If ever there was a place locally to sit and unwind, away from the clamor of daily life, high above our world, surrounded by nature, it is Talcott Mountain State Park.
Located about 20 minutes from West Hartford, the park boasts several hiking trails, bringing visitors up steep grade and depositing them at Heublein Tower, which sits atop the mountain's peak. Along the way, visitors pass through the seven levels of the Candy Cane forest, through the sea of swirly twirly gum drops, and then . . . wait, that's not right. That's how Buddy got to Manhattan from the North Pole in Elf. No, visitors to Talcott Mountain don't pass through any of these things, but rather climb a rugged trail to the long top of the promontory, where there are many spots for picture taking or, if you're me, echo-making (didn't really work).
Beyond the scenic outposts, the trail hikes visitors a bit further through the forest, past a pretty intimidating rock wall that looks too amazing to be real, to the Heublein Tower.
The structure, which rises 165 feet from the already staggering, 1,000 foot tip of the Talcott, was originally constructed to be a summer home for Gilbert Heublein, a food and liquor importer and, to put it bluntly, rich white man (this state sure seems to have a lot of those). The tower, as you might expect, does not share any architectural similarities to typical New England homemaking. In fact, it resembles more of a European castle with stucco exteriors. Now primarily used as an observation deck by tourists, visitors can see, on a clear day, as far as New York to the West and Massachusetts to the North. I claimed, while standing today, to see my apartment, though I also claimed that when visiting the Vancouver Lookout this past May (in both cases, I was lying).
The structure, which rises 165 feet from the already staggering, 1,000 foot tip of the Talcott, was originally constructed to be a summer home for Gilbert Heublein, a food and liquor importer and, to put it bluntly, rich white man (this state sure seems to have a lot of those). The tower, as you might expect, does not share any architectural similarities to typical New England homemaking. In fact, it resembles more of a European castle with stucco exteriors. Now primarily used as an observation deck by tourists, visitors can see, on a clear day, as far as New York to the West and Massachusetts to the North. I claimed, while standing today, to see my apartment, though I also claimed that when visiting the Vancouver Lookout this past May (in both cases, I was lying).
This weekend (October 19th), the park is hosting the Heublein Tower Toot, a fundraiser for the tower. If your legs can handle the hike, I'm sure a good time is waiting for you at the top.
Here are some photos that I took along the way.
This really is a great time to visit Talcott Mountain. The foliage is spectacular, and the weather is just right for the hearty climb.
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