Where There Is Room To Roam––

The Dogs Of Fairfield Hills

By Dottie Evans

While the town and the state are still negotiating terms of the upcoming sale of the 189-acre Fairfield Hills campus to the town, there is a small population of Newtown residents who feel like they already own the place.

These are the dogs and their owners who make a daily habit of visiting the northern edge of the Fairfield Hills campus each day, walking up the High Meadow road to enjoy the view.

They revel in the beauty of wide-open spaces where no cars are allowed, and not even the occasional Tunxis Management maintenance truck can spoil the sense of escape they find in this quieter, more peaceful place.

The dogs know the routine: park at the cul-de-sac at the end of Mile Hill Road, North; trot under the car barrier (while owners scramble over it); follow the crumbling asphalt road to the top of the hill where the two big reservoirs sit behind a chain link fence.

If freed from leashes, dash across the fields, follow the scents of coyote, deer, and turkey, race ahead and double back while the humans stroll along.

Grab a drink of fresh water from the reservoir outlet pipe. Meet some other dogs and have a sniff fest while the humans chat. Time to go home by the same way? Maybe not.

Try to persuade humans to take an extended walk down the wooded “Loop Trail” behind Nunnawauk Meadows. Hope to return home by a longer way, via the long, straight road through the woods that comes out behind Litchfield Hall.

Or run back down the High Meadow road and revisit those tantalizing smells you passed on the way up. Either way, end up back at the cul-de-sac. Get a treat. Ride home in the car. Look forward to dinner. Perfect day.

What The People Think

One might encounter any of the following individuals walking their dogs in Fairfield Hills any day of the week. They are typical of a much larger group that uses the old High Meadow road on a regular basis.

Whether or not these walkers approve of the Fairfield Hills Master Plan Executive Summary –– or even know what it is –– they have discovered this special place and made it their own.

 Tom Staskiewics takes his English bulldog Roxie up to the High Meadow “at least twice a week for exercise.” One senses that Roxie is not the only one who benefits from access to wide open spaces and long views.

Mary Lou Sullivan goes to the High Meadow hilltop with her Italian greyhound Gypsy as often as possible –– “usually once a day, because it’s my haven. I love it up here.”

Mary and Dan Walton bring their yellow and black Labradors, Ginger and Tasha, for exercise and “to meet other dogs and other people. We come up here all the time,” says Mrs Walton.

Peter Bearce brings Samson the golden retriever to the recreational field nearby the cul-de-sac for training sessions.

“It gives him a chance to run a little. He doesn’t get a lot of exercise at home. I attended the [Newtown Kennel Club] obedience classes at town hall for a while, and Samson did all right. He wasn’t the best, but he wasn’t the worst either. You have to keep working at it.”

Doug MacHugh brings his male springer spaniel, Finnegan, to Fairfield Hills all the time.

“Where else can you go in this town and get to know so many nice people –– and dogs? Finnegan is named after my grandmother’s undertaker, but that’s another story,” Mr MacHugh adds.

For humans, walking and talking is conducive to telling stories.

For dogs, the walking is story enough.