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Steps away from the Lake Wintergreen parking area is a popular place to fish. Sorry, the state does not permit swimming. This area is the spot to launch a boat. |
Swimming Prohibited
The DEEP does not permit swimming in any body of water at West Rock, including Lake Wintergreen, Farm Brook Reservoir, and the Belden Brook Diversion Pond.
Kayaking, Canoeing and Paddle Boarding
Boating is permitted only on the 44-acre Lake Wintergreen and that access is restricted to boats that are hand-powered or powered by electric motors. Getting to the lake requires transporting the boat by hand from the parking area to the shore of the lake, which is about a 200-foot distance down a slight gravel slope. Due to this challenge and the lack of a boat ramp, lake users are unlikely see even a boat with an electric motor.
Lake Wintergreen is a peaceful place to paddle, other than the somewhat distant hum of traffic from the Wilbur Cross Parkway. The forested shore is free of development. There are no high speed motorboats or jet skis to dodge, which makes the lake a good place for children and beginning paddlers. The ridge shelters the lake from intense winds. The lake is also very suitable for stand up paddle boards.
As a former reservoir, the water has a clean appearance. The lake does not experience algae blooms, which often happens on lakes surrounded by houses.
A circuit of the lake will take between 30 and 45 min. depending on your paddling speed. This GPS track from June 25, 2020, which was a 35 minute moderate paced paddle with stops to take pictures, measured the circuit as 1.56 miles, mostly following the shore, except where water lillies required travel further from the shore: https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/5145614395
Lake Wintergreen is a peaceful place to paddle, other than the somewhat distant hum of traffic from the Wilbur Cross Parkway. The forested shore is free of development. There are no high speed motorboats or jet skis to dodge, which makes the lake a good place for children and beginning paddlers. The ridge shelters the lake from intense winds. The lake is also very suitable for stand up paddle boards.
As a former reservoir, the water has a clean appearance. The lake does not experience algae blooms, which often happens on lakes surrounded by houses.
A circuit of the lake will take between 30 and 45 min. depending on your paddling speed. This GPS track from June 25, 2020, which was a 35 minute moderate paced paddle with stops to take pictures, measured the circuit as 1.56 miles, mostly following the shore, except where water lillies required travel further from the shore: https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/5145614395
State laws requires that adult boaters WEAR a life jacket (personal flotation device) from Oct. 31 to May 31. From June 1 to Oct. 30, the law requires boaters to have a life jacket on board for each person in the boat. Children younger than age 13 are required to wear a life jacket while on the water at all times of year.
It just makes sense to have a life jacket available. It is common to read a news article in the summer about some boater somewhere, usually on the Long Island Sound, who drowns because they fell off a boat and was not wearing a life jacket.
This is the state's weblink to the Lake Wintergreen boat launch ramp: https://portal.ct.gov/DEEP/Boating/Boat-Launches/Wintergreen-Lake-Boat-Launch
This is the link to the Connecticut Boater's Guide: https://portal.ct.gov/DEEP/Boating/Boating-and-Paddling. You can obtain a paper copy at any Town Clerk's office, the Department of Motor Vehicles, and at marinas. The boater's guide lists the address of the Lake Wintergreen parking lot as 412 Main St., Hamden, although the address is actually 40 Main St., Hamden. State officials chose to use the 412 address because that was the closest address from Google maps when the state first settled on this address.
The bathymetry map shows the depths of the lake. The map lists the lake as being 42.4 acres, while most sources list it as 44 acres: http://cteco.uconn.edu/maps/lake/bathymetry/Bathymetry_Lake_Wintergreen.pdf
It just makes sense to have a life jacket available. It is common to read a news article in the summer about some boater somewhere, usually on the Long Island Sound, who drowns because they fell off a boat and was not wearing a life jacket.
This is the state's weblink to the Lake Wintergreen boat launch ramp: https://portal.ct.gov/DEEP/Boating/Boat-Launches/Wintergreen-Lake-Boat-Launch
This is the link to the Connecticut Boater's Guide: https://portal.ct.gov/DEEP/Boating/Boating-and-Paddling. You can obtain a paper copy at any Town Clerk's office, the Department of Motor Vehicles, and at marinas. The boater's guide lists the address of the Lake Wintergreen parking lot as 412 Main St., Hamden, although the address is actually 40 Main St., Hamden. State officials chose to use the 412 address because that was the closest address from Google maps when the state first settled on this address.
The bathymetry map shows the depths of the lake. The map lists the lake as being 42.4 acres, while most sources list it as 44 acres: http://cteco.uconn.edu/maps/lake/bathymetry/Bathymetry_Lake_Wintergreen.pdf
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| Farm Brook Reservoir as seen from the Red Trail at the north end of the park. This is a popular fishing spot. |
Fishing
Fishing in park waters is permitted on a seasonal basis. This includes Lake Wintergreen, Farm Brook Reservoir off Hill Street (as viewed from the Red Trail), and the Belden Brook Diversion Pond adjacent to the Red Trail near Mountain Road.
The most popular place for fishing at Lake Wintergreen is the area near the spillway on the Red Trail, about half a mile south of the Lake Wintergreen parking area.
To reach Farm Brook Reservoir, walk in from the Hill Street parking area on the Red-White Trail. Just before the open field, turn left on the Red Trail and follow that trail near the shore of the reservoir. When you reach the gravel road, turn left and walk across the top of the dam. You cannot walk out to Hill Street across the dam as the properties past the edge of the dam are all privately owned.
