Wadsworth Falls State Park, Middlefield, Connecticut
© 2012 J. G. Coleman
Central Connecticut is oftentimes thought of as a portion of the state where there is a bare minimum of natural wonders to be seen. There’s little doubt that the wide breadth of the Connecticut River, for example, must have been quite a sight to behold for Native Americans and early European settlers alike, though modern times seem to have found that mighty stretch of water crowded with civilization. However, upon visiting a place like Wadsworth Falls State Park, you might just reconsider the possibilities for finding beauty in even the most densely-populated regions of Connecticut.
Wadsworth Falls State Park straddles the border between the towns of Middletown and Middlefield and has much to offer in the way of natural splendor despite its proximity to the crowded Connecticut River Valley. Not surprisingly, Wadsworth Falls is the single most notable feature of the entire park and the landmark from which the park draws its name. Truly one of our state’s most beautiful waterfalls, Wadsworth Falls dumps the Coginchaug River down a steep, 30-foot cliff of weathered traprock.
My latest piece from Wadsworth Falls State Park, “Winter on Big Falls”, captures the essence of New England winters bundled with the raw power of the river as it crashes over the falls on its way to calmer waters downstream. Amidst a landscape enveloped in fresh snow, huge sheets of fragmented ice drift rhythmically in the current, occasionally being crushed by torrents of frigid water if they stray to closely to the falls.
“Big Falls”, if you were wondering, is something of a nickname for Wadsworth Falls. It derives from the fact that a second waterfall can be found in the interior of Wadsworth Falls State Park. Much smaller and considerably less powerful than Wadsworth Falls, this additional waterfall was at some point given the name “Little Falls”. I can only imagine that those who were familiar with both of these waterfalls needed some way to differentiate between the two, and it naturally occurred to them to refer to the duo as “Big Falls” and “Little Falls”.
If you enjoyed “Winter on Big Falls”, be sure to take a look at some of my other fine art prints from Wadsworth Falls State Park such as “Little Falls at Wadsworth” and “Fishermen at the Falls”.
