Favorite Places: Hop River Trail featured by Rails-to-Trails

Start of the Hop River Trail in Eastern Connecticut. Jack Dougherty photo

The national Rails-to-Trails Conservancy named Hop River State Park Trail its trail of the month for January 2017. The paved and stone-dust trail is part of the East Coast Greenway's spine trail through Eastern Connecticut, stretching 12.5 miles between Hartford and Willimantic.  

"It's well kept by the towns that it runs through. It's a wooded, country trail that goes mostly through a state park but also through a number of bucolic town centers," says Bruce Donald, Tri-State Coordinator for the East Coast Greenway Alliance. "There's a few tunnels, and the famous covered bike-pedestrian bridge in Andover."

The Conservancy's post notes that Hop River is part of the East Coast Greenway — in a state where the governor and transportation commissioner are committed to closing and gaps.

"Kudos to DOT Commissioner James Redeker and Governor Dannell Malloy, they have been important, proactive voices in these efforts," says Donald. "Connecticut has a real interest in getting these trails built, and it shows. The Let's Go! CT program sponsored by the DOT just passed $14.9 million in bonded funding. These funds will close a key gap for Hop River with a bridge over busy Route 6/44 at Bolton Notch," Donald says.

Read the Rails to Trails Conservancy story about Hop River State Park Trail