Posted: Sat Feb. 03, 2007 11:45 am
There are a couple of ways to slice and dice it, all depends on where you want to get to on route 120 but I don't think any of them are for the faint at heart. Besides the monster hill you have to climb up and over no matter which way you go, there is a fair amount of technical riding. The most direct route from Newport to 120 in Cornish is via North Newport->Cornish Turnpike->Skyline Drive->Lower East Rd->120. Just note there is about a 1 mile section of Cornish Turnpike/Skyline Drive that always has large water holes occupying the whole trail every couple hundred yards, this is also the section that runs parallel to the Corbin Park Fence and is part of the fence loop. There is usually an off bike walk around, and if you're really lucky and it's a dry summer you can ride around the puddles. Also note it is a little dicey getting from the end of Cornish Turnpike where the dirt road turns into class 6 road to Skyline but once you pass E. Mountain Rd, a major intersection with marked snowmobile trail signs, it is mostly downhill and easy to follow all the way into Cornish (except for the puddles). Unlike what the map shows part of Cornish Turnpike is washed away from various floods, so when heading towards Cornish from Newport you bare left across the washout and actually end up on part of Cat Hole Road (Ken, this section of Cat Hole is the raging river we rode down that day). When you hit Cat Hole, there is no sign, make a right and you will cross under the Power lines, after the power lines you will soon be back onto Cornish Turnpike/Skyline (one in the same) and next comes the major E. Mountain road intersection, from there it's easy to follow into Cornish.
This route is by far the easiest to follow but there are miles of trails on Green Mountain that will get you to the same place in Cornish, or Claremont, or just lost, as well as a route via Croydon Flat->Bighton Rd-> E. Mountain Rd-> Skyline/Croydon Turnpike (and if you're really good, from the Pinnacle Trail System to Croydon Flat). Or if you want, one can get to 120 in Meriden near Kimble Union Academy by following the Corbin Park Fence loop north through Grantham but any of these other routes are far more difficult to navigate and ride.
As Joe stated however, none of the routes that cut through the park are available to the public, there is a high fence surrounding the park to keep the animals in. The fence has a few vehicle access gates and the park has internal roads however, they are only accessible to Corbin Park Members.
FYI, the trails surrounding the Park are notoriously wet. I only recommend riding around the park in a dry Summer or when the ground is frozen and there is no snow.
Hope this helps.
Ryan
|
