AMBLEWAY Wildest hikes
PD35322-NEF green heron.jpg
Paul Danese · CC BY-SA 4.0
Buckingham Reservoir Watershed

Lookout Mountain–Gay City Pond, 3 beaches

8.2 mi · ▲ 1,275 ft · 3 hr 22 min

Lookout Mountain–Gay City Pond, 3 beaches is an 8.2-mile out-and-back in Buckingham Reservoir Watershed near Bolton, CT. The route passes Gay City Pond and Gay City State Park Beach before reaching Lookout Mountain at the turnaround, 4.1 miles in. It climbs 1,275 ft and is mostly dirt. It scores 58/100 on the Ambleway Wildness scale: backcountry feel.

Elevation

0 mi522 – 860 ft10.5 mi

Getting there

Trailhead: Unnamed 41.72272, -72.44539
Nearest town Bolton, CT
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Directions

AMBLEWAYwww.ambleway.com

Lookout Mountain–Gay City Pond, 3 beaches

8.2 mi · ▲ 1,275 ft · 3 hr 22 min

Elevation 521–860 ft

Out & Back · Buckingham Reservoir Watershed

Trailhead: 41.72272, -72.44539

Weather Aug 5: Overcast, high 80°F / low 64° · precip 3% · wind 6 mph · sunrise 5:49 AM · sunset 8:05 PM

Parking lot at the trailhead

  1. Start at the trailhead, heading N.
  2. 50 ftPass Gay City Pond.
  3. 50 ftPass Gay City State Park Beach.
  4. 50 ftTurn left, heading NW.
  5. 50 ftBear right, heading NW.
  6. 150 ftTurn left, heading NW.
  7. 50 ftBear left, heading W.
  8. 250 ftTurn right, heading S.
  9. 150 ftTurn left, heading SW.
  10. 0.1 miTurn right, heading S.
  11. 0.1 miTurn left, heading SW.
  12. 50 ftTurn right, heading SW.
  13. 1 miTurn left, heading SW.
  14. 50 ftSharp right, heading SW.
  15. 100 ftSharp left, heading SW.
  16. 50 ftTurn right, heading SW.
  17. 100 ftBear right, heading NW.
  18. 50 ftTurn left, heading NW.
  19. 250 ftTurn right, heading W.
  20. 50 ftTurn left, heading W.
  21. 0.2 miTurn right, heading SW.
  22. 0.2 miBear left, heading W.
  23. 100 ftTurn left, heading W.
  24. 1 miBear left onto Coop Road, heading N.
  25. 50 ftBear right, heading N.
  26. 0.5 miTurn left, heading W.
  27. 50 ftSharp right, heading W.
  28. 250 ftBear left, heading NW.
  29. 0.3 miTurn left, heading N.
  30. 50 ftTurn right, heading N.
  31. 0.2 miBear left, heading E.
  32. 400 ftTurn right onto Carriage Path, heading N.
  33. 50 ftTurn left, heading N.
  34. 0.1 miTurn left, heading N.
  35. 50 ftBear left, heading NW.
  36. 100 ftBear right, heading N.
  37. 50 ftReach Lookout Mountain, then turn around and head back the way you came.
  38. 50 ftBear left, heading NW.
  39. 100 ftBear right, heading NW.
  40. 50 ftTurn right, heading NW.
  41. 0.1 miTurn left, heading NW.
  42. 450 ftBear right, heading N.
  43. 0.2 miTurn left, heading NW.
  44. 50 ftTurn right, heading NW.
  45. 0.3 miBear right, heading N.
  46. 200 ftSharp left, heading N.
  47. 50 ftTurn right, heading N.
  48. 0.5 miBear left onto Coop Road, heading S.
  49. 50 ftBear right, heading S.
  50. 1 miTurn right, heading S.
  51. 50 ftBear right, heading S.
  52. 0.2 miTurn left, heading SE.
  53. 0.2 miTurn right, heading E.
  54. 50 ftTurn left, heading E.
  55. 250 ftTurn right, heading S.
  56. 50 ftBear left, heading S.
  57. 100 ftTurn left, heading S.
  58. 100 ftSharp right, heading SE.
  59. 50 ftSharp left, heading SE.
  60. 50 ftTurn right, heading SE.
  61. 1 miTurn left, heading SW.
  62. 50 ftTurn right, heading S.
  63. 0.1 miTurn left, heading SW.
  64. 0.1 miTurn right, heading S.
  65. 200 ftTurn left, heading S.
  66. 250 ftBear right, heading S.
  67. 50 ftTurn right, heading SW.
  68. 100 ftBear left, heading S.
  69. 50 ftTurn right, heading S.
  70. 50 ftArrive back at the trailhead.

Each distance is the walk from the previous step. Tap a step for a map of its junction.

Trail map, photos and weather for this hike: www.ambleway.com/hikes/lookout-mountain-gay-city-state-park-beach-out-back-13-km-109e

Trail surface

61% dirt39% unspecified

Weather

OvercastTemperature 80°F64°
Precip3%Wind6 mphUV7Humidity66%
Rained 1.7″ 2 days ago (3.4″ over the last week) · trails may be muddy
Hourly temperature
80°60°
Sunrise 5:49 AM12 AM3 AM9 AM12 PM3 PM6 PMSunset 8:05 PM
Thu 84°68° 44%
Fri 92°69° 57%
Sat 88°65° 41%
Sun 91°65° 16%
Mon 92°70° 19%
Tue 81°65° 35%

Sunset

The best sunset spot on this hike is 4.1 mi in (~112 min). Leave by 5:53 PM for the 8:05 PM sunset. Back at your car by 10:13 PM, after dark — bring a headlamp.

More sunset hikes nearby

Good to know

  • Parking lot at the trailhead

Other ways to reach this destination

More from this trailhead

Hikes near Bolton, Connecticut