Folklore Talk & Hike

Folklore Talk & Hike with UMASS Professor Stephen Gencarella

The Devil’s Hopyard State Park in East Haddam is one of the most intriguing places for folklore in the entire state of Connecticut. As a follow-up to the Essex Library’s folklore program on Thursday, August 3rd, Professor Stephen Gencarella (UMass Amherst and the resident folklorist at the CT River Museum) will lead a hike throughout the park on Saturday, August 5th at 9 a.m. Gencarella will tell the copious stories about this unique location; among these are tales about the indigenous people’s culture heroes, a literary work about a wayward son, and the numerous explanations for the park’s unusual name, including the tradition of witches brewing potions in the potholes near Chapman Falls. The hike will offer a view of the valley from a cliff and hikers will have an opportunity to visit a cave along the way.

Stephen Gencarella is a professor of folklore studies at UMass Amherst and is the resident folklorist at the Connecticut River Museum. He was featured in the June 2017 Connecticut Magazine in an article entitled “The Moodus Noises” (pg. 35), and is also developing a series on Connecticut folklore for iCRV.

This program is free and open to the public. Please call the Essex Library at (860) 767-1560 for more information and to register. The hike will begin at 9 a.m. at the Devil’s Hopyard State Park main parking lot at 366 Hopyard Road in East Haddam.