On
this trip you will pass through the beautiful Litchfield
Hills area of Connecticut. You will see many well preserved
historical towns as well as outstanding New England scenery.
Portions of this trip were including in the Reader's Digest
guide to the Most Scenic Drives in America.
Rolling
hills, peaceful lakes and streams, waterfalls and quaint
towns make this route a strong 4 star scenery rating.
Motorcycle
Road Quality:
The
rolling hills and river-hugging roads lead me to give this
route such a strong 4 star road rating.
Motorcycle
Roadside Amenities:
Start
your trip in the quaint town of Litchfield and see its lovely
“town green” designed in 1720 and the beautiful colonial
homes that surround it. The author Sinclair Lewis declared
that “the only street in America more beautiful than North
Street in Litchfield is South Street in Litchfield.” Litchfield
was also the home of the famous author Harriet Beecher Stowe
who wrote Uncle Tom’s Cabin. In the town you will find
the Litchfield Historical Society and Museum. You will
also see America’s first law school, the Tapping Reeve House
and Law School, where two of America’s vice presidents studied
law (Aaron Burr and John C. Calhoun). When you turn west
on Rte. 202 you can visit the 4,000-acre White Memorial
Foundation woodlands and wetlands sanctuary. The sanctuary
has a museum, hiking and bird observation platforms (860)567-0857.
Further up the road you will find Mount Tom State Park equipped
with a lookout tower and picnic grounds. Also nearby is
Lake Waramaug State Park where you may fish, swim, rent
a canoe or paddleboat. After you travel along Rte. 341
you will come to the town of Kent nestled up against the
banks of the Housatonic River. You will want to spend a
while taking in the serenity of this village while antique
or art shopping along Main street. When you turn north
on Rte. 7 you will pass the Sloane-Stanley Museum and soon
come to the Kent Falls State Park ((860)927-3238). In this
park you won’t want to miss an awesome cascading waterfall.
Further up the road you will pass through Housatonic Meadows
State Park and want to turn on to Rte. 128 and pass through
a red covered bridge that links West Cornwall and Sharon.
Further up the road on Rte. 7 you may want to take Rte.
112 west if you enjoy sports-car racing (at Lime Rock) or
take the exit to Music Mountain ((860) 824-7126) to see
and hear the one of the oldest chamber music series in the
country. At Canaan Village you can stop for a bite to eat
and then head east on highway 44. Before you get to Norfolk
you will pass the Haystack Mountain State Park (Rte. 272
north) and in Norfolk you will find the home of the Norfolk
Chamber Music Festival ((860)542-3000). At Winsted turn
right on to Rte. 8 and pass by the town of Torrington then
switch to Rte. 202 for a peaceful five-mile drive back into
Litchfield and thus completing the Lovely Litchfield Loop.
Directions:
There
are many different roads you could take and cover the
same area but the route I describe below is my favorite
and will take you along some great sites. Once you do
this route you'll want to go back again and explore some
of the side roads, particulararly along the various lakes
and rivers in the area. Start your route in Litchfield
CT. From Litchfield, head west on US 202 which will
take you through Bantam and New Preston. When you get
to New Preston you'll want to turn right (north) on to
SR 45 (also known as E. Shore Rd ... after only about
2 miles the road will change names to Lake Rd). After
about 4 miles SR 45 will merge with 341 and take you into
Warren. Now you want to split left off of SR 45 and take
341 west about 6 miles till it takes you to the town of
Kent. When you get to Kent you'll run into US 7 and want
to take a right (go north) on 7. Stay on 7 about 24 miles
as it winds along the Housatonic River all the way up
through Falls Village and to the town of Canaan. Now you
want to get on US 44 heading east (right) for the last
five miles of the route and take this straight into the
last town of Norfolk. Enjoy your ride!!!
Additional
Information:
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Comments page 1 of 0
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2Strokelover - 70's OTHER
Posted 795 days ago
That is one of my favorite rides...No matter how often I leave the house I almost always find myself out there..Only thing I would have to add is if you got a loud bike watch out in Kent...The cops use a decibel meter and ticket bikers...But I wouldn't avoid Kent either..On a Sunday afternoon you can see all kinds of crazy machinery from Classic bikes to Ferraris..
This user rated the route: 8 out of 10
Posted 352 days ago
May not appeal to all, but Norfolk is home to Yale U. summer music school. Excellent outdoor classical music concerts for cheap, as well as a pretty little town surrounded by good riding.
This user rated the route: 5 out of 10
Posted 103 days ago
Absolutely awesome country - Great roads . Kent is is Motorcycle unfriendly just had a nasty day under the eye of state troupers and got lectured by a nasty local -- I'M a 50 Year old professional riding a stock bike so be warned - I'm boycotting Kent from now on - the rest of the countryside is beautiful -
This is no doubt a great ride, but route 7 can sometimes get congested. One of our favorite side trips off route 7 is to make a left onto route 4 not too long after you get on route 7 from the above route. This takes you through the town of Sharon. Then hop onto route 41 for some truly beautiful scenery. This will turn into route 44 which brings you back to route 7.You can now travel southbound on route 7.
