Cockaponset State Forest is the second largest

forest A forest is an ecosystem characterized by a dense ecological community, community of trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, ...

in the

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

state forest system, encompassing over of land. Most of the land is in Middlesex County though some parcels lie in

New Haven County New Haven County is a county in the south central part of the U.S. state of Connecticut. As of the 2020 census, the population was 864,835, making it the third-most populous county in Connecticut. Two of the state's five largest cities, New Ha ...

. The forest is disjointed, and comprises land in the towns of Haddam,

Chester Chester is a cathedral city in Cheshire, England, on the River Dee, Wales, River Dee, close to the England–Wales border. With a built-up area population of 92,760 in 2021, it is the most populous settlement in the borough of Cheshire West an ...

, Deep River,

Killingworth Killingworth is a town in North Tyneside, Tyne and Wear, England, within the historic county of Northumberland. Killingworth was built as a new town in the 1960s, next to Killingworth Village, which existed for centuries before the new town ...

Durham Durham most commonly refers to: *Durham, England, a cathedral city in north east England **County Durham, a ceremonial county which includes Durham *Durham, North Carolina, a city in North Carolina, United States Durham may also refer to: Places ...

, Guilford,

Madison Madison may refer to: People * Madison (name), a given name and a surname * James Madison (1751–1836), fourth president of the United States * Madison (footballer), Brazilian footballer Places in the United States Populated places * Madi ...

Clinton Clinton is an English toponymic surname, indicating one's ancestors came from English places called Glympton or Glinton.Hanks, P. & Hodges, F. ''A Dictionary of Surnames''. Oxford University Press, 1988 Clinton has also been used as a given nam ...

, Westbrook, Middletown and

Middlefield Middlefield may refer to: Canada * Middlefield, Nova Scotia * Middlefield Collegiate Institute, a high school in the area * Middlefield Road, a street in Toronto * a community in Markham, Ontario England * Middlefield, Stapleford, a mansion in ...

History

Prior to European settlement, the section forest nearest Haddam was part of the

Wangunk The Wangunk or Wongunk were an Indigenous people from central Connecticut. They were a subdivision of the Wappinger people, a Munsee language, Munsee-speaking people. The Wangunk settled along the Connecticut River. They had three major settleme ...

village of Cockaponset. Modern acquisition of forest parcels began in 1926. Two

Civilian Conservation Corps The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was a voluntary government unemployment, work relief program that ran from 1933 to 1942 in the United States for unemployed, unmarried men ages 18–25 and eventually expanded to ages 17–28. The CCC was ...

camps were active in the forest in the 1930s constructing roads and planting

conifers Conifers () are a group of cone-bearing seed plants, a subset of gymnosperms. Scientifically, they make up the division Pinophyta (), also known as Coniferophyta () or Coniferae. The division contains a single extant class, Pinopsida. All e ...

. The forest is purportedly named after a Native American chief buried in Haddam. However, it may have been named after the Wangunk village.

Features

;National natural landmark A portion of the forest is known as the Chester Cedar Swamp was declared a

National Natural Landmark The National Natural Landmarks (NNL) Program recognizes and encourages the conservation of outstanding examples of the natural history of the United States. It is the only national natural areas program that identifies and recognizes the best e ...

in May 1973. Along with

Pachaug-Great Meadow Swamp Pachaug State Forest is the largest forest in the Connecticut state forest system, encompassing over 27,000 acres (110 km²) of land. It is located on the Rhode Island border in New London County, and parcels of the forest lie in the town ...

, it is one of the finest remaining examples of an

Atlantic white cedar ''Chamaecyparis thyoides'' (Atlantic white cedar, Atlantic white cypress, southern white cedar, whitecedar, or false-cypress), a species of ''Cupressaceae'', is native to the Atlantic coast of North America and is found from southern Maine to Geo ...

forest. This type of forest is at risk and being succeeded by hemlock. ;Hiking trails The

Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) is a state agency in the US state of Connecticut. The department oversees the state's natural resources and environment and regulates public utilities and energy policy. I ...

(CT DEEP) manages a trail system based around Pattaconk Reservoir Recreation Area near Chester. Some trails have been designated for footpath only, while others are open to horses and mountain bikes. The centerpiece for this area is the scenic Pattaconk Lake which is used for swimming, fishing, and paddling. Even though the CT DEEP has maps detailing only of trails, there are over of trails within the greater Cockaponset State Forest. According to the headquarters at Chatfield Hollow State Park, many of these unmarked trails have an undesignated status, which means that the CT DEEP has either not yet decided their use or are within an area earmarked for logging in the future. These undesignated trails are currently open to most users willing to respect low-impact travel. ;Rock climbing Pine Ledge is a popular rock climbing destination within Cockaponset State Forest located about a half mile west of

Deep River, Connecticut Deep River is a town in Middlesex County, Connecticut, United States. The town is part of the Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region. The population was 4,415 at the 2020 census. The town center is designated by the U.S. Census Bureau ...

. The rocky cliff is as high as at its southern end and extends for about a half mile north. The larger cliff faces are primarily used with top-roping techniques and there are several large bouldering rocks. The locals have also adopted the name, "Pine Ledge," to describe the surrounding section of Cockaponset State Forest where the Pine Ledge cliff resides. At this time, the access roads are somewhat rugged and may become thick with mud after a heavy rain or during the spring melt. However, there are hardly any large rocks and few bumps, and the road is usually pretty wide. Even though the use of all-terrain-vehicles has not been officially designated, the greater Pine Ledge area has become very popular among local riders. Jeeps and 4X4 off-road vehicles have also utilized some of the old abandoned access roads as trails. There are foot paths through dense mountain laurel throughout the Pine Ledge rock climbing area as access to the more remote cliff edges.

In popular culture

An assertion that geological features of the park represent the remains of a 1500-year-old European church have been disputed.5th Century Greek Church in Connecticut - Nope!
/ref>

References

External links

Cockaponset State Forest
Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection {{authority control Connecticut state forests Parks in Middlesex County, Connecticut Hiking trails in Connecticut Climbing areas of the United States Middlefield, Connecticut Middletown, Connecticut Madison, Connecticut National Natural Landmarks in Connecticut Protected areas established in 1926 Civilian Conservation Corps in Connecticut 1926 establishments in Connecticut