(Family) Wells State Park – Sturbridge

Summer vacation means more family time, and we used that time at the start of July for a hike at Wells State Park in Sturbridge.

I’ve written a few posts in the past about hiking here; it’s a massive property with fairly long trails, and it’s possible to get over 6 miles of hiking in a day fairly easily as I demonstrated in a prior post.  But this hike was a shorter journey, with our daughter dragging her feet a bit (perhaps because nothing is quite as fun as exploring Purgatory Chasm!).

Once again using our State Parks Pass, we parked at the front entrance and made our way on foot around the paved path.  We exited the path to explore Mill Pond Trail, which I think in the summer probably should be renamed Mosquito Trail.  It almost soured us from the trip; even with bug spray it was a constant battle to keep mosquitoes and other insects off of us.

Eager to rescue the expedition, we promised Evie some interesting “climbing” and turned our attention to trying to reach Carpenter’s Rock.  Away from the Pond Trail the bug situation decreased to something livable (though it was still a bit painful at times).

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Evie found a toad along the way, which kept her entertained for quite a bit.

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We reached the top of the rocks and paused for snacks and refreshments.  With the toad, the snacks, the lack of bugs, and the view, Evie’s mood improved drastically.

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It helped that Jess found a snake!

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We paused for a couple selfie (Evie refused to pose with us!).

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But Evie was fine posing with her toad….

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We departed the cliff and returned back the way we came, but then took the long way around (via the paved road) so we could check out the camp sites.  In the end we put in a bit over 3.5 miles.

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It’s a beautiful park and I look forward to many more visits here, though I think we’ll stay off the Pond Trail in the summer.

Purgatory Chasm – Sutton

Our family feet have been eagerly dashing around, but not anywhere that was worth blogging about.  This weekend, summer officially began in our household as Evie’s gymnastics schedule changed and Saturdays are officially free for the whole family. We celebrated by heading somewhere where Evie could explore and adventure – Purgatory Chasm State Reservation.

This was not a hiking trip, it was an exploring trip.  Our goal was to let Evie climb rocks, wriggle through caves, and feel the freedom of summer.  It was a clear success.

Parking at the reservation is $5, and we saw plenty of cars being ticketed. We have a state parks pass, which covered us for the day — very nice.  We had to drive around for a few laps to find an empty parking spot; evidently nice summer days are a good time to visit one of the state’s most popular properties.

We started exploring some of the rocks around the entrance, including this massive one which Evie compared to the famous “Warped Wall” of Ninja Warrior fame.

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But, Evie quickly dashed into the chasm itself.

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We explored the chasm for a while, venturing off on side paths and climbing over and under a great many rocks.

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At the end of the chasm, we continued straight along the Little Purgatory trail, which covers some wet woodlands before reaching another rocky area.

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After exploring the rocky area near the end of the trail, we followed it back to the chasm.

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From there, we followed the Chasm Loop Trail which climbed up some rocks and then hugged the southern rim of the chasm, providing some intense views down.

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Along this part of the trail is “Fat Man’s Misery”, a crack in the rock which our brave daughter had no trouble traversing.  I didn’t try it, myself.

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Not far from there, we stumbled onto some wild blueberry bushes.  Someone is in for a treat in a couple weeks…

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After finishing the exploration, we headed back to the entry of the chasm and bought popsicles from the ice cream cart.  Not a bad way to finish the day!

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Before we had even gotten home, Evie was asking when we could go back….