Let’s Go

Riverfront Recapture
Walk Along the River this Winter
Riverfront Recapture’s mission is to connect people to the Connecticut River in Hartford and East Hartford, Connecticut. A great way to connect is through its networks of trails. The Lincoln Financial Sculpture Walk includes sixteen works of art. The Hartford Riverwalk is a 3.4-mile paved riverfront trail linking Riverside Park and Charter Oak Landing with connections to Mortensen Riverfront Plaza, the East Hartford Riverwalk, and Great River Park. There is a Two Bridge Loop trail, a Four Park Loop trail, and the 4.6-mile roundtrip Riverside Park Wooded Trail. All have beautiful views of the river and allow for exploration of flora and fauna.

Find links to trail maps, detailed descriptions, directions, and more at riverfront.org/trails/.

Lyme Land Trust
Hikes for All Ages
Throughout the Winter months the Lyme Land Trust (LLT) offers a wide variety of hikes for all ages: Family Trail Time with Tori for families with young kids, the Tree Collective for teens, Tuesday Treks for all ages, and Take a Walk Wednesdays with Wendy for seniors. LLT also offers educational walks led by experts in their fields.

Monthly Astronomy sessions at LLT’s observatory continue to provide opportunities to see the dark sky up close. Also, using the online community science platform iNaturalist, the land trust’s Wild Lyme Project continues to compile inventories of all the species living in its preserves.

Visit www.lymelandtrust.org to plan your visit!

East Haddam Land Trust
Landscapes and Hikes Await
The coming year promises to be an exciting one for all who enjoy the varied landscapes of the eighteen miles of hiking trails maintained by the East Haddam Land Trust (EHLT). Today the trust conserves more than 800 acres within twenty-eight preserves and seven conservation easements.

EHLT welcomes people of all ages to join regular winter and spring hikes held every second and last Sunday of the month. Walks are led both in EHLT preserves and other sites in Middlesex and New London counties. Throughout the year EHLT also offers kayaking on Moodus Reservoir and the Salmon and Connecticut rivers.

Land trust members and East Haddam residents are invited to submit nature photos they’ve taken in town in all seasons for possible selection for its 2026 calendar. (See ehlt.org/photo-calendar.) On its website (ehlt.org), you can learn about its work, become a land trust member, and sign up for weekly e-bulletins. Come grow with EHLT!

Connecticut River Salmon Association
47th Annual Dinner & Fundraiser
Join Connecticut River Salmon Association (CRSA) on Saturday, January 11, 2025, to honor Dick Shriver, co-founder and publisher of Estuary magazine, with CRSA’s President’s Award for his efforts to bring a fresh and renewed focus to the Connecticut River watershed. Patrick J. Lynch, author of the recently published A Field Guide to the Connecticut River, will provide insights into the diverse ecosystem that is our 400-plus-mile river. Your attendance will also support CRSA’s “Salmon-in-Schools” program and mission to educate and advocate for the migratory fish of our great river. Visit www.ctriversalmon.org to get an invitation and lend your support.

The 2024/2025 Salmon-in-Schools program is well on its way. Registration is complete, orientation has been held, and teachers are preparing their tanks, testing their chillers, and introducing their students to the life cycle of a migratory species. The much-anticipated delivery of their eyed eggs happens in early January! It will be another year exploring the ecosystem of migratory fish with our dedicated teachers and inspired students.

Connecticut Land Conservation Council
Empowering Connecticut’s Land Conservation
Connecticut Land Conservation Council (CLCC) plays a vital role in supporting Connecticut’s land conservation community through five key services:

• Convener: Facilitates opportunities for land trusts to connect, share knowledge, and collaboratively advance their conservation objectives.
• Capacity Builder: Provides timely, practical, affordable training and educational opportunities that focus on community-centered conservation programs.
• Technical Assistance Provider: Delivers direct support and communication channels, ensuring access to current and relevant conservation information.
• Grantmaker: Enhances land trusts’ capacity to fulfill their missions through programs like the Climate Smart Land Stewardship Grant, Connecticut Conservation Partnership Program (CCPP), and Transaction Assistance Grant (TAG).

