Are you ready for an amazing day of trail running?! The Angevine Farm Trail Festival in Warren, CT is in the beautiful Northwest corner of the Nutmeg State. This area of Connecticut is ripe with grassy fields, land trust trails, State Forest trails, blue-blazed single track, dirt roads, and plenty of challenging climbs. This event offers a chance to run on unique and seldom used trails. Plus the Fall foliage will just be starting to turn. Come enjoy the farm, the scenery and of course the trail running!
Course Description
The Angevine Farm Half Marathon begins & ends at the northern end of the Angevine Farm near the main parking for the tree farm area. Runners will do a 1.7 mile loop on the farm before crossing Angevine Rd. onto a mix of single track/double track trails on the farm for the next mile. They will then enter the Wyantenock State Forest where they will run on old City Hill Rd. before turning onto the Mattatuck Trail at 3.7 miles into the race. Moving north on the mostly single track Mattatuck Trail, runners will experience mostly technical trails though most of is very runnable. Reaching the turnaround point at Hardscrabble Rd. at approximately 7 miles, they will return the same way they came on the Mattatuck Trail and through the Wyantenock State Forest. At about 11.3 miles they will head west on City Hill Rd. (an abandoned road turned into a trail owned by the Warren Land Trust) before turning south onto Angevine Rd. A quick trip on the pavement and runners are back on the farm for a smaller loop of the tree farm and to the finish.
The 50K will feature a two loop course with the same first 7 miles as the Half Marathon Course and then continue further north on the Mattatuck Trail for another 1 1/4 miles before a turn around. Runners will continue back the same way they came and rejoin the same route as the half for the last 10K. It’s a good mix of both technical trails, fire roads, and grassy farm trails and of course that climb to the finish!
The 5K/5K Canicross race will feature a two-loop route on the farm with plenty of sweeping views amid climbing and descending on the farm.
**WHAT IS CANICROSS?**
Canicross (canine + cross country) is simply running with your dog attached to your waist with a bungee leash. In this way, whenever the runner’s feet are off the ground, the dog pulls the runner forward.
The 2K Farm Challenge race will mimic the first part of the half marathon course, but then feature that awesome lung-busting climb to the finish!
Elevation Stats
50K: 4000’+
Half Marathon: 1843′
5K: 688’
Swag/Awards
We have some great swag/awards for the event. Finisher medals from Ragged Cuts, plenty of goodies from our sponsors, and overall podium awards for each event!
Post-Race Celebration
You’ve just finished a super challenging one of a kind course! Enjoy your accomplishment, sit back, relax, and don’t forget to cheer on all the runners coming in behind you. We will have a great spread of food/beverage options for everyone as you hang out at the farm after you’ve finished.
Weather
September in Connecticut can be quite pleasant, especially in the mornings. Average high temperatures are usually in the low 60’s with low’s in the 40’s.
History of Angevine Farm
The year was 1868. The newly married couple of John H. Angevine and Mary C. Marsh were the first generation of Angevine Farm. The Farm has seen several farming endeavors over the last 6 generations. Dairy farming, tobacco, vegetables, orchard products, poultry and eggs, pumpkins and in the past 50 years, Christmas trees. The fourth, fifth and sixth generations are now in charge of running the plantation. John, Kathy, Timothy and his wife Carla, Scot and his wife Jamie, Lisa and her husband Ansie, and their children Haley & Jordan, all lend a helping hand.
The Harvest Barn is a fairly new endeavor for the family. Originally built to house poultry, it now acts as our retail barn for the harvest season as well as a wreath factory in the winter. You can still see the feed pipes in the ceiling and chicken crates that remind us of earlier times. As children, Lisa, Tim and Scot remember planting pumpkins and selling them to “egg” customers that came to the farm. It always amazed them how a pumpkin could bring such joy. The harvest season is a wonderful time to enjoy the colors of nature and bring families together while exploring the many pumpkin patches on the farm. You can even tag your Christmas tree after pumpkin picking.
Growing Christmas trees is really their full time job. It’s a challenging yet rewarding process that is constantly evolving. Each year 2000-3000 seedlings are planted, which is a family affair. The summer months are spent mowing, pruning, repairing machinery, plotting and planning. Never a dull moment at Angevine Farm, but we wouldn’t have it any other way.
The goal of the Angevine family is to preserve the farm, continue and expand the agricultural history, and share the peace and beauty with our neighbors, friends and customers.
See you at the farm!
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