5 Ways to Enjoy the New England Winter in Ridgefield, Connecticut

January 30th, 2008 categories: Keep Your Kids Busy, Lake Living, Ridgefield

Fox Hill Lake, Ridgefield, CT Get outside! Ridgefielders have so much fun in the winter. With all of our lakes and trails, streams and hills there’s so much to enjoy. Nothing like a traditional New England winter: frozen lakes, snow on the ground, neighborhood gatherings on the ice, …

Here’s a list of how to enjoy these luscious winter afternoons:

Ice Skating on Fox Hill Lake, Rainbow Lake, Mamanasco Lake, Lake Windwing and Pierrepont Lake

Ridgefield has several lake communities that take on a whole different flavor when the lake freezes over. Your neighbors come out to skate, the kids (and some dads) play hockey, it’s great to see neighbors and friends during the winter. It’s just good wholesome New England fun. I took these pictures in my neighborhood on this gorgeous January weekend. I was out on Fox Hill Lake.

Ice Fishing (also on Fox Hill, Rainbow, Mamanasco and Pierrepont)

The ice fishers have been out in force this winter. Drilling holes through the ice, dropping their lines and setting their tip-ups to signal a catch.

Snowshoeing

Fox Hill Lake, Ridgefield, CT Ridgefield has 1000’s of acres of open space. Town-owned land, state-owned land, Nature Conservancy and more. There’s a great variety of terrain as the trails run along streams and rivers, around lakes, over mountains and through forests, fields and meadows. And when there’s snow on the ground, all of these trails are prime for snowshoeing. If you don’t have snowshoes, just pick up a pair at EMS in Danbury and enjoy hours of winter exercise in the peace and quiet of the winter woods. Personally, this is one of my favorite things about winter in Ridgefield. I grab my dog and go right out my back door and into Pierrepont State Park.

Winter Hiking

When winter deals us little or no snow, there’s nothing quite like a hike on a crisp sunny afternoon. Brad and I were out at Bennetts Pond this past weekend and saw several groups of hikers soaking up winter’s serenity. We even ran into a few intrepid mountain bikers making their way through the icy woods. Enjoy Ridgefield’s miles and miles of hiking trails in every season.