Perry' s Mill Ponds
Sturges Road, Fairfield, Fairfield County, CT
81.4 acres

Directions:

east side of Bronson Road; north of Sturges Highway bridge; north side of Perry Street; south side of Sturges Road; east side of Mill River.

Merritt Parkway north for a little less than 27 miles to get off at Exit 44; turn left onto Congress Street; turn left (south) onto Burr Street;  keep heading straight and Burr Street becomes Mill Plain Road (at Brookside Street/Road); turn right onto Unquowa Road; pass over the bridge spanning the Mill River and at the adjacent stop sign turn left onto Mill Hill Terrace (with Sturges Road on the right).  Almost immediately pull into the pull-off on the left side of the road and park.  The sign for the park is across the street.

History:

Acquired from 1960-1974

Facilities:

education, hiking, fishing, wetland conservation, wildlife conservation

Trails:

12/07/2005.  We parked in the parking area for Mill Hollow Park.  We crossed the street (Mill Hill Terrace) to pick up the trail by the open space sign.  The path heads along the western side of the small Sturges Pond. We kept walking and passed the pond and bushwhacked to Sturges Road.  On the other side of Sturges Road is more open space belonging to Perry's Mill Ponds.  In fact, if the parking area for this area is just up the road a ways on the left.  We crossed Sturges Road and turned right to cross the highway bridge over Mill River to Mill Hollow Park on the right (the east side of Mill River).  Dr. Patrick L. Cooney.    

PLANT LIST:
Dr. Patrick L. Cooney, 12/07/2005

Trees:
Acer rubrum (red maple)
Fraxinus americana (white ash)
Gleditsia triacanthos (honey locust)
Juglans nigra (black walnut)
Pinus strobus (white pine)
Platanus occidentalis (American sycamore)
Prunus serotina (black cherry)
Pyrus sp. (crab apple)
Quercus rubra (red oak)
Quercus velutina (black oak)
Robinia pseudoacacia (black locust)
Tsuga canadensis (eastern hemlock)

Shrubs:
Decodon verticillatus (yellow loosestrife)
Euonymus alatus (winged euonymus)
Lindera benzoin (spicebush)
Lonicera morrowii (Morrow's honeysuckle)
Rhodotypos scandens (jetbead)
Rosa multiflora (multiflora rose)
Rubus phoenicolasius (wineberry)
Vinca minor (periwinkle)

Vines:
Celastrus orbiculatus (Asiatic bittersweet)
Hedera helix (English ivy)
Lonicera japonica (Japanese honeysuckle)
Toxicodendron radicans (poison ivy)

Herbs:
Alliaria petiolata (garlic mustard)
Artemisia vulgaris (common mugwort)
Plantago major (common plantain)
Polygonum cuspidatum (Japanese knotweed)   lots
Polygonum virginianum (jumpseed)
Solidago spp. (goldenrod)

Grasses:
Panicum clandestinum (deer-tongue grass)
Panicum virgatum (switch grass)

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