Hidden deep in the forest of Connecticut is an outcrop of granite that to most, would appear to be no different than any other in the northeast. It stands almost 100 feet tall, 300 feet long and has had a long and interesting history. Recently we rediscovered this amazing location. We enjoyed the excitement of uncovering each of its known natural features. The moment that will stick in my mind the most though, is my encounter with the Terror Beneath the Devil’s Coffin.
Posted in Cave, Geology, Ghostly Haunts, Historical, Legends & Folklore, Natural Wonders, Subterranean, Wildlife and tagged cave, Coffin, devil, folklore, geology, hidden, history, indian, Kitchen, Monster, Native American, Seven Wonders, Squaw, terror, Vultureswith 6 comments.
Golem Cave
For the past four months we have been spending time in the libraries and archives in preparation for our expedition. In that time, we amassed a list 103 different inscriptions and petroglyphs in stone across the northeast. Some of these are what I would refer to as historic graffiti. The most interesting inscriptions we uncovered have been the center of a debate of going back to the late 1600s.
Posted in Archaeological, Geology, Historical, Subterranean and tagged ancient, history, mysterious, petroglyphwith no comments yet.
Recently we teamed up with members from the group known as Iron Miners. Like us they hunt down remarkable history and fantastic locations long forgotten in New England. What makes them unique, is that they pursue stories connected to mines lost in the forests across the northeast. Some of these tales are connected to important moments in the early history of America. We had such a great time working with them on the Lost cave of Monroe, we already have plans to team up with them on some fascinating projects in 2018.
Over the years of hunting down mines, they have captured many of their adventure in short documentaries. We thought many of you would find them as interesting as we did, so we’ll be posting them on our blog. Later this year we’ll be posting new videos on the amazing stories we’re working on with them right now.
Posted in Cave, Geology, Historical, Subterranean and tagged connecticut, history, Legend, mine, new englandwith 4 comments.
Monk Caves, Pirate Caves, Spouting caves and now Castle Caves. I never really expected that the crew here at Strange New England would be encountering so many caves this summer. Each one seemed to be stumbled upon by accident. Castle Caves was no different. As I was examining an old United States Global Survey (USGS) topographical map of the Sutton MA area, the words ‘Castle Caves’ just jumped out at me. It was only a few miles directly south of Purgatory Chasm. I was surprised I had never noticed it before.
Posted in Cave, Geology, Subterranean, The Underworld and tagged Castle, cave, geology, massachusetts, suttonwith 2 comments.
Stories of lost gold mines have always been popular among prospectors and treasure hunters. It is often believed that an undiscovered motherlode is just waiting for some treasure hunter to find it using modern technology. Lost mines often recall tales like that of Lost Dutchman’s Mine, coded maps and the wild west. New England is the last place anyone would expect find a gold mine. But surprisingly the northeastern states did have a short-lived boom in prospecting and gold mining. So far, over 20 lost and forgotten gold mines have been found in New England (excluding all the places known for placer gold).
With the stratospheric price of gold and popularity of the reality television show, Gold Rush, the interest in gold prospecting in New England has skyrocketed. Forgotten mines and minor gold rushes in the northeast are a terrific topic to explore. Since there are so many mines and location to discuss, they can’t all fit in one article. So, over the next year, look for a series of articles, each one spotlighting one of the six New England states, beginning with in Rhode Island. This southern New England state is known for its history, beaches, and food –not gold mines. Surprisingly the biggest little state still keeps a few secrets in the form of prospects and mines.
Posted in Geology, Historical, Subterranean and tagged copper, durfee, dutchman, england, gold, hill, island, lost, mine, motherlode, new, rhode, strange new englandwith 2 comments.
New Hampshire has always had a warm place in my heart. My family and I use to vacation in cottages along Lake Winnipesauke every summer. Places like the Polar Caves, Lost River, and The Flume were some of my favorite stops in the Granite State. Little did I realize that hidden within the deep forest and steep mountains there were similar places waiting to be revealed or rediscovered. I was pleasantly surprised when I got a lead on a place called Glacial Park. My friend Super ‘D’ had suggest we head up to Thornton NH for an adventure weekend. His cousin Bryon is the owner and caretaker of Shamrock motel in Thornton NH and also was an avid explorer. Byron enjoyed hiking the NH forest with his kids and knew of several other interesting sites we could visit. Once the seed was planted in Bryon’s ear, he invited my Super ‘D’ and I to stay up at his motel for the weekend. He promised give us a tour of some of the forgotten sites in NH that he felt would make a great addition to the website.
Posted in Geology, Historical, Natural Wonders and tagged falls, forgotten, glacial park, glacialpark, glaical, new england, new hampshire, nh, strange, strange new englandwith 3 comments.
When most people think of mummies, images of deserts and pyramids come to mind. On a recent trip to NH, Bryon the owner of the Shamrock Motel mentioned that there were mummies in No. Woodstock NH. Memories of a story concerning mummies that were reburied in New England came to mind. Byron claimed no knowledge of real mummies in NH but that he knew of a curious rock formation from long ago. He explained that ‘The Mummies’ was an outcropping of bedrock that Crooked Brook carved into what resembled mummies. Though not as admired as ‘The Old Man in the Mountain’, it once was a popular roadside stop for tourists and locals.
Posted in Geology, Natural Wonders and tagged geologic, mummies, nh, river, strange new england, The Mummies, woodstockwith no comments yet.