Scantic Riparian Area

Scant Indeed
Northern Connecticut Land Trust: Scantic Riparian Area, Somers
December 2023

At some point I decided to “hike” everywhere that some entity told me had a trail to hike. That’s fine. It’s the “then write about them all” part I still question myself about.

But here we are. Underneath a powerline on a lonely road somewhere in Somers.

(Actually, here I am sitting at my desk at home writing about being underneath a powerline on a lonely road somewhere in Somers.)

The Scantic Riparian Area encompasses all the flood plain between the river and the higher farm fields to its West. It extends from about 150 yards north of Durkee Road all the way south to Hall Hill Brook near Four Bridges Road. In all there’s nearly 40 acres owned by the NCLT.

Originally the land was a fully functional natural riparian wetland. It provided a buffer zone for lands farther down stream by holding water during flood times and slowly releasing it later. Such wetlands also served the vital function of helping recharge aquifers beneath them as well as providing habitat for a vast array of wildlife. Years ago these wetlands were ditched and drained to create hayfields. These have since been abandoned and are slowly reverting back to their natural state.

That sounds so nice! And important! So let’s check it out. There’s a NCLT sign at the gate and everything, so I had the necessary confidence to continue past it and into the property. The trail here simply heads straight away from the road, past some marshy areas… and just keeps going. Underneath the powerline. Next to cattails and other stuff.

But like many of these land trust holdings, it’s not really about the trail:

Biodiversity in the Scantic Riparian Area is impressive due to the many different habitats ranging from constantly flooded land in the south to relative high and dry land nearer Durkee Road. For instance during one wild flower hike in mid August more than 80 species were found in bloom. It’s a great place for birding. Such rare and/or special species as Yellow-breasted Chats, Northern Shrikes, Solitary Sandpipers, Rusty Blackbirds and Water Thrushes have been recorded. Evidence of terrestrial vertebrates other than beaver can best be seen by their tracks in the winter following a fresh snowfall.

Well there you go. After a while I figured I’d seen enough and went back to my car. Before leaving, I walked up the road to the Scantic River to see about a former trail. Yes, there used to be a loop trail along the river but it’s now closed due to periodic flooding as well as a broken footbridge. I thought I’d be able to follow it for a bit, but no, it’s completely gone. I guess river flooding will do that to an unmaintained trail pretty quickly.

That’s it. Scant hiking at Scantic Riparian Area.

Northern Connecticut Land Trust
CTMQ Hikes Northern Connecticut Land Trust’s Trails