Blue-Blazed Trails

The Blue-Blazed Hiking Trail system, managed by the Connecticut Forest & Park Association (CFPA), and the related trail systems documented in the two volume ("East" and "West") 19th Edition of the "Connecticut Walk Book" comprise over 800 miles of hiking trails in Connecticut.

There are now over 825 miles of CFPA Blue-Blazed Hiking Trails that pass through 96 towns traversing both public and private lands. This includes all official main and side trails. The main line trails are marked using the solid light blue rectangular vertical paint blaze. A recent change in blaze design to official CFPA connector, side and alternate trails is now in use. The new design standard for blaze markings for these trails is the same light blue blaze as the main trails with the designated color square painted below and abutting to the blue blaze.

The Blue-Blazed Hiking Trails are sometimes referred to by the acronym 'BBHTs'.

The Blue-Blazed Hiking Trails and other trail systems listed in the Connecticut Walk Books by the Connecticut Forest & Park Association are also known as the 'Connecticut 400' for their total length in miles in the early 1970s.

The list of Blue-Blazed (maintained by the CFPA) and other trails listed in the current Connecticut Walk Books and/or CFPA website are:

An example of several different trail markers in use: wooden sign, blue diamond sign, light blue paint blazes. The Housatonic Range Trail (AKA Candlewood Mountain Trail) crossing on Squash Hollow Road in New Milford, CT.

At the Housatonic Range Trail's Northern Terminus: a wooden trail head sign and light blue painted wood tags indicating a left turn.

The Blue Blazes are not just for trees, where necessary they are painted on rocks, telephone poles, fences or power line towers. A right turn.

While the light blue paint blazes are usually vertical rectangles painted on trees to mark the trail, there is often a bit of variety in terms of both paint blazes and signage found on a Blue-Blazed Hiking Trail. Usually direction is indicated with one blaze to indicate 'go straight ahead', two blazes with the top blaze to the left indicating a left turn, two blazes with the top blaze to the right indicating a right turn, and two blazes directly on top of each other indicating the end of a trail (two parallel horizontal rectangles is the new preferred form). Three blazes indicates that the trail is forking in two different directions (as in a loop). But directional arrows are also often painted on rocks, trees and other stationary objects, particularly when they can provide better information (such as 'Up!' on a rock climb). Occasionally sticks or poles places in the ground are used instead of trees (especially in open fields) with a blue blaze or the top painted blue. Blue blazes are painted on telephone poles, road guard rails, buildings (rarely) and other signs (rarely). Sometimes wooden tags or wooden arrows are nailed to trees (or sticks stuck in the ground) though this is much more common on non-Blue-Blazed trails. Some trail sections are marked using blue plastic diamond signs or metallic disks nailed in trees rather than painted blazes.

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Wikipedia