With 107 State Parks, I don’t know how a state of such small size has room for anything else! Connecticut boasts 107 State Parks & 32 State Forests! Wow, that is amazing.
One of Connecticut’s State Parks is housed in Middletown. Wadsworth Falls has two waterfall destinations for a family to enjoy! This State Park also offers a beach, a field, hiking, swimming, stream fishing, and mountain biking!
Wadsworth falls has two parking locations – each offering their own activities. The parking locations are on Cherry Hill Road, and on Wadsworth Street. Cherry Hill Road will give you a level hike to the Big Waterfall, and more trails heading down to the rest of the park, and the Little Waterfall. Wadsworth Street offers a stream, a beach, a field to play on, restrooms, and picnic tables. The Wadsworth Street location also offers hiking trails to the Little Waterfall, a Bridge, the Big Waterfall, and more.
With the cost of gas, and admission to most places, it’s nice to see so many FREE outdoor activities to enjoy!
Mom’s Review:
The family had a great time tossing the frisbee right next to the mountain stream! The older kids loved jumping on the rocks to cross the stream. We all enjoyed the time together on the wide forest trails! The trails are marked with spray paint, and the kids loved finding the colored trees!
**We did not drive over to the Cherry Hill location – hence, we did not get to see the Big Falls. The beach was drained for the off season, so I don’t have pictures of that.
Positives:
Restrooms! 🙂
Great Outdoor opportunity
Hiking
Close enough to town that you can grab some lunch to take with you.
Dogs are allowed ON leashes
Negatives:
I wish they had a brochure box with trail maps, and a picture of the end destinations. It would be nice to see what we could hike to, so we could make an educated decision.
Favorite Season To Visit:
Summer & Fall would probably be the best outdoor weather to enjoy what the park has to offer.
Activities/Things To Do:
Stream Fishing
Mountain Biking – Only for experienced bikers – not for the little ones.
Hiking
Swimming
Nature Enjoyment – Waterfalls
Picnic Area
What To Pack:
Bug Repellant
Sun Screen
Hiking Essentials – Baby Carrier
A Change of Clothes – in case someone accidentally takes a plunge into the stream! It happens all of the time to us!
Snacks or lunch
Water for the hike
Camera/Video Camera
FYI:
The trails are not marked until you get to the edge of the forest. It may be obvious to you, but we struggled to find them. They are behind the bathroom picnic area. If you are standing next to the trail sign, the covered bridge it to your right, and the steps going to the picnic area and trails are in front of you. Stay to the left of the bridge.
Kid’s Review: What did the kids think of the place?:
Abi – I loved hiking in the woods. I really loved climbing on the big tree, and seeing all of the names carved into the trees!
Ella – I loved finding the colors on the path – This was a big help. She’s not my most active child. The colors kept her going!
Michael – I loved beating Ella to the colors! (After a couple of melt-downs, we had the kids take turns finding the next color on the tree.) I loved jumping in the stream, and playing Frisbee with dad!
Dad’s 2 Cents $$. What’s All of This Quality Time Going To Cost Me?:
Absolutely Nothing! FREE activities to enjoy!Parking is completely FREE!
Location:
721 Wadsworth Street
Middletown, CT
Another location to the Big Falls is on Cherry Hill Road in Middletown, CT.
Hours:
Sunrise to Sunset – All year!
Our Experience:
Another State Park for the Haines Family! What’s that around 5? Only 102 to go! My poor family!
Thankfully, I did remember the Frisbee, this time. The family had a great time running around with the Frisbee. (That scored a couple of points for mom!) After Frisbee, and checking out the drained hole with sand, we weren’t sure where to start our hike to the waterfall. Of course, we went the complete opposite way. Mike ended up asking a nice lady, who was peacefully stretching for her walk. As he was approaching her, all I could think of was what she must be thinking! A strange guy is walking up to her, in the far corner of a pretty vacant park. Yikes! I kept telling the kids to go with dad, and they kept refusing! So, I ran over. This poor lady, didn’t know what she was getting herself into. Thank goodness, no one scared her off, and we got our directions.
Off we go, into the woods. The trails were nice and wide, and the side trails seemed intriguing. The trails change their appearance as you go past the big fall, little fall sign. The trail then, starts to get narrow, and isn’t as level. There are no steep drop offs, so I never worried about the kids, in that way. The little waterfall, if that is where we ended up, was definitely lacking in water supply. There were no markers to indicate it was the little waterfall. We only assumed. Either way, we found A waterfall (sort-of), and turned around. Night was falling down on us, and we did not want to be in the middle of the forest with four small kids! On the way back we saw a couple on mountain bikes, a lovely family with their dog, and climbed the fun Mountain Laurel tree, once more! A fun time!
Pictures For A Better Visual:
go to http://www.kidfriendlythingstodo.com/2012/04/wadsworth-falls-state-park-pictures-a-kid-friendly-thing-to-do-review/
Wadsworth Falls Web Site:
go to http://www.ct.gov/dep/cwp/view.asp?a=2716&q=325274