Advocate: Represents the land conservation community at the State Capitol, protecting essential funding, addressing climate change, and providing leadership on conservation policies.
Join CLCC in its mission to strengthen land conservation in Connecticut. Visit ctconservation.org to learn more about how you can support these critical efforts.

The Rockfall Foundation
Scholarship Opportunity and Fundraiser
The Rockfall Foundation invites high school seniors from the Lower Connecticut River Valley (LCRV) to apply for the Virginia R. Rollefson Environmental Leadership Scholarship. The $1,000 scholarship is awarded to a qualified student who carries out a program, project, or activity that benefits preservation, conservation, restoration, or environmental education in the Lower Connecticut River Valley. The application deadline is noon on March 20, 2025. Detailed information may be found on the website: https://rockfallfoundation.org/programs/vrrscholarship/.

Save the Date: May 4, 2025, for Oysters at the Point—A Sustainable Seafood Social. This event will be held at Saybrook Point Resort and Marina. Proceeds from the event will support Rockfall’s environmental grants program. Visit www.rockfallfoundation.org for more information.

Florence Griswold Museum
Contemporary Indigenous Art on View
This winter the Florence Griswold Museum presents two exhibitions that highlight the work of contemporary Indigenous artists through February 9, 2025. Native Prospects: Indigeneity and Landscape juxtaposes nineteenth century paintings by Thomas Cole featuring Native figures with Indigenous works of historic and cultural significance and artworks by contemporary artists including Teresa Baker (Mandan/Hidatsa), Brandon Lazore (Onondaga, Snipe Clan), and Kay WalkingStick (Cherokee). Native Prospects was organized by the Thomas Cole National Historic Site and curated by Scott Manning Stevens, PhD (Akwesasne Mohawk), Associate Professor of Native American Studies and English at Syracuse University. To offer perspectives of Connecticut’s indigenous people, the museum collaborated with members of the state’s five recognized tribes to curate Naqutiwowok/Continuance: Connecticut’s Tribal Communities Create. The art, contributed by adults and youth, offers an array of media under the theme of continuity through time. Public programs will explore storytelling, food, language, and the environment, among other topics. Visit FloGris.org for more information.

Lower Connecticut River Council of Governments
Hydrilla Update and More
Happy Holidays to All from the Lower Connecticut River Council of Governments (RiverCOG)! A note of interest to many in the estuary is the US Army Corps Connecticut River Hydrilla Project. A great presentation given in September at Western Connecticut State University’s Annual Community Lake Symposium can be found at https://www.wcsu.edu/biology/lake-symposium-recordings-2024/. Dr. Benjamin Sperry—Research Biologist for the US Army Engineer Research & Development Center and lead scientist on the project—and Greg Bugby, Associate Scientist at the Office of Aquatic Invasive Species (OAIS) Lead Invasive Aquatic Plant Program (IAPP) and Principal Investigator at the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station—gave results of the project up to September 2024. Also, once funding is awarded, please watch for public meeting notifications regarding the five-year update to the region’s natural hazard mitigation plan. Notices will be posted at www.rivercog.org on its natural hazard mitigation plan page. We all need to help protect our shelters from the storms!

Rivers Alliance
Book Recommendations
As the cold sets in and the days get shorter, curling up with a good book is one of winter’s simple pleasures. Rivers Alliance has two recommendations for books that will keep you on the edge of your seat, and provoke thought about the future we want to create:

The Water Knife by Paolo Bacigalupi is a dystopian novel about a future where water scarcity in the American West has created stark divisions. A chilling story of violence and corruption, the have-nots struggle against the powerful who exploit this precious resource for personal gain.

The Ministry for the Future by Kim Stanley Robinson offers a thought-provoking exploration of life on Earth as the planet warms and the impacts of climate change grow more severe. Yet this is a story of hope as revealed by people dedicated to driving meaningful change.
Rivers Alliance is dedicated to meaningful change for all of our waters here in Connecticut. Your support drives real change—let’s shape a better future together. Consider supporting Rivers Alliance in lieu of gifts this holiday season. Learn more at www.riversalliance.org/donate.

