Appalachian Trail NW Section

The Appalachian Trail northwest section through the Mohawk Mountain area traverses the quiet, densely forested ridgelines of the Litchfield Hills through thick second-growth woodland that has regenerated since the region's 19th-century agricultural era. This section of the AT is among the most remote and least-visited in Connecticut, passing through terrain with no road crossings for several miles and providing the closest thing to genuine backcountry hiking available in the state. The white-blazed trail follows rolling ridgelines through mature northern hardwood forest where sugar maple, American beech, and yellow birch dominate the canopy over a dense understory of striped maple and hobble-bush. The forest floor is carpeted in spring with hepatica, trillium, and wild ginger blooming in succession from late April through June. The trail crosses several headwater streams on wooden footbridges and passes through two Connecticut AT shelters available for through-hiker camping. Porcupines are frequently encountered along this section, and flying squirrels glide between trees at dusk. Black-throated blue warblers and ovenbirds breed throughout the forest understory and are easily heard singing from mid-May through July. The trail's second-growth character reflects the landscape's resilience: what was farmland 150 years ago is now productive wildlife habitat, a conservation success story playing out quietly in the Connecticut hills.