This leg goes around steep hills, not up them.

Rules: Foot travel only: no vehicles, bicycles or horses. Dogs must be leashed. Blue trails sometimes pass through private property, so stay on the trail. Practice Leave No Trace principles on your outing.

Walkability: Fairly easy to moderate with muddy wet sections, crossing streams on rocks, and a few short climbs. The trail follows elevation contour lines with occasional moving up or down to another contour line. It's relatively flat, with no large hills to climb. This leg was easily combined with the previous leg, 14D Westford Hill Road to Iron Mine Lane and/or the next leg 14F Eastford Road to Boston Hollow Road.

Total distance: 2.3 miles.

Elevation change: 356 feet (up + down); no steep hills, though. 

Environment: The trail begins at the parking lot on Iron Mine Lane, going north on a woods road which is the route of the Old Connecticut Path (aka the Great Trail). There are other parts of this leg which follow OCP, too. Not far on your way, about 0.2 mile, the woods road seems to peter out. The trail turns left here, but before you go on, look to the left the see the remains of an old forge from Colonial times. At first, it looks like a pile of stones, but closer inspection reveals that the pile is the oven, and it is situated in a dug containment area lined with stones, so it looks like its in a cellar hole. (See photos.) 

There are some wet areas along here that require skirting the trail. Pixie Falls on the East Branch of the Mt. Hope River, are found by taking a short (50 yards) side trail at about the 0.8 mile mark. Farther along, the trail crosses the East Branch on a long narrow bridge with no railing. Ladies' Room Rock comes up after that. You can't miss it, because there is a sign painted on a rock in the middle of the trail. The entire area along the trail is littered with big boulders--glacial erratics, which were dropped by the melting, receding glacier about 15,000 years ago. After Ladies' Room Rock there is a slow easy climb up to Eastford Road.

Directions:  Turn onto Iron Mine Lane from Westford Road (Rt. 89). Park at the small lot at the beginning of a woods road 0.6 miles down on the left. Walk on the woods road going roughly northward. 

Link to Connecticut Forest and Parks Association interactive trail map: https://ctwoodlands.org/explore-trails/interactive-map/ On a computer, type in "Nipmuck" and select "Nipmuck Trail" to see this section. On a phone, zoom in to locate area.

Back to the Nipmuck Trail Overview page. Link to previous leg of the Nipmuck Trail, 14D Westford Hill Road to Iron Mine Lane. Link to the next leg of the Nipmuck Trail, 14F Eastford Road to Boston Hollow Road. 

November 2023

Photos: 1-The old forge looks like a pile of rocks in a cellar until you take a closer look; 2-the hole into the forge; 3-a closeup of the hole; 4-a walk in the autumn woods; 5-the sign identifying the Old Connecticut Path; 6a & 7-Interesting boulders and rock outcroppings; 8-You can't miss Ladies' Room Rock.