly the photos I saw online did not do this place justice. There are two separate trails that do not connect and will require a short car ride to get between.
We started on the North trail which has a good sized parking lot. Only a minute into the woods this became a walk alongside Roaring Brook. This brook has plentiful rapids and small little waterfalls. There were far too many for me to count when I visited. Although the park doesn't recommend it, many of the boulders along the water provide fantastic views.
Mid way down the trail is a powerful gorge, pictured to the left. My photo does it little justice. This cuts powerfully between the rocks and has managed to create a small beach down stream in a beautiful swimming hole.
At this point we come to the official end of the trail. There are some imposing cliffs across the brook that have some graffiti on them. We did continue on past this point, there are unmarked and very wild trails to see even more small falls, but it gets very steep and not particularly safe. We found ourselves overlooking the mill ruins with no way down, and turned around.
The south trail is known as the tree trail. A gentle nature walk with labels on the trees, perfect for the little ones to learn. However on this trail you will find 3 foundation basements, a bunch of stone walls, and a view of the old Cotton Mill from across the water. This mill is on private property and is not safe so do not try to reach it. It's an imposing site indeed!
Located directly next to where we stood to see the mill is another large stone wall. At least ten feet tall in spots, this crumbling wall may have been part of a dam. The section nearest the water is especially ruined allowing you to climb for a good view upstream. When we were on top of the cliff we could see another decent sized fall upstream of the mill. It was only when we managed to get on top of this wall could we see it from ground level.
There is enough to see and explore here to occupy an afternoon. Cotton Hollow Preserve deserves to be added to your map!
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