Suggested Thanksgiving Hikes

CATS Trail marker (Credit: virtualdavis)

This Thanksgiving we’d like to say THANK YOU. Thank you for hiking our trails, volunteering on projects, coming to our events, and supporting us with your donations. It’s because of YOU that we are able to save land and make trails for you to enjoy.

Thanksgiving Day Hike Suggestions

Take some time this Thanksgiving to hike a CATS Trail with your friends and family. You’ll find descriptions and directions at our website or in a CATS Trail Map. Here are some short hikes and one long one that everyone will enjoy:

The DaCy Meadow Farm Trail in Westport is a loop trail through fields and forest with a beautiful view from the trail’s high point, next to the bed and breakfast, looking north toward Coon Mountain.

View from Wildway Overlook Trail (Credit: CATS)

The Brookfield Headwaters Trail in Essex is a lovely hike through diverse woodlands that passes by a beaver pond.

Just a short distance from the Brookfield Headwaters Trail is our most popular trail, the Wildway Overlook Trail where you can hike to the summit for magnificent views of the Champlain Valley, Lake Champlain, and Vermont’s Green Mountains in the background (pictured here).

If you are in Crown Point, try the Penfield Pond Trail that goes by a cascading brook to a placid pond where you might see migrating waterfowl.

And then there is the Belfry Mountain Trail near Witherbee, the shortest hike to a great view. Your kids will love climbing the fire tower to see the view.

Finally, for a long hike, nothing beats Pok-O-Moonshine in Lewis and all that you can see from its summit. Plus it has a firetower.

Future Events

Check our website for details on these events and for more events as they are scheduled.

December 12, 2015 – Survival Skills
January 8, 2016 – Owl Prowl
February 27, 2016 – Introduction to Snowshoeing

Happy Thanksgiving, from the CATS Staff,

Chris Maron, Executive Director
Gail Testa, Operations Manager
Bill Amadon, Stewardship Coordinator

Champlain Area Trails Honors Founding Member Bruce Klink (www.essexonlakechamplain.com)

About Champlain Area Trails (CATS)

Champlain Area Trails (CATS) is a non-profit organization, begun in 2009, which creates and maintains hiking and cross-country ski trails in the Champlain Valley that link communities, connect people with nature, and promote economic vitality. In its short history, CATS has developed 35 miles of trails that when added to existing trails, gets it half-way toward the long-envisioned goal of a 30-mile trail loop between Westport and Essex. CATS will extend its trails to neighboring towns and eventually connect them to trails in the Adirondack Mountains, Vermont, and Quebec. Learn more on the CATS website.