To reach the Belden Brook Diversion Pond, follow the directions from Rt. 15, Exit 60, as indicated on the Parking and Driving Directions page on this website. When you reach Main Street, turn right (left would bring you to Lake Wintergreen), then take the next left onto Mountain Rd. There is a gate on both sides of the road for the Red Trail. Park near the gate (but don't block it) on the right side of the road where there is room for three cars. Walk up the open trail and the pond is on the left in one-tenth of a mile.
An annual state fishing license is required for those age 16 or older. Fishing licenses are available at any town clerk's office in Connecticut, or may be ordered from the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) website at https://portal.ct.gov/DEEP/Fishing/General-Information/Fisheries-Licenses-and-Permits. Bait and tackle shops may also sell the licenses.
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| Fishing and boating information is posted on the rear of the signboard at Lake Wintergreen. |
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These signs warn of invasive plants that may be transported by boat trailers. The sign does not totally apply to Lake Wintergreen because the lake has no boat ramp and a metal gate blocks access to the lake from the parking lot. Still boaters should check for any plants clinging to their boats, particularly those using electric motors, and clean their boat and motor after using a particular body of water. |
The
DEEP typically stocks Lake Wintergreen with fish and reported stocking the late with trout and catfish in spring 2022. The DEEP has also stocked the lake in past years with catfish. The state's fishing page has links to stocking information: https://portal.ct.gov/DEEP/Fishing/CT-Fishing
The Fish Stocking Report 2021 on page 15 shows numbers of different types of fish stocked at Lake Wintergreen: https://portal.ct.gov/-/media/DEEP/fishing/general_information/fishdistributionreportpdf.pdf
Complete fishing regulations, including the dates when fishing is permitted, are explained in the Connecticut Angler's Guide, which the DEEP publishes on an annual basis. The guide is available for free at any place that sells a fishing license, at any Town/City Clerk's Office, and may be downloaded from the DEEP website.
Complete fishing regulations, including the dates when fishing is permitted, are explained in the Connecticut Angler's Guide, which the DEEP publishes on an annual basis. The guide is available for free at any place that sells a fishing license, at any Town/City Clerk's Office, and may be downloaded from the DEEP website.
The main DEEP page for fishing is here. The link for the Fishing's Guide is on the DEEP page: https://portal.ct.gov/DEEP/Fishing/General-Information/Fishing-Guide
The most popular place for fishing at Lake Wintergreen is the area near the spillway on the Red Trail, about half a mile south of the Lake Wintergreen parking area.
To reach Farm Brook Reservoir, walk in from the Hill Street parking area on the Red-White Trail. Just before the open field, turn left on the Red Trail and follow that trail near the shore of the reservoir. When you reach the gravel road, turn left and walk across the top of the dam. You cannot walk out to Hill Street across the dam as the properties past the edge of the dam are all privately owned.
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Teenagers fish from a dock located by the Farm Brook Reservoir Dam, as seen in this view from the Red Trail in August, 2015. |
To reach the Belden Brook Diversion Pond, follow the directions from Rt. 15, Exit 60, as indicated on the Parking and Driving Directions page on this website. When you reach Main Street, turn right (left would bring you to Lake Wintergreen), then take the next left onto Mountain Rd. There is a gate on both sides of the road for the Red Trail. Park near the gate (but don't block it) on the right side of the road where there is room for three cars. Walk up the open trail and the pond is on the left in one-tenth of a mile.
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The Belden Brook Diversion Pond on the Red Trail is located just north of Mountain Road near the farm, off Main Street, about one-half mile north of Benham St. The pond has this name because when it was still water company property and Lake Wintergreen was used as a water source (which ended in 1978), the water from Belden Brook could be diverted into Wintergreen Brook and thus redirected into Lake Wintergreen.
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A final note to fishermen (and women): PLEASE take your garbage with you. At the popular fishing spots, it is all too common to find beverage cans, tangled fishing line, cigarette butts, and empty bait containers.
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Multiple lures and floats are caught in the trees adjacent to Lake Wintergreen in this photo taken from the frozen lake in February 2015.
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Big thanks to you for sharing such great information. best fishing line
ReplyDeletefishing in stop waters is allowed on an occasional premise. This incorporates Lake Wintergreen, Farm Brook Reservoir off Hill Street (as saw from the Red Trail), and an anonymous lake nearby the Red Trail close Mountain Road.
ReplyDeleteI've fished a fair amount in West River, both at southern end of WR and near Darling House. At southern end I've caught many tiny perch; near DH a few very small brook trout, & some sunnies & possibly a small bass (don't remember).
ReplyDeleteIt's a shame the state doesn't stock the upper WR with trout. Perhaps the land trust discourages them.
It's further a shame that RWA places access restrictions. Zero need for restrictions from a water supply standpoint: LA gets its water from the Colorado River; Chicago from Lake Michigan. These are sewers compared with RWA supplies.
RWA uses super high-tech filtration.
There needs to be greater regulation (and enforcement) at Wintergreen. The "bucket brigade" keeps everything they catch, regardless of creel limits, and leave their trash all over the place. I'm tired of spending half time time fishing cleaning up after lazy scumbags.
ReplyDeleteIs lake wintergreen contaminated? Technically if the state allowed swimming there is it safe to swim there with regards to polluted water?
ReplyDeleteThe state does not allow swimming at Lake Wintergreen. One reason may be that there is little water flow into and out of the lake in the summer, which is generally associated with lower water quality. There is also limited areas available for a beach. Having a swimming area, guarded or not, creates a whole set of challenges, including crowds, parking limitations, and the litter the public typically leaves behind. Millers Pond State Park in Durham is a good example of the negative effect of the public swimming in a lake.
ReplyDelete