Groton (Stonington)

This part of the Connecticut Coast is dotted with little towns in and around the inlets and islands. Each has a slightly different character; all are charming.

This morning I drove over to Barn Island Wildlife Management Area . Like some of the other lower key wildlife areas I have visited, it was difficult to find the beginning of the trail for this one. The GPS took me to the general area, driving a bit further produced a sign, but no parking area or obvious trail, driving yet a bit further finally produced a small parking area and an obvious trail. It rained lightly on and off all morning, but not enough to interrupt the hike. This is an ecologically rich area, with varied habitats, lush vegetation and lots of birds. Elusive as ever, but I was able to capture a few.

My next planned stop was The Old Velvet Mill in Stonington. The Stonington plant was built by the town in 1888 as a means of encouraging the development of new industry. The passage of the McKinley Act in 1891 made it possible to start manufacturing velvet in this country. In 1996, the The American Velvet Company relocated to Virginia which is more business friendly. The old Mill now provide space for artists, craftspeople and entrepreneurs. Unfortunately, it was almost empty when I visited today. One of the few vendors who was on site, Rosalie Faith Walsh , explained to me that most of the activity occurs on weekends, really mostly on Sunday. Faith, as she prefers to be called, creates fine jewelry, mostly custom and often from vintage materials. She showed me some of her beautiful current work and gave me some insight and tips about the area.

Based on Faith’s recommendation I drove over to Water Street in Stonington , which is one of those cute streets with boutiques, antique stores and a few eateries. I walked up and down the street and also out to the beach and pier. The fog made for a moody backdrop to the rocky outcroppings and boats.

In other news, three weeks later, I finally received my EZpass transponder. It did indeed travel to California and back. I’m still expecting some incorrect billing or fines even though the back-up method of plate scanning should have negated that possibility. Stay tuned on that one.

Tomorrow I will explore Mystic, made famous by the movie Mystic Pizza.