Meet Your Trail Host Hero
Interview with the Piszczek Family, Pequot Trail Landowners
Dorothy and Gary Piszczek, a father-daughter trail host duo, own property hosting a section of the Pequot trail in Preston. The Pequot Trail spans 8 miles from Ledyard to Preston crossing beaver-inhabited wetland ponds, old pastures, and occasional views of the Thames River valley. Here’s the story of their land and their perspective on being trail landowners. Thanks for being trail host heroes, Dorothy & Gary!
Dorothy, you gave CFPA permission to re-route a section of the Pequot Trail through your property. Tell us a little about your land. What’s special about it to you?
“The land has been used for agriculture since the late 1700s. There is evidence of this use throughout the property, including several old stone foundations, innumerable rock walls, and successional forest regrowth. We are fortunate to share the land with all kinds of wildlife, including lots of resident and migratory birds, bobcats, coyotes, deer, mink, fisher cats, and many others including occasional evidence of black bears!“
How long have you lived on your property?
“There have been three generations of Piszczek’s who have lived on our property at Hellgate Farm. In 1953, Henry and Fay Piszczek bought the land and in 1958 built the dairy barn that is still in use today. The farm has been an operational dairy farm, along with growing corn and hay since. The portion of the property where the Pequot Trail crosses through is woodland located behind the main farming area and pastures.”
What’s your favorite thing about having a Blue-Blazed Hiking Trail on your land?
“The Pequot Trail has been a playground for our family for two generations. Growing up we would often take family hikes for New Years Day along the Pequot Trail. Nowadays, we use the trail constantly. There is nothing better than being able to get out into the woods just by stepping out of your front door. We are also grateful to neighboring property owners who let us walk through their land. The trail connects two of our non-contiguous parcels together, allowing us to easily hike to and from. The Connecticut Forest and Park Association makes it as easy as possible to enable others to explore and enjoy the land as much as we have. We are grateful to be able to share it!”
Sections of many of our most popular trails travel through privately owned land. What should hikers and other trail users be aware of when they use a trail that may cross private property? What advice do you have for them?
“As with all public or private property, be sure to practice Leave No Trace principles and be sure to respect posted signage.”
Do you know any other interesting facts about the history of your land/property?
“As mentioned before, the land surrounding the trail and where our current farm is located has been used for agriculture since the late 1700s. As a result, there are old foundations from previous homesteads and other structures throughout the property, with at least four separate foundations having been identified. These homesteads likely were situated along a historical road that led from Preston to Norwich. In fact our farm, Hellgate Farm, earned its namesake as a result of this road which was dubbed Hellgate Road. The Pequot Trail brings hikers near Hellgate Pass, a narrow passageway between two large rock outcroppings. The story goes that the road was given its name due to this tight pass, a toll gate, and the general ruggedness of the terrain.
There is also evidence of the earlier indigenous people who inhabited this land before settlers, including suspected burial sites near a settler smallpox cemetery. While we have found less physical evidence of indigenous settlement, the land undoubtedly belonged to either the Pequot or Mohegan Tribal Nation or perhaps both prior to colonization.”
Anything else you want to say? Feel free to share!
“We are very appreciative of the partnership we’ve had with the Connecticut Forest and Park Association and their decades of work to continually maintain the Pequot Trail. We look forward to continuing this partnership so our family and others can continue to enjoy this trail for years to come.”
Protecting the Blue-Blazed Hiking Trails
You might assume our Blue-Blazed Hiking Trails are fully protected by being on conserved lands. The truth is our trails have crossed a mosaic of public and private lands since the establishment of the first Blue-Blazed Hiking Trail in 1929. Some of our most popular trails, such as the Mattatuck Trail, the Quinnipiac Trail, and the New England National Scenic Trail (to name just a few), have numerous and often lengthy sections on unprotected private lands. The landowners that own such lands graciously permit public access through their property, always free of charge and often without any recognition or even awareness by those that use the trails.
The private landowners that host our trails are as important for the long-term sustainability of our trails as ever. Without them allowing passage, the Blue-Blazed Trails would simply not exist as they do in their current form. Unfortunately, poor trail user etiquette, such as leaving behind trash, etc., jeopardizes public access to the trails we all love and puts an undue burden on those who own the land. So to shed a little light on the heroes that allow the trails on their land, we’re publishing a series of interviews with Blue-Blazed Hiking Trail landowners from across the state.