Railroad Ramble
Lakeville, Salisbury, Litchfield County, CT
Source: Land Trust of the Salisbury Association
Directions:
Taking US 44 east from Millerton, NY go into Lakeville and turn right onto Montgomery Street (Route 41) and park near its intersection with Farnum Road near the Patco Mobil Station. The trail begins from the east side of community field behind the Mobil station.
To reach the north end of the trail from Lakeville, take Route 44 north, turn right to the end of Walton Street and look for the trailhead on the left. The other end of the trail is at Salmon Kill Road just behind the village in Salisbury.
Habitats:
swamp, pine grove, woodland, pond
Trails:
This is an abandoned railroad trail that runs in a southwest to northeast direction, parallel and southeast of Rt. 44. The out and back trip is about 2 miles.
8/07/2005. On our second night of a three day vacation in the town of Salisbury we made up for our first night's terrible dining experience with a very good one. My wife discovered where she had gone wrong the previous night. So we decided to go to the Mexican restaurant that she had wanted to go to in the first place, but had gotten mixed up and ended up eating at a Mexican dive of a place.
We had a great dining experience at the Xicohtencatl Mexican Restaurant at 50 Stockbridge Road in Great Barrington. Best enchiladas I have ever had along with some great margaritas.
At the community field in Lakeville, the local fire department was sponsoring a vintage automobile show to raise money and so we had to modify our walk somewhat. A nice fellow directed us over to dead-end Pettee Street. We parked along the road by the community field and then walked west to pick up the advertised bike trail. This section of the trail is a very narrow path through thick vegetation on both sides. We turned left to head northeast on the trail.
A sign informed us that there is a guide to this trail available at Holley House and Patco Mobil Station in Lakeville, and the Academy Building, Salisbury Pharmacy and Village Store in Salisbury. There are sections of the trail that are on roads, but they are not long. There are swampy areas off to the right and left of the trail. Come to an area with a big open pond and marsh. Arrive at what I take to be Salmon Kill Road and cross it to a huge field with a baseball field in one corner. A short walk more brought us to the intersection of Railroad and Library Streets. I was a little confused as to whether the walk ended here or not; we could have gone on down Railroad Street, but decided to call it quits. Turned around to walk back to the car.
I told the group to bring the car around to pick me up by the Patco Mobil station. I wanted to see what the first part of the trail was like and where it actually ended. The trail is very narrow. It comes out along the east side of community field. Walked through the field entrance and found myself on the west side of Patco Mobil station. Got into the car and took off for home.
Salisbury is a semi-rural area with a great deal of scenic beauty and lots of places to walk/hike. Dr. Patrick L. Cooney.
PLANT LIST:
Dr. Patrick L. Cooney
* = plant(s) blooming on date of field trip, 8/07/2005
Trees:
Acer platanoides (Norway maple)
Acer rubrum (red maple)
Acer saccharinum (silver maple)
Acer saccharum (sugar maple)
Betula papyrifera (white birch)
Carpinus caroliniana (musclewood)
Fraxinus americana (white ash)
Gleditsia triacanthos (honey locust)
Juglans nigra (black walnut)
Morus alba (white mulberry)
Pinus strobus (white pine)
Platanus occidentalis (American sycamore)
Populus deltoides (cottonwood)
Prunus serotina (black cherry)
Pyrus malus (apple)Pyrus sp. (crab apple)
Quercus alba (white oak)
Quercus palustris (pin oak)
Quercus rubra (red oak)
Quercus velutina (black oak)
Robinia pseudoacacia (black locust)
Tilia sp. (basswood)
Ulmus americana (American elm)
Shrubs and Subshrubs:
Alnus serrulata (smooth alder)
Berberis thunbergii (Japanese barberry)
Cornus amomum (corn dogwood)
Cornus racemosa (gray dogwood)
Corylus sp. (hazel)
Elaeagnus umbellata (autumn olive)
Euonymus alatus (winged euonymus)
Forsythia sp. (golden bells) planted
Ligustrum sp. (privet)
Lonicera morrowii (Morrow honeysuckle)
Pachysandra terminalis (pachysandra)
Prunus virginiana (chokecherry) ?
Rhamnus cathartica (common buckthorn)
Rhus glabra (smooth sumac)
Rhus typhina (staghorn sumac)
Rosa multiflora (multiflora rose)
Rosa rugosa (wrinkled rose) * planted
Rubus occidentalis (black raspberry)
Rubus sp. (blackberry)
Salix sp. (willow)
Sambucus canadensis (common elderberry)
Spiraea alba var. latifolia (meadowsweet) *
Viburnum dentatum (smooth arrowwood viburnum)
Vinca minor (periwinkle)
Vines:
Apios americana (groundnut)
Calystegia sepium (hedge bindweed) *
Celastrus orbiculatus (Asiatic bittersweet)
Clematis virginiana (virgin's bower) *
Echinocystis lobata (one-seeded cucumber)
Parthenocissus quinquefolia (Virginia creeper)
Toxicodendron radicans (poison ivy)
Vincetoxicum nigrum (black swallowwort)
Vitis riparia (riverbank grape)
Herbs:
Achillea millefolium (yarrow)
Alliaria petiolata (garlic mustard)
Ambrosia artemisiifolia (common ragweed)
Amphicarpaea bracteata (hog peanut)
Apocynum sp. (dogbane)
Arctium minus (common burdock) *
Arisaema triphyllum (Jack in the pulpit)
Artemisia vulgaris (common mugwort)
Asclepias syriaca (common milkweed)
Asclepias tuberosa (butterflyweed) *
Asparagus officinalis (asparagus)
Aster divaricatus (whit wood aster) *soon
Bidens spp. (beggar tick)
Campanula rapunculoides (creeping bellflower) *
Centaurea maculosa (spotted knapweed) *
Chelidonium majus (celandine) *
Cichorium intybus (chicory) *
Circaea lutetiana (enchanter's nightshade) *
Cirsium vulgare (bull thistle) *
Conyza canadensis (horseweed) *
Daucus carota (Queen Anne's lace) *
Dianthus armeria (Deptford pink) *
Echinacea purpurea (purple coneflower) *
Erigeron annuus (daisy fleabane) *
Eupatorium maculatum (spotted Joe-Pye-weed) *
Euphorbia cyparissias (cypress spurge)
Euphorbia maculata (spotted spurge)
Fragaria virginiana (wild strawberry)
Galium mollugo (wild madder) *
Geum canadense (white avens) *
Hackelia virginiana (Virginia stickseed)
Hemerocallis fulva (tawny day lily)
Hesperis matronalis (dame's rocket) *
Hypericum punctatum (spotted St. Johnswort) *
Impatiens capensis (orange jewelweed) *
Lactuca canadensis (wild lettuce)
Lapsana communis (nipplewort) *
Leonurus cardiaca (motherwort) *
Lepidium virginicum (poor man's pepper) *
Linaria vulgaris (butter and eggs) *
Lupinus perennis (wild lupine)
Lychnis flos-cuculi (ragged robin) *
Lythrum salicaria (purple loosestrife) *
Matricaria matricarioides (pineappleweed)
Medicago lupulina (black medick) *
Melilotus sp. (sweet clover)
Monarda fistulosa (wild bergamot) *
Myosotis scorpioides (forget-me-not) *
Oxalis sp. (yellow wood sorrel) *
Pilea pumila (clearweed)
Plantago lanceolata (English plantain) *
Plantago major (common plantain)
Polygonum arifolium (halberd-leaved tearthumb)
Polygonum cespitosum (cespitose smartweed) *
Polygonum cuspidatum (Japanese knotweed)
Polygonum virginianum (jumpseed)
Prunella vulgaris (self-heal) *
Ranunculus acris (tall buttercup) *
Rudbeckia hirta var. pulcherrima (black-eyed Susan) *
Rumex crispus (curled dock)
Rumex obtusifolius (broad dock)
Saponaria officinalis (bouncing bet) *
Silene vulgaris (bladder campion) *
Solanum carolinense (horse nettle) *
Solanum dulcamara (bittersweet nightshade) *
Solidago canadensis var. scabra (tall goldenrod) *
Solidago gigantea (late goldenrod) *
Solidago rugosa (rough-leaved goldenrod)
Sparganium sp. (burreed) ? seen from afar
Stellaria pubera (star chickweed) *
Symplocarpus foetidus (skunk cabbage)
Taraxacum officinale (common dandelion)
Thalictrum sp. (meadowrue)
Trifolium pratense (red clover) *
Trifolium repens (white clover) *
Tussilago farfara (coltsfoot)
Typha latifolia (broad-leaved cattail)
Urtica dioica var. procera (tall nettle) *
Verbascum thapsus (common mullein)
Verbena hastata (blue vervain) *
Verbena urticifolia (white vervain) *
Viola sp. (violet)
Rushes:
Juncus sp. (soft-stemmed rush) ? seen only from afar
Juncus tenuis (path rush)
Sedges:
Carex stricta (tussock sedge)
Cyperus strigosus (umbrella sedge)
Scirpus cyperinus (woolly grass bulrush)
Grasses:
Bromus inermis (smooth brome grass)
Dactylis glomerata (orchard grass)
Digitaria sanguinalis (hairy crabgrass)
Elymus sp. (wild rye grass)
Eragrostis spectabilis (purple love grass)
Glyceria sp. (mannagrass)
Leersia virginica (white grass)
Phleum pratense (Timothy grass)
Phragmites australis (giant reed grass)
Poa annua (annual bluegrass)
Poa compressa (Canada bluegrass)
Setaria sp. (foxtail grass)
Ferns and Fern Allies:
Equisetum arvense (field horsetail)
Athyrium filix-femina (lady fern)
Cystopteris fragilis (fragile fern)
Matteuccia struthiopteris (ostrich fern)
Onoclea sensibilis (sensitive fern)
Osmunda claytoniana (interrupted fern)
Polystichum acrostichoides (Christmas fern)
Pteridium aquilinum (bracken fern)
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