- Sleeping Giant Hike (Tower Trail)200 Mt Carmel Ave, Hamden, CT
Hey all! Now that the weather is starting to stabilize a bit, it's about time we get out and enjoy the outdoors before it gets too hot and humid.
The Sleeping Giant State Park is a popular hiking destination in the New Haven area with great panoramic views on its various peaks---a great choice for an early summer hike. I'm thinking we can start our hike around 9:30 AM to avoid the hottest part of the day as we wrap up the hike sometime around noon.
Once our group arrives at the park's parking lot, we can choose to go up the Tower Trail (easiest and shortest hike; 1.6 miles & 45 minutes one-way) or the Yellow Trail (slightly longer hike by half a mile; 60 minutes one-way) based on the group's preference. We could even do both by taking the Yellow Trail up and then the Tower Trail back down. Either way, the start of both trails are very close to the park's main parking lot (see the Google Maps pin), so we'll have a convenient means to get back to our cars when we're ready to leave.
Either way, we can spend some time at the Sleeping Giant's Observation Tower located on the peak of Mount Carmel, which offers a scenic panoramic view of the New Haven area.
Some rules regarding the Sleeping Giant State Park in particular:
- Dogs are allowed on the hiking trails at this state park, but they must be on a leash at all times per park rules.
- Parking is free for those with a CT license plate and $15 for any out-of-state plates (the weekend rate).
- Be sure to bring your own water bottle and any snacks you deem necessary for a mild hike (feel free to bring some to share at the tower if you want, too!). There won't be any vending machines or water fountains around at the park itself---to the best of my knowledge!
Since we will be finishing around lunchtime, our group can then choose to enjoy some lunch together at a nearby restaurant in Hamden, Wallingford, or North Haven. If you need to leave once the hike ends, that's fine, too; so consider the lunch part to be completely optional if you don't want or can't stick around for that!
For more information about this state park and the Tower Trail in particular, you can see the official Sleeping Giant State Park website (https://ctparks.com/parks/sleeping-giant-state-park) and the Tower Trail reviews on AllTrails.com (https://www.alltrails.com/trail/us/connecticut/tower-trail).
Hope to see you there!