Easton CT Hiking Trails: Two New Hunting-Free Preserves

On a weekday morning in late October, a vehicle parked in the permit area inside the Bradley Road gate at Trout Brook Valley means someone is hunting. Aspetuck Land Trust tells hikers to read it exactly that way. Hunters there are required to park in that lot, so "if you see a vehicle parked there then you know someone is hunting."

That leaves Easton walkers with a small fall puzzle. The 1,009-acre valley is also the only Aspetuck Land Trust property where hunting takes place. This fall the puzzle got easier, because Easton now has two newer trailed preserves that are hunting-free, close to town and small enough for a walk before work. They are the Kupinse Preserve on South Park Avenue and the Blithewood Preserve on Judd Road. Together they change how an Easton fall morning outdoors can go.

What Hunting Season Actually Changes At Trout Brook Valley

Aspetuck Land Trust's seasonal hunting page says hunting managed by the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection happens in spring and fall in the 1,009-acre Trout Brook Valley Conservation Area. Signs mark the boundary of the hunting area. Hunting is allowed from half an hour before sunrise until noon, and never on Sundays.

The hunting area covers only part of the valley. It sits on the west side. More than half of Trout Brook Valley lies outside it, along with all of Crow Hill and Jump Hill, about 700 acres in total, and the land trust says every access point has hunting-free trails. The same page sums up the rest of its holdings in one line: "All other Aspetuck Land Trust preserves are hunting-free."

The land trust's own precautions for walking in Trout Brook Valley during the season are short:

• Avoid wearing white, since the deer are white-tailed.
• Wear something blaze orange, and tie something brightly colored around a dog's neck. Blaze orange vests are also made for dogs.
• Hike midday.
• Check the permit parking area inside the gate for vehicles.

The page does not list hunt dates for fall 2026, so these are standing guidelines rather than a dated schedule. The land trust points readers to the CT DEEP hunting and trapping guide for season details. Put together, the guidance gives a weekday-morning walker two choices. You can stay on the hunting-free trails at Trout Brook Valley and keep the orange vest on, or you can walk somewhere else before noon. The two newer preserves are that somewhere else.

Blithewood, The Newest Trailhead On Judd Road

Blithewood is the newest. The Aspetuck Land Trust Fall 2026 newsletter puts the preserve at 29 acres and gives October 5 as its public opening date. The day before, a Sunday, the land trust scheduled an inaugural hike at 340 Judd Road led by Executive Director David Brant. That event page calls the preserve 30 acres. The land trust's materials list both figures, so expect to see either one.

The newsletter describes a forest of oak and black birch crossed by stone walls, with a large collection of glacial erratics. These are boulders carried and dropped by the ice sheet that covered Connecticut until roughly 15,000 to 20,000 years ago. It also points to large-diameter trees and vernal pools that support amphibians such as the spring peeper.

The name comes with the land. "Blithewood" means "happy woodland," and the Bresky family chose it when they bought the property in 1966. Harold and Iris Bresky hosted guests from around the world in the house there. The land trust has since removed the house, and in the newsletter's words, "a pristine landscape stands ready to welcome visitors." The family's business, Henry Bresky & Sons, was a family-owned food distribution company founded in 1955 and a fixture in Bridgeport. The preserve itself came to the land trust as a gift from Theodore and Ellen Bresky. According to the newsletter, the family hopes visitors will find "peace and serenity" there while encouraging "habitat preservation and international friendship."

Two practical details for a first visit. The inaugural hike listing notes that the site has no bathroom facilities. The land trust's published materials also don't yet include a trail map, mileage or a dog policy for Blithewood, so check aspetucklandtrust.org before bringing a dog or planning a long loop.

Kupinse, The Mill River Preserve With A Request About Dogs

Kupinse is the other new addition. The William J. Kupinse, Jr. & Patricia Kupinse Preserve covers 18.7 acres on the Mill River. It has a new trail system and a parking lot off South Park Avenue, and the land trust's Easton preserves page gives #18 South Park Avenue as the address to enter into a GPS. The land came from the town. The Easton Courier reported in October 2023 that the sale of the South Park property to Aspetuck Land Trust had been finalized.

A visitor's account in The Cultural Easton last April describes the trail from the parking lot. It follows white markers up a wooded slope, and a side path leads down to the river. No official trail length has been published.

Kupinse comes with one request that sets it apart from Blithewood. The land trust asks visitors to leave dogs at home to protect the trout in the Mill River. That makes it a good walk for people without dogs on a morning when Trout Brook Valley is in hunting hours, while dog owners will want to check Blithewood's rules or use the hunting-free side of the valley.

How The Three Fit Together On A Fall Week

Blithewood was the land trust's third trailed preserve to open in two years. The other two were the Weston Wilton Forest Reserve and Kupinse in Easton. For Easton walkers that is a quick expansion, and it changes a fall week:

The land trust's own guidance sets the rhythm. Sunday is the day it suggests for anyone who would rather not think about hunters at all. In its words, that is "the best day to hike." On weekday and Saturday mornings, Blithewood and Kupinse are the hunting-free options in town. Afternoons in Trout Brook Valley fall after the noon cutoff.

One November Night In The Valley

The valley's best-known fall event happens after dark, well after hunting hours end. On Saturday, November 14, 2026, from 7 to 11 p.m., naturalist and raptor researcher Larry Fischer will lead a saw-whet owl demonstration at the Trout Brook Valley entrance on Bradley Road. The event listing explains that large numbers of saw-whet owls leave their northern breeding grounds in late fall and move south. Fischer, who has studied the species for more than 25 years, will use federally licensed banding methods to try to catch a few as they pass through. If he succeeds, participants can watch up close as he records each owl's weight, measurements, age and sex.

The presentation takes place outdoors, and the land trust lists what to bring:

1. A winter coat
2. Gloves
3. Warm boots
4. Layers of clothing
5. A headlamp or flashlight
6. A folding chair

Registration is required, the event is capped at 25 people, and it costs $10 per person, with members free.

Where The Walk Ends

Silverman's Farm gives a fall morning walk an easy last stop. The farm says its market and animal farm are open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. through December 31, 2026, subject to holiday hours. On weekends through October 31, its seasonal page lists the Lucky Dog food truck most weekends, weather permitting, along with kettle corn and Longford's ice cream. A morning that starts among the erratics on Judd Road or on the Mill River slope at Kupinse can end at the farm market, which the farm says stays open every day through the end of the year.

Scott Wright has watched Easton's open space grow over more than 37 years of helping families buy and sell homes in Fairfield County, and he knows how much a hunting-free trailhead down the road means to the people who live nearby. If you're curious what your Easton home is worth this fall, scott wright can walk you through it. Get your free home valuation.

This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.