Hallenbeck Land

Year Acquired / 1995

Size / 18 acres

Properties / 3

Tucked behind the houses on Lowell Road, the Hallenbeck Land’s 18 acres reveal a varied landscape of old meadow and glaciated woodlands. The bulk of the property was donated by Jane Hallenbeck to CLCT in 1995. Two additional parcels (approximately 5 acres in the aggregate) were purchased by COLF and donated to CLCT in 1996.

Features

Bird habitat, old meadow, kettlehole pond

Trail Conditions

Level with some steep areas; plank boardwalk, small bridge

Entrances / parking

Park along Indian Spring Road and then walk north along Lowell Road on a sidewalk about 0.2 miles and the trail-head will be on the left-hand side with a sign indicating Hallenbeck Land.

Download map for Hallenbeck Land

Explore Hallenbeck Land

The loop trail begins on a mowed path that follows the perimeter of a 1 ¼ acre meadow; note the large flat stones that were set by early farmers to bridge the ditches and brooks. At the far side of the meadow, the trail enters an oak and pine woods and rises and falls with the glaciated terrain. The far western corner of the property surrounds a kettlehole bog. While this is slowly becoming a shrub wetland, the sphagnum moss at its perimeter is growing over water and peat; for your safety, do not attempt to walk into the bog.

From Lowell Road, the trail runs within a 50 foot wide strip of land for approximately 700 feet to the junction with a loop trail. Segments of the trail are seasonally wet; there is a plank boardwalk and a small bridge.

A side trail marked with blue disks runs along the west side of the meadow. It passes by an extensive myrtle patch and an old foundation that mark the site of a farm worker’s house, and are a reminder of the chicken farming that occurred in the vicinity. Note also the nearby ‘borrow pit’ that was a source for sand and gravel used on the farm; reputedly, this was where people gathered to watch and wager on cockfights.