Two Roads Diverged…

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Robert Frost, The Road Not Taken

In Farmington, CT the trail picks up again and does become two roads for a short bit as the Farmington River Trail offers canaltrekkers an alternative route following in the footsteps of our darling from Dingle, Shannon McCarthy. Like Frost we pondered both routes and instead of taking the one less traveled, which would be neither, we traveled down both.
The Farmington River Trail curves westward in an arc following the Farmington River and, although it is a bit wider and is considered a bike route, could easily pass for the Farmington Canal Trail. This path meanders through the woods much like much of the canal trail has over the past twenty miles, but after approximately three miles, the trail edges down next to the water and gives trekkers and bikers a fabulous view of the rapids along the Farmington River.

The Farmington Canal route continues from the divergent on a straighter path, again following the route of the canal and the railroad that once ran through here heading north. Instead of finding ourselves alongside the great river, on this route we passed high above the beautiful spot where the reminders of the trains that overtook the canal can still be seen hidden in the growth to the side of the trail. Standing high above the Farmington River, we watched as a bald eagle soared high above the head of an unsuspecting fisherman on the banks below, then prepared to trek northward, again following in the footsteps of our fictional heroine.