Smoke Signals From the Past

From Michelle Loya:

I took these pictures at one of my favorite hiking places, Mount Tom in Litchfield, CT. For as long as I can remember I've hiked or have been carried up this mountain to reach the beautiful castle and its gorgeous views at the top.

On one of the trails on the way up you pass by this giant fireplace and what remains of a tiny foundation next to it. My whole life I've wondered what this is and why it was there. The chimney is so tall and its hearth so large and inviting. It's a mystery why it's there. I searched for days online and made phone calls to the Department of Environmental Protection state park branch and no one had the answer for me.

Finally I found a number for the park itself and was luckily able to reach someone. The kind lady on the phone looked it up in the park history book and found that there had been a Boy Scout camp there from 1916- 1934. The scouts had been helping build the park and clean it up to make the trails that we hike on today. The chimney had been a part of their rec hall, and that is all that remains of it today.

Families have enjoyed hiking this mountain for years and will continue hiking and swimming for many more years all thanks to the group of Boy Scouts who blazed the trails.