Lantern Hill Hike, Ledyard/North Stonington, CT

Howdee all,

Still enjoying the amazing foliage.

Lantern Hill VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

Sunday we hiked Lantern Hill with my Sicksta Tammy and her hubby Joe. Lantern Hill is not to far from where we are parked in my parents driveway in Ledyard, Ct.

Nearby City:
North Stonington/Ledyard

Length:
2.6 total miles

Elevation Gain:
Minimal around 400ft

Trail Type:
Out-and-back

Skill Level:
Moderate, steep climbs and bare rock

Season:
Year-round, weather permitting

 

We started out hike via Wintechog Hill Road. Directions here. I found this online GPS map that is pretty cool. The author started his hike from Foxwoods Casinos Two Trees Inn.

Check out the graph then x out of the black box to see his route.
Lantern Hill

EveryTrail - Find trail maps for California and beyond

The hike started with a gradual uphill climb.

The trail splits….the trail to the left goes directly to the summit, we took the trail to the right that skirts around the summit and then took a trail to the summit.First views of Lantern Hill pond.Beautiful oranges, reds and yellows.

I always think of Trix cereal when I see these colors.Below you see the remains of a Silica Mine.

Lantern Hill gets its name because its white cliffs are said to shine in the sun when seen from the sea (Caulkins p. 97; Crandall pp. 107-108; Detwiller). Some believe that Lantern Hill was also known as "Tar Barrel Hill." In August 1814, during the War of 1812, barrels of tar were set ablaze atop a hill to warn residents of the British approach along the coast. It may be unlikely that Lantern Hill is Tar Barrel Hill, being so far (on the border with Ledyard) from the more populated coast. A more likely candidate for Tar Barrel Hill is Jeremy Hill, about 3.4 miles (5.5 kilometers) to the southeast, on the Stonington/North Stonington border (Haynes and Boylan, p. 51; Heermance, pp. 246-247). The barrels were put in place on May 15 and set on fire on August 9, 1814 (Haynes and Boylan, p. 51). The smoke from the burning tar, not the light from the fire, may have been the warning signal (Grotz p. 32; Haynes and Boylan, p. 51).  via ^{The Story of the Yawgoog Trails}

The hill's quartz was first mined by David D. Mallory in 1870 ("A Growing Industry"; Haynes and Boylan p. 74). With a purity as high as 96.84% silicon dioxide, the mineral had many uses, including glassmaking, filter sand and construction aggregate. Lantern Hill quartz was used as an aggregate in the concrete faces of the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in Boston, Massachusetts (Altamura, Tectonics, Wall-Rock Alteration pp. E31, E15). Paul Slade and his Gang reused narrow-gauge rails from the quarry to build a short marine railway where Yawgoog's sailing center is today. The railroad was used to move 28-foot (8.5-meter), surplus navy cutters into and out of Yawgoog Pond from the 1930s onward (Williams and Anthony vol. 2 p. 28). Lantern Hill is spiritually significant to the Pequots (Detwiller; "Bozrah's Healing Waters"); the tribe protected the quarry site by acquiring it from the U.S. Silica Company in 1994. To the south, it can be seen that much of one of the hill's lower summits was removed before mining ended.
via ^{The Story of the Yawgoog Trails}

^{See Foxwoods Casino in the distance?}

Here's a better view.Jeff and Joe checking out the scene.

The hill is composed mostly of high-purity milky quartz and it occupies the inactive Lantern Hill Fault, which runs south into the Atlantic Ocean. Analysis of the quartz reveals that it is 238 million years old—the mid-Triassic Period of the Mesozoic Era in geologic time. The formation of the fault and the quartz are associated with the early formation of the Atlantic Ocean (Altamura 1995; Altamura 2003).[5] [6] 

Via Wikipedia

We continued to the summit…east side

Back to the western summit and we start our hike down to Lantern Hill pondWe leave the Reds..for a forest of Gold.To the pond where we see, Wood, Mallards and Black Ducks.The golden forest was busy with Chickadees, Titmice, Juncos, Downy woodpeckers  and Wood thrush.Wowee colors…The peachy colored leaves in the trees below are Dogwoods.We continued that trail thru the forest of gold and green..We didn’t have a map..so we hoped we were taking the right trail back to the car.Old foundation….wonder who lived here…We made it to the road we came in on..the car was just a hop, skip and a jump away..

Happy Hiking!