64. Westmoor Park

Crying Fowl
West Hartford(Google Maps Location)
Multiple Visits

2019 Update: This page is a bit… old. The pictures are bad and poorly formatted, but you’ll get the gist. We’ve been here a million times. In fact, I was just there a few weeks ago in April 2019 chaperoning a field trip for my second grader, Calvin. It’s a great place that does really good things.

My page about Hiking at Westmoor Park

They say:

Westmoor Park is an environmental, agricultural, and horticultural education center dedicated to generating awareness and appreciation for the natural world. The park encompasses 162 acres and includes a diversity of natural habitats.

I say: Westmoor Park is three minutes away from my house (having the distinction of being the closest CTMQ attraction in the state to CTMQ homebase) and there are a bunch of farm animals for Damian (2019 update: And Calvin) to look at. We actually visit this place every couple months just to walk around and give Mama a break. So this report is sort of a hodge podge of visits to Westmoor, and also to the other Westmoor property down Mountain Road, Spicebush Swamp.

They say:

A particularly popular attraction is the park’s demonstration farm, which is home to a variety of barnyard animals.

I say: Isn’t that what I just said?

They say:

There is a large garden area devoted to seasonal flower beds, as well as herb and vegetable gardens, and three miles of nature trails (one-half mile of which is handicapped accessible) that encourage visitors to explore the park throughout the four seasons.

I say: When there are goats and piglets, who needs an herb garden? But then they tell me:

The Perennial Garden is located behind the main building and has a lovely canopy of dogwoods, crabapples and azaleas. This garden has a beautiful display from the spring season into the late fall. It is a nice place to sit and look at the combinations of trees, shrubs, and perennials.

The Hummingbird and Butterfly Garden was planted after we were awarded the Wildlife Habitat Project Grant in 2002. It is designed so that the public can enjoy the native pants which attract hummingbirds and numerous butterflies here in Connecticut.

Okay, so let’s go check that out. The pictures of Damian outside here were from mid-July on a 95 degree day. Yes, it was hot. But we didn’t mind as we ambled across the grass to check out the gardens. There are a few distinct gardens here, beyond the ones mentioned above.

There’s a “Toad Garden” which supposedly offers shade to toads. I have about 20 toads in my “gardens” at my house, perhaps they’d like a few more? There is also a “Five Senses Garden,” which is a pretty neat idea. It has things like plants with seed pods for sounds and lamb’s ear for touch. But enough lamb’s ear plants, let’s go touch a real lamb’s ear.

We skipped the trails and woods for this “picture day,” but I’ve walked the grounds before and they are pretty nice. Nothing spectacular, but a pretty cool little oasis of sorts right in town here.

The farmyard is open for all from 9-4 every day of the year except for holidays, which for us, again, is really handy. On hot summer days, like this one, there are plenty of high-powered fans blowing loudly in the barns. I do believe this may have been Damian’s favorite part of the day:

The farmyard is pretty much the same as all the rest in the state, but it does have a bunch of informational signs hung all over the place. Some are done by the park staff, whereas others have been donated by kids which adds a unique touch.

Their website offers little tidbits about each animal on the farm, which I’ve taken for my captions:

These people also name each of their extensive collection of various ducks and geese and other poultry. While I can’t be sure, as it’s obscured in this shot by Damian’s big head, but I think it was “Tallulah” the Toulouse Goose who gave this entry its title, “Crying Fowl.” You see, right after this picture below was taken…

The dang thing bit Damian’s finger. He cried and cried and thus ended our visit that day to the farm (we were pretty much done anyway), but he got over it once in the car.

They say:

The education center at Westmoor Park features an exhibit area, a nature discovery room, and a heated greenhouse. There is also a spacious meeting room available for classes and community use. Westmoor Park is maintained by experienced staff with backgrounds in biology, natural sciences, and agriculture. Their commitment to quality interpretation has helped the park achieve its reputation as one of the finest environmental education centers in the state.

I say: Great! And Damian and I couldn’t be happier to have this resource so close to home. But what’s this about a “discovery room and a heated greenhouse?” Yes, though only open on weekdays, this place also has a little room filled with animals and some other stuff to see.

I took my camera with me on a late fall day after Damian had some appointments. We were greeted by the cat who hopped up onto my lap much to Damian’s chagrin. There is a large room here called the Hunter Room which houses a really cool boa constrictor in the corner and a large glass-windowed wall for bird feeder viewing.

But the Discovery Room itself is a small affair, with maybe 10 animals in it. My pictures are, as always, awful because I didn’t feel like setting the flash on for my own dumb reasons. Despite all the cool live animals here, Damian seemed to enjoy the site of a stuffed raccoon in a fireplace the most. That’s my boy.

There was an assortment of turtles including painted turtles, box turtles, spotted turtle, wood turtle, and also a Russian tortoise. The Discovery Room is also home to three Leopard Geckos, native species of the Middle East. These nocturnal lizards eat lots of crickets and mealworms, and have a very unique feel to their skin.

Aside from the reptiles, there is also a guinea pig and a beautiful little parrot.

Ugh. I hate country music.

They eat guinea pigs in South America.

In addition to the animals, this little room has some fun activities for little kids, including a wall with velcro stick-on vegetables which we both enjoyed a bit.

Westmoor also has a little seasonal gift shop which happens to sell Westmoor’s own honey for a mere 12 bucks a pop, which is a bit steep. But at least it reminded me of a word I used to know: Apiary.

We walked back outside through the little greenhouse which was just that – a little greenhouse. Damian did touch every plant on his way out the door for good measure.

Another visit:

On another visit during, I think, Westmoor’s Family Day, Damian and I got to see a few things we’d never seen before. Sure, giant chickens are one thing, but the antique farm tool room and another secret display of old tack equipment got us both pretty excited. Here are some more pictures.

2019: Again, this page should be so much better, but these early pages are what they are and that’s the way it is. I am fortunate to have Westmoor in my backyard and I love what they do there. But here… here’s a few more pictures from a 2013 visit with my parents.

You will too.

Westmoor Park
CTMQ hikes Westmoor Park
The trails at Westmoor’s Spicebush Swamp