April, 2020 Update- Cockaponset Ramble and Weber Woods were my first geocache placements, back in October of 2005, so I figured it was time for a "reset". All stages have been moved slightly and containers checked for dryness and trade items; boy, those ammo cans really do hold up well. If you have found them in the past you are welcome to return and log new finds.
Cockaponset State Forest is the second largest state forest in CT. It is named after an indian chief who is buried in the Ponset section of Haddam. The DEP acquired the Weber parcel of 354 acres for $780,000 in 1998. To celebrate my first anniversary of geocaching I have placed my first caches where I found my first cache- in the Messerschmidt’s Pond area of Cockaponset State Forest. This multicache and my other, Cockaponset Ramble, will take you on a scenic tour around this lovely woodland and across four streams. They are best done together, beginning with the Cockaponset Ramble. Total distance for both is about 1.75 miles and should take around 1 ½ hours. During your search you will cross two new bridges completed in June, 2005, the results of hundreds of man-hours by volunteers of the Bridle Path Conservancy. They won a National Stewardship Award for this Trail Trotters Project, which benefits all who use the forest. Just a little bushwacking is required for both; most of the distance can be covered on the trail network. While you’re in the area, check out Das Booty cache too. Have fun exploring the woods!