Welcome to The Last Green Valley's Letterboxing Trail!
Take the TLGV Letterboxing Challenge to earn an iron on patch! The rules are simple:
- Visit four or more of the letterboxing locations