Connecticut River Museum
Holiday Happenings
As the holidays approach, the Connecticut River Museum invites you to a festive lineup of events, beginning with the 31st Annual Train Show, opening November 21, 2024! Marvel at Steve Cryan’s spectacular model train exhibit, a beloved tradition for enthusiasts of all ages.

Mark your calendars for Sunday, December 1, 2024, when Trees in the Rigging—a boat parade and so much more—returns! Support Museum Store Sunday and get some holiday gifts, plus family friendly crafts begin at noon along with a Holiday Fair and treats galore. Don’t miss the lantern-lit carol stroll beginning at 4 p.m. followed by the dazzling Boat Parade.

Continue the merriment at Mistletoe & Martinis, Tuesday, December 10. Join the museum for this elegant holiday event at Brushmill by the Waterfall in Chester. Reserve seats aboard RiverQuest for the Winter Wildlife and Eagle Watching cruises beginning in 2025. Make your reservations at CTrivermuseum.org.

Connecticut River Conservancy
End of Year Updates & Winter Events
As another year of impact dedicated to clean water, healthy habitats, and resilient communities in the Connecticut River watershed concludes, the Connecticut River Conservancy (CRC) invites readers to join an End of Year LiveStream and other upcoming winter events both virtual and in-person. The December LiveStream is a virtual event that brings CRC’s programs staff together to share their accomplishments in 2024, including restoration projects (such as dam removals, floodplain forests, and tree planting) and updates on advocacy and policy of aquatic invasive species, migratory fish, river cleanups, water quality monitoring, and more. It’s a great opportunity to better understand our local watershed projects and ask questions of the people leading these initiatives. This and other free events are all available for RSVP at ctriver.org/events.

Audubon Vermont
All Are Welcome
Winter is a quieter time of year at the Green Mountain Audubon Center in Huntington, Vermont. Come explore the snow-packed trails by snowshoe, cross-country ski, or on foot. Don’t forget your binoculars to spot Vermont’s resident birds or follow the tracks of the active wildlife that call the Audubon Center home. Open to the public everyday year-round at no charge, the Audubon Center offers over 255 acres of diverse habitats, including wetlands, meadows, and forests, with trails suitable for all skill levels. You can also check out guided programs and upcoming events on Audubon Vermont’s online events page (vt.audubon.org/events). Audubon Vermont invites you to visit this winter—all are welcome at Audubon!

Roger Tory Peterson Estuary Center
New Children’s Education Center
The Connecticut Audubon’s Roger Tory Peterson Estuary Center opened a new children’s education center on its five-acre property in Old Lyme. Funded by private donations, The Kelsey Family Children’s Innovation & Discovery Center offers programming for children ages 3–10 to learn about conservation and the environment through stories and art, the use of scientific equipment, and explorations of local habitats. The continued generosity and support of the community will set the stage for even greater achievements in the future of conservation and education. Come enjoy, experience, and explore! Visit: www.ctaudubon.org/rtp-estuary-home/.

Great Meadows Conservation Trust
Brisk Winter Walks
Great Meadows Conservation Trust’s (GMCT) Annual Brisk Winter Walks will commence on January 1, 2025. The first walk of the season is traditionally at GMCT’s Wood Parcel, located at the corner of Middletown Avenue and Rt 3 in Wethersfield. Held every weekend in January and February, Brisk Winter Walks provide an excellent reason to get outside and enjoy a winter’s day and are always well received. During each walk GMCT showcases its parcels and provides updates about conservation efforts. If there is snow on the ground, participants sometimes cross-country ski or snowshoe—or the leader stamps a trail in the snow for those without equipment to follow. But, since snow is not as common, you might more often encounter a little mud. Either way, it is an enjoyable experience and a great way to spend a winter morning. For details, visit gmct.org or find the group on Facebook.