CT: Litchfield County- New Preston- White Horse Tavern

The White Horse Tavern is a restaurant that has all my favorite attributes wrapped into one.

Great food with a beautifully decorated outside deck on the river!

The inside is also filled with old artifacts. It’s like a mini museum. My favorite piece is handwritten lyrics by John Lennon.

The desserts are also all in house made. The fresh peach cobbler was hot and carefully presented to include a white horse in the cinnamon!

I do suggest making reservations! Couple this with a trip to the New Preston Falls up the road!

CT: Middlesex County- Essex

Essex village may not be large but I found it filled with uniqueness. Its Main Street has unique finds from a store of only ducks, a chocolate house which announces when it has warm cookies and one of the oldest bars, the Griswold Inn, in the US serving since 1776.

Also of interest is a small stone enclosed park from the 1800s and a beautiful riverside cemetery that I’ve visited twice simply because of its beauty.

It also has The Connecticut River museum with unique events as well as a restaurant that requires a ferry to reach it on its own island!

I toured it on my bicycle but it’s an easy walkable tour. It has been named one of the best small towns in the US.

CT: Fairfield County- Ridgefield-Ballard Park

One of my favorite venues is Ballard Park in Ridgefield where I enjoyed a picture perfect picnic sunset.

Family friendly and old home town feel from the people to the ice cream truck at the corner.

The evening closed with a beautiful sunset.

Gratitude was felt walking through the garden.

Ballard Park is also a wonderful venue for outdoor concerts run by the community referred to as Chirp concerts. Bring a picnic dinner and a chair and enjoy. I encourage giving a donation please as it’s clear they’ve put a lot of work into this community event.

DE: New Castle County-Winterthur Museum and Gardens

When I had my first home I was inspired by the gardens and catalog offerings of Winterthur Gardens. With so many business trips to Delaware I finally arrived.

This was formerly the home of Henry Francis du Pont. He was a horticulturist and an antique collector. He lived with his family in his home/museum.

I took a bus tour around the property stopping at the house/museum and then walking back through the enchanted garden and the peony garden.

I was told that there are over 10 miles of roads. the level of detail for each area was staggering.

I even appreciated the germs and hostas that were painstaking planted to create different levels and shades of green.

I prefer the gardens but for antique buffs the house museum is filled to the brim with furniture and housewares dating back to the 1700s.

But I admit, the gardens had me mesmerized.

Entranced

Below is the link to their website for hours, tickets and location.

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CT: Litchfield County- Litchfield- White Memorial Conservation Center

This is a great place for a bike, hike and kayaking day in one!

Kayak down the Bantam River

Bike around the carriage trails

Hike the boardwalk trail with all its various bridges and views.

There are so many places to see nearby. Most important is grabbing an ice cream at Arethusa just down the road in Bantam!

CT: New Haven County- Guilford-Grass Island (Kayaking)

The good, bad and the muddy!

Today I added some bling to my car to acknowledge my new sport in kayaking and being part of a great Yakin It Up group.

I’m a flat water kayaker focused primarily on photo opportunities of interesting fauna and wildlife. Reading about Grass Island in Guilford I gave it a try at the East River State Boat Launch notwithstanding that it’s an inlet of the Long Island Sound which can be tougher for me to navigate.

I didn’t have the opportunity to take many photos as there was a lot of mud at the launch and I had to focus on paddling due to the winds. But it’s a cool place to try based on driving through the narrow island and checking out the famous shack at its top.

I paddled to the tip and luckily was able to stop at the shoreline (no mud) and went to the shack!

I then returned to the launch site which was much harder to get out without going into inches and inches of mud.

Oh was I messy from head to toe after this one! Fortunately I had some wipes in my car but that was barely enough to deal with all the mud. Need to ask the Yakin’ it up folks for advice!

Couple this launch with a relaxing picnic at nearby Chaffinch Island Park. Has picnic tables and grills. Small place so don’t tell too many 🙂

CT: Middlesex County- Mattabassett River Kayaking

A perfect place for a launch for me is a Dunkin Donuts so I can start the ride with a Hazelnut Latte. Below is the map of the route.

The launch is at the Dunkin’ parking lot at 24 Shunpike Rd in Cromwell, CT. Which is point 1 on the map above.

As a NYC gal, kayaking down the river feels like a real life Disney Jungle cruise.

No matter how often I see a duck or a turtle I have to start snapping. Equally impressed I am that I can now recognize a painted turtle and a blue heron.

Perhaps it’s all those children stories with swans that makes me pause to capture their grace. She peeks over and quietly floated away.

I enjoy taking these genuine nature shots. I then saw a kayaker photographer and wondered in awe the type of shots that came from that lens! Felt fun just being in the same company!

NY: Dutchess County- Millbrook- Innesfree Garden

Magical land of make believe is what I kept thinking as I saw uniqueness in the grounds at each turn.

While I took hundreds of photos, I am an amateur and could not capture the true beauty that was so carefully painted by the volunteers you maintain these grounds.

The different textures, types of trees complement one another.

There are different elevations that change the experience of what may other wise appear to be the same view.

The lake whispers of the day when all the lily pads will be in bloom hiding the turtles I can see today.

Wooden bridges, Adirondack chairs beneath shading trees beg for a quiet and rejuvenating afternoon.

Please know Innesfree is taking reservations to enjoy the stroll through the gardens in morning or afternoon timeslot a.

CT: New Haven County: Milford to West Haven (Spring Biking)

Awesome shoreline ride from Milford Library to Westhaven Savin rock following the “Folks on Spokes” signs! So many beaches! Such a great ride!

Park at the Milford Library. I chose to start my ride behind the library and through the park.

Soon thereafter you reach Gulf Beach. Remember to bring a bike lock so you can take a stroll.

The FOS signs (Folks for Spokes) will route you along the shoreline to the beach communities. Pointe Beach soon follows.

The ride then continues through to Woodmont.

Per the New York Times, the Villa Rosa, a gated peach-stucco mansion built by Sylvester Poli, a theater-chain owner, in 1910. Lining a cove behind it are 10 similarly styled homes, built for Mr. Poli’s daughters and grandchildren, whose red-tile roofs recall the Mediterranean Riviera.

While I was tempted to turn around the changes in the shoreline was too enticing and so I continued to West Havens Savin Rock before I returned.

This was approximately a 10 mile out and then another 10 back for a 20 mile shoreline tour.