Mansfield Hollow State Park

Facts about (Mansfield Hollow State Park):

Overview ofMansfield Hollow State Park- Facts,Trivia,and Historical Information : Mansfield Hollow State Park provides recreational enthusiasts a great place to go. The park hosts a large boat launch that is widely used by residents of Mansfield as well as residents from surrounding areas. The boat launch sits on a large manmade lake that is dammed on one end by the Mansfield Hollow Dam. The dam on average backs up 16 feet of water while the floodgates are open. The sediments surrounding the area of Mansfield Lake are glacial in origin. They are predominantly sand and gravel that were dropped out from retreating glaciers, and then sorted by moving water. Ranging in size from small, fine-grained quartz and feldspar sands, up to larger rounded clasts, the glacial sediments are economically significant and are quarried for use in construction. Likewise, the open fields within the park and in the surrounding residential area are not smooth and flat, but instead have a wavy appearance. This area is wavy because the glaciers unevenly deposited thick sediment, which was sorted by moving water. Another glacial feature found in Mansfield Hollow State Park is a pothole. Located along the Nipmuck Trail, off of Chaffeeville Road, the pothole is drilled into schist of the Dudley Formation, a metamorphic rock. A pothole is a smooth, bowl shaped or cylindrical hollow, generally deeper than wide, formed in the rocky bed or a stream by the grinding action of stones whirled around and kept in motion by eddies or the force of the stream current in a given spot. This pothole has an approximate diameter of 3 feet and a depth of about 5 feet. Likewise, this particular pothole has a corkscrew-like appearance, since the glacial melt waters that scoured the schist did so in a drill-like fashion. Locally, potholes are also referred to as Indian Paint Pots, even though they have no correlation to Native Americans. A pegmatite outcrop lies approximately 30 feet from the pothole on the Nipmuck Trail. Pegmatite is an igneous rock that formed from molten rock buried deep below the surface. Since the molten rock was well insulated beneath the surface, it cooled very slowly, allowing the crystals to grow very large. Pegmatite intrusions usually have the same composition as granite, only coarser. Furthermore, pegmatite intrusions are of great interest to mineral collectors because they may contain a variety of rare minerals. This pegmatite outcrop contains large quartz, feldspar, and mica crystals.

Services,Activities,Amenities,Attractions in (Mansfield Hollow State Park): The damming of the Natchaug River by the Army Corps of Engineers has created a 500-acre lake for boating and fishing. No swimming is allowed since part of the lake is used for public water supply. Boating, Fishing, Car-Top Boating, Hiking, Cross-Country Skiing, Mountain Biking, Field Sports, Picnicking, Facilities

Contact Information:
Address:Mansfield Hollow State Park, RFD #1 Wolf Den Road , Pomfret Center, Connecticut, 06259
Phone No:(860) 928-6121

For more Information about (Mansfield Hollow State Park) Kindly visit the official website:
http://www.ct.gov/dep/cwp/view.asp?a=2716&q=325236&depNav_GID=1650