Sounds of Waterfalls Herald Summer in Litchfield Hills

 Some people listen for birdsong and look for early summer flowers but in Litchfield Hills, it's the rippling rhythm of waterfalls that herald early summer.  Swollen from the runoff of a snowy winter, waterfalls are at their splashiest this spring, and there are many falls around the region beckoning hikers, picnickers, and photographers with their call. 

Kent Falls State Park

Kent Falls State Park, home to Connecticut’s tallest waterfall, is located right on Route 7 just north of Kent. The stream known as Falls Brook takes a dramatic 200-foot drop over a cliff here, a thrilling sight. An uphill hiking path beside the water leads to the top of the falls, passing through a fragrant hemlock forest and providing lookouts to savor or photograph the scene below. Excellent vantage points are found all along the trail for admiring the cascading water. Picnic grounds are set in a meadow at the foot of the falls. 

 For a show of waterpower, the Great Falls of the Housatonic in the Falls Village section of Canaan is unsurpassed. During planned water releases in spring, the dam-controlled falls put on a spectacular show, flowing over a 50-foot drop. A short hiking path leads to an upper viewpoint to savor the splash. The falls are found off Route 126 north following the signs on the road marked for Falls Village. Dean’s Ravine Falls in Canaan is another beauty, with cascades and slides down a steep 50-foot drop, and once again an easy trail leads to the water. The trail to the falls begins to the left of the parking lot at Music Mountain, the headquarters of the oldest continuously running Summer Music Festival in the United States. 

The scenic trail to Prydden Brook Falls in Newtown parallels the west side of the Housatonic River most of the way. The waterfall begins and ends with a plunge with 40 feet of cascades in between. 

 A choice spot for a picnic is Southford Falls State Park on the Oxford and Southbury town line where Eight Mile Brook runs down from Lake Quassapaug in a bubbling cascade on its way to join the Housatonic River. Romantics can picnic on a rock adjacent to the falls or on one of the secluded picnic tables by a classic covered bridge. The bridge is based on a traditional 18th-century arch design and was built by a talented local carpenter, Ed Palmer, with the assistance of Americana Artist Eric Sloane. The banks of the pond above the falls are popular with both fishermen and picnickers. Hiking in the park is excellent on a system of loop trails through the woods and hills. One of the trails offers a tower lookout with a prime view. Located just south of Southbury on Route 188, the park provides a shelter with water and visitor facilities. 

Campbell Falls State Park

A lookout tower is one of several rewards for hikers who take the loop three-mile Beaver Pond Trail at Sessions Woods Wildlife Management Area in Burlington. The path, canopied by chestnut, red oak, red maple, and black birch, leads through acres of woodland past a 38-acre beaver pond, the Negro Hill Brook flowing through a jumble of boulders and a side trail leading to a splashing waterfall. The entrance to the wildlife area is found on Route 69, three miles north of the Route 6 intersection in Bristol. 

The sound of rushing water guides visitors through the pines and hemlocks to Campbell Falls, a scenic treasure formed where the Whiting River tumbles over the rocks through a narrow gorge. The water plummets down 60 feet in two steep steps, each ending in a small pool. The weathered rocks make an idyllic picnic setting. The falls are found off Norfolk Road, five miles north of Haystack Mountain on Route 272 in Norfolk, not far from the Massachusetts border.