Regicides Trail is a ''
Blue-Blazed''
hiking
Hiking is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century.AMATO, JOSEPH A. "Mind over Foot: Romantic Walking and Rambling." In ''On Foot: A Histor ...
trail
A trail, also known as a path or track, is an unpaved lane or small road usually passing through a natural area. In the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, a path or footpath is the preferred term for a pedestrian or hiking trail. Th ...
, about 7 miles (11 km) long, roughly following the edge of a
diabase
Diabase (), also called dolerite () or microgabbro,
is a mafic, holocrystalline, subvolcanic rock equivalent to volcanic basalt or plutonic gabbro. Diabase dikes and sills are typically shallow intrusive bodies and often exhibit fine-graine ...
, or traprock,
cliff
In geography and geology, a cliff is an area of rock which has a general angle defined by the vertical, or nearly vertical. Cliffs are formed by the processes of weathering and erosion, with the effect of gravity. Cliffs are common on co ...
northwest of
New Haven
New Haven is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound in New Haven County, Connecticut and is part of the New York City metropolitan area. With a population of 134,02 ...
,
Connecticut
Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...
. It is named for two
regicides
Regicide is the purposeful killing of a monarch or sovereign of a polity and is often associated with the usurpation of power. A regicide can also be the person responsible for the killing. The word comes from the Latin roots of ''regis'' ...
,
Edward Whalley
Edward Whalley (c. 1607 – c. 1675) was an English military leader during the English Civil War and was one of the regicides who signed the death warrant of King Charles I of England.
Early career
The exact dates of his birth and death are unk ...
and his son-in-law
William Goffe
Major-General William Goffe, in or before 1618 to , was an English religious radical and soldier who fought for Parliament in the Wars of the Three Kingdoms and served in the New Model Army. A close associate and supporter of Oliver Cromwell, h ...
, who signed the death warrant of King
Charles I of England
Charles I (19 November 1600 – 30 January 1649) was King of England, Scotland, and Ireland from 27 March 1625 until Execution of Charles I, his execution in 1649. He was born into the House of Stuart as the second son of King James VI of ...
. Upon the
restoration
Restoration is the act of restoring something to its original state and may refer to:
* Conservation and restoration of cultural heritage
** Audio restoration
** Film restoration
** Image restoration
** Textile restoration
* Restoration ecology
...
of
Charles II to the throne and the persecution of the regicides, the pair hid in
Judges Cave near the south end of the trail in 1660. The Regicides is widely known to be one of the most technical trails within the CT Blue-Blazed trail system.
Description
![Lake Watrous10-28-07](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/79/Lake_Watrous10-28-07.jpg)
The trail is a narrow footpath marked with blue blazes, sometimes rocky with difficult footing. It is roughly paralleled by Baldwin Drive, a paved road currently closed to motor vehicles, except for maintenance vehicles, named for New Haven native
Simeon E. Baldwin
Simeon Eben Baldwin (February 5, 1840 – January 30, 1927) was an American jurist, law professor, and politician who served as the 65th governor of Connecticut.
Education
The son of jurist, Connecticut governor and U.S. Senator Roger Sherman ...
,
governor
A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...
of Connecticut from 1911 to 1915. The trail is within the
town
A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world.
Origin and use
The word "town" shares an ori ...
s of New Haven,
Hamden,
Woodbridge Woodbridge may refer to:
Places
Australia
*Woodbridge, Western Australia formerly called ''West Midland''
*Woodbridge, Tasmania
Canada
*Woodbridge, Ontario
England
*Woodbridge, Suffolk, the location of
** Woodbridge (UK Parliament constituency ...
, and
Bethany
Bethany ( grc-gre, Βηθανία,Murphy-O'Connor, 2008, p152/ref> Syriac: ܒܝܬ ܥܢܝܐ ''Bēṯ ʿAnyā'') or what is locally known as Al-Eizariya or al-Azariya ( ar, العيزرية, " laceof Lazarus"), is a Palestinian town in the West B ...
, and entirely within
West Rock Ridge State Park, but is maintained by a private organization, the
Connecticut Forest and Park Association, in conjunction with the West Rock Ridge Park Association. At its southern end, the Regicides Trail terminates behind a pavilion at the park's South Overlook, which has a panoramic view of South Central, Conn., including
Sleeping Giant State Park
Sleeping Giant (also known as the Blue Hills and Mount Carmel), (''Hobbomock'' in Quinnipiac), is a rugged traprock mountain with a high point of , located north of New Haven, Connecticut. A prominent landscape feature visible for miles, the Sle ...
,
East Rock Park
East Rock Park is a park in the city of New Haven and the town of Hamden, Connecticut that is operated as a New Haven city park. The park surrounds and includes the mountainous ridge named East Rock and was developed with naturalistic landscaping. ...
,
New Haven Harbor
New Haven Harbor is an inlet on the north side of Long Island Sound in the state of Connecticut]. The harbor area is an inlet carved by the retreat of the glaciers during the last ice age approximately 13,000 years ago.
The city of New Haven and ...
, and the
Long Island Sound
Long Island Sound is a marine sound and tidal estuary of the Atlantic Ocean. It lies predominantly between the U.S. state of Connecticut to the north and Long Island in New York to the south. From west to east, the sound stretches from the Eas ...
. At its northern end, the Regicides Trail connects with the
Quinnipiac Trail
The Quinnipiac Trail is a '' Blue-Blazed'' hiking trail in New Haven County, Connecticut. It is the product of the evolution and growth of the first trail designated in Connecticut's Blue-Blazed Hiking Trail system, with its light-blue rectangu ...
. Both trails are part of the state's system of "
Blue-Blazed Trails
The Blue-Blazed Hiking Trail system, managed by the Connecticut Forest & Park Association (CFPA), and the related trail systems documented in the two volume ("East" and "West") 19th Edition of the "Connecticut Walk Book" comprise over 800 miles o ...
" totaling more than .
There are two connecting Blue-Blazed Trails to the Regicides Trail. The Westville Feeder, which starts off Blake Street in the
Westville section of
New Haven
New Haven is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound in New Haven County, Connecticut and is part of the New York City metropolitan area. With a population of 134,02 ...
and extends for 0.6 miles, terminating with a junction at the Regicides Trail, just south of
Judges Cave. The trail is blazed Blue-Yellow. The Sanford Feeder follows an abandoned town road, running from Brooks Road in Bethany to its junction with the Regicides Trail near Baldwin Drive. The Sanford Feeder is 0.6 miles and is blazed Blue-Red.
The Regicides Trail also connects to a series of other trails within the park that are not part of the Blue-Blazed system. These trails include the Red Trail that creates a trail loop within the park; the Green Trail, connecting down to the park's main entrance on Wintergreen Avenue; the Orange Trail, connecting to the south end of Lake Wintergreen; the Gold Trail, connecting to the northern end of Lake Wintergreen; the Purple Trail, connecting to Main Street in Hamden, and the Yellow Trail, connecting to Mountain Road in Hamden. The Regicides Trail has a connection to the Woodbridge trail system via the red-blazed North Summit Trail, which intersects the Regicides, just west of Baldwin Drive near a U-shaped overlook. The North Summit Trail extends for 0.8 miles and intersects with the Bishop Estate and Darling House Trails, off
Connecticut Route 69
Route 69 is a primary north–south state highway in the U.S. state of Connecticut connecting the city of New Haven to the city of Bristol in the western part of Greater Hartford, passing through Greater Waterbury along the way. The route exte ...
in
Woodbridge Woodbridge may refer to:
Places
Australia
*Woodbridge, Western Australia formerly called ''West Midland''
*Woodbridge, Tasmania
Canada
*Woodbridge, Ontario
England
*Woodbridge, Suffolk, the location of
** Woodbridge (UK Parliament constituency ...
.
See also
*
List of regicides of Charles I
Following the trial of Charles I in January 1649, 59 commissioners (judges) signed his death warrant. They, along with several key associates and numerous court officials, were the subject of punishment following the restoration of the monarch ...
*
Metacomet Ridge
The Metacomet Ridge, Metacomet Ridge Mountains, or Metacomet Range of southern New England is a narrow and steep fault-block mountain ridge known for its extensive cliff faces, scenic vistas, microclimate ecosystems, and rare or endangered plants. ...
*
West Rock Ridge
West Rock Ridge or West Rock of south-central Connecticut, is a long trap rock mountain ridge located on the west side of New Haven with a high point of . The ridge forms a continuous line of exposed cliffs visible from metropolitan New Haven an ...
*
West River West River may refer to:
Rivers
Canada
*West River (Antigonish, Nova Scotia) in Antigonish County, Nova Scotia
* West River (Pictou, Nova Scotia) in Pictou County, Nova Scotia
* West River (Halifax, Nova Scotia) in Sheet Harbour, Nova Scotia
* West ...
References
Further reading
External links
Specific to this trail:
Official West Rock Ridge State Park websiteWest Rock Ridge State Park mapWest Rock Ridge Park AssociationWest Rock Nature CenterBishop Estate & Darling House TrailsWest Rock Ridge trails informationCT Museum Quest Article on the Regicides Trail
State and municipal government websites:
*
ttp://www.cityofnewhaven.com/ City of New Haven, ConnecticutTown of BethanyTown of Bethany Conservation CommissionTown of Hamden
Land trust / conservation/preservation organizations:
West Rock Ridge Park AssociationBethany Land TrustWoodbridge Land TrustConnecticut Forest and Park AssociationRegional Water Company website
{{Protected areas of Connecticut
Blue-Blazed Trails
Metacomet Ridge, Connecticut
Mountains of Connecticut
Protected areas of New Haven County, Connecticut
Geography of New Haven, Connecticut
Hamden, Connecticut
Landforms of New Haven County, Connecticut
Tourist attractions in New Haven, Connecticut