AIRLINE STATE PARK TRAIL; COLCHESTER SPUR:

COLCHESTER, CONNECTICUT

-BIKE IT OR HIKE IT-

Last Updated:      June 01, 2025

Length:                Colchester Spur; 3.4 miles                           

Difficulty:            Easy. Flat rail trail with stone dust surface.  

Directions:

To start from Colchester [Southern End]; From Route 2, take exit 18 to Route 16 north. Continue past the Route 85 intersection and start watching for the old Colchester Train Station and Freight House on your left. It will be just before a fork in the road, where Route 16 turns left. Large sign. Follow the dirt road past the old RR Station to a small parking area next to the trailhead.

To start from Amston [Northern End]; Take Route 85 between Hebron and Colchester to the Amston section, this is about a half mile south of Route 207. There is a parking area located on the western side of Route 85. Head west on the Airline State Park Trail for a little over a 0.2 miles until you see a brown 10 Mileage Marker on your left. Just past this marker, the Airline State Park Trail; Colchester Spur begins on your left.

The Airline State Park Trail follows the rail bed of the former Air Line Railroad which was built to connect Boston and New York City in the shortest distance possible - as if by a "line" drawn through the "air" via the city of New Haven. The railroad climbed from Middletown to East Hampton, and then went over the Lyman Viaduct, a spectacular 1,100 foot long iron trestle over a deep and wide gorge. The railroad then continued on through North Westchester and Amston in the Southern part of Hebron. The line passed along the boundary of Lebanon and Columbia before dropping steadily down the Ten Mile River valley to Willimantic. The final portion of this section was completed in 1873. The Air Line is remembered for its fast express trains. There was a succession of these beginning with the New England Limited in 1884. This was succeeded in1891 by the White Train, popularly known as the Ghost Train. It was made up of gleaming white coaches trimmed with gold. The parlor cars' interiors were finished in mahogany and furnished with velvet rugs, silk curtains and upholstered plush chairs. The train's schedule was so well advertised that people came from miles around to wait at stations or crossing to see it go by. The fast express was replaced in 1895 by the Air Line Limited. The decline of the Air Line Route came about when passengers and shippers began to prefer the Shore Line Route. Today, the portion of the Air Line from New Haven to Portland is still in use by a shortline railroad, the Providence & Worcester Railroad. For more information Visit; AIRLINE STATE PARK TRAIL , CT RAIL TRAIL EXPLORER , THE AIR LINE & AIRLINE TRAIL MASTER PLAN .

In 1877, the Colchester Railway built a spur between Turnerville (now called Amston) and the central village of Colchester. The town of Colchester paid $50,000 for half of the three mile long rail bed and leased the line to the New York & New England. The spur carried passengers and freight to the rubber plant in town. There are 3 old RR buildings left. Across Route 85 is an old RR storage building. The two buildings next to the trail both served as the train station at one time. The Colchester Spur follows this old rail bed North, from Colchester to the Airline State Park Trail; South in Amston. The Airline State Park Trail; South travels Northeast, from Portland to Willimantic. When you cross over the Willimantic River to Willimantic, the Airline State Park Trail; North continues right, Northeast, into Willimantic, while the Hop River State Park Trail heads left, Northwest. 

Starting from Colchester [Southern End]; From the parking area the Colchester Spur runs straight, North and flat along a power line corridor with a stone dust surface. Mile Markers are located every Mile along the trail. After 0.8 miles the trail shares a dirt road before crossing Old Amston Ave at 1 mile. Here the trail widens as you head into the woods. You follow a causeway between a marsh at 1.3 miles. Cross-walk over Crouch Rd at 2.4 miles followed by another cross-walk over Route 85 (Caution high speed traffic). Travel around the sub-station and re-enter the woods at 2.9 miles where the trail narrows. At 3.2 miles you'll pass by a small pond. You go along a small berm, with a large marsh to your left and emerge onto the Airline State Park Trail; South in Amston after 3.4 miles. If you turn right, East, you'll pass by a brown [10 Mile Marker] and come to the Amston parking lot at 3.8 miles. 

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