Hammonasset Traditional Geocache
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Welcome to the Hammonasset cache! Hammonasset Beach State Park is a gem in the Connecticut Parks system. This is a kid friendly, dog friendly, short shoreline hike.
Day use fee
THE PARK IS NOW FREE FOR CARS WITH CT PLATES. There is a fee charged by the State of Connecticut roughly from April through September. (Weekdays $15 out of state, Weekend and $22 out of state) The park closes at sunset.
Brief History
"Hammonasset" means, "where we dig holes in the ground" and refers to the place where a settlement of eastern woodland Indians farmed along the Hammonasset River. They subsisted on corn, beans, and squash, and by fishing and hunting. The first colonists arrived in 1639. Property changed hands frequently between Native Americans and the first colonists.
In 1898 the Winchester Repeating Arms Company bought Hammonasset and used it as a testing site for their new rifle. Their Lee Straight Pull rifle was mounted on a horse drawn stone boat, from which it was fired into targets on the beach. On July 18, 1920, Hammonasset Beach State Park was opened to the public. The first season attracted over 75,000 visitors. The park's reputation drew tourists from across the continent as well as the state. During World War II the park was closed to the public and loaned to the
federal government as an army reservation. Meigs Point functioned as an aircraft range. Planes flew over Clinton Harbor, fired at the range and then flew out over Long Island Sound. The stone breakwater at the Meigs Point end of the park was built in1955. The stones were brought in by truck from quarries in northern New England.
Use Discretion
Over one million people come annually enjoy to Hammonasset Beach State Park. Given the fact that there are large crowds in the Summer, discretion in finding the cache will be required. It is an open area, so act casual! You could pretend that you are bird watching or perhaps making a cell phone call (with your GPS of course). If you feel that you cannot log the find without compromising the cache, just e-mail me a note with a brief description (or photo)of the sign that stops your hike just up the trail from the cache site. We think that the shoreline is the real treasure and logging a cache is only an added bonus. (If you are not from the area, check out Lenny and Joe’s Fish Tale just to the East of the park on Route 1 if you are looking for a lunch or dinner spot. It is a casual seafood restaurant that is locally famous. They run carousel rides for the kids in the Summer.)
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
N zvpeb uvqqra ba gur prqne gerr. Tb nebhaq onpx, nobhg 5 srrg bss gur tebhaq.