Salmon Brook Park

Salmon Brook Park in Granby, CT, is a multi-use recreation facility with an equestrian ring at the far end of the property. The Granby Horse Council (GHC) works steadfastly with the town to create an equestrian-friendly community, and this is one of their many contributions. There’s a trail system connected to Salmon Brook Park, courtesy of multiple private property owners, making the park a welcome equestrian destination.

maintenance is a labor of love because we want to ride here. We’ve seen all types of wildlife including bears, coyote, deer, and a bobcat on our rides.”

A Leg Up

Parking is in a paved lot near the horse ring. I pulled through two spots in the middle of the lot. There were two other trailers when I arrived on a Sunday afternoon, plus one in a lot up along Route 20. Clean up

“The Salmon Brook Park trail is a pleasant one-hour loop with very good footing,” says Joan Davis, GHC president. “It’s open all year, has easy hills, forests, fields, and two stream crossings.”

The trails that start in Salmon Brook Park connect with private lands, and then with the McLean Game Refuge — a 4,400acre nature preserve. The refuge provides a large swath of natural area and protected habitats. Adding the horse-designated trails in McLean to the Salmon Brook Park trails makes a two-hour ride.

Holly and Jay Ely, along with their daughter, Nora, are also members of GHC and maintain the Salmon Brook Park trails on behalf of the club. They’ve lived across the street from the park for more than 45 years and ride there almost daily.

“I love the trails,” Holly says. “Trail around your trailer before leaving.

Equestrians must respect the private property by staying on the established trails and riding along the edges of crop fields. Trails aren’t marked because they cross private lands. It’s easy to get lost, so I recommend riding with someone who knows the trails or on an organized ride. Riding with GPS or a similar app can help if you venture out on your own.

Horseback riding in the McLean Game Refuge is only allowed on trails marked with a yellow rectangle, and only between April 15 and November 30. Download a trail map at mcleancare.org/ game-refuge/recreation/ before you go. (Here you’ll also find notices and unplanned closures.) Riders must dismount and kick manure off the trails in the game refuge. McLean has numerous trail cameras for the purpose of studying wildlife. These cameras have also documented riders on unauthorized trails. Equestrians run the risk of losing the privilege of riding on the beautiful trails if we don’t follow the rules.

Out Riding It

The Salmon Brook trails are a loop. The first option is to cross the stream just past the dog park, but we chose the second option, riding out past the riding ring (you can use it to warm up first if you want) along the edge of the soccer fields. This part of the trail runs parallel to Salmon Brook, and you’ll catch glimpses of it through the trees as you ride along. At the end of the soccer area, as the fields are curving around, there is a trail into the woods.

This trail winds its way through the woods and climbs a hill toward Route 20; we rode along the back side of the parking lot where I’d spotted the other horse trailer. The trail ducks back into the woods onto private property. We went down a wooded hill, and came out in a large open space, where we rode along the edges of corn- and hayfields, again on private property.

It was easy to ride the edges of the cornfields, with one leading into the next. We went through a smaller field, which the town owns, and then came to our first stream crossing. I loved this; it was so pretty, with the trees and sky reflected off the water. We crossed the stream and continued, finding our way around more cornfields, and then crossing the stream again in an area where farm equipment obviously crosses too.

Salmon Brook looks more like a river in places. “The stream crossings should be avoided after a lot of rain; the current is strong,” says Holly. I had several opportunities to offer my horse water and enjoy the view.

We reached a dirt road that heads uphill on the back side of one of the cornfields and continued along the road back to the park, by the dog park, completing the loop.

We would have needed to continue

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25 Queen Lake Rd., Phillipston, MA (978) 696-1269 (text/voice) stonebrookfarmdb.com facebook.com/stonebrookfarmdb stonebrookfarm.db@gmail.com further to reach McLean. The horseaccessible trails are the Meadow Trail and Sandy Trail on the McClean map. You must get to the Barn Door Hills Road parking lot to reach these. McLean trails are truly a unique treasure, as you wind your way through the woods and around the edges of open fields.

We rode for about two hours with all the extra twists, turns, and loops. I want to go back another day to explore the McLean Game Refuge. I loved riding in this area, soaking up both the quiet stillness and the happy burbling of Salmon Brook. The trails at Salmon Brook Park and McLean Game Refuge provide a natural refuge for equestrians to unplug from their hectic lives.

The generosity of the private landowners, and work of GHC members and others to maintain equestrian access and the trails is much appreciated.

Happy trails!

Stacey Stearns, a lifelong equestrian living in Connecticut, enjoys trail riding and endurance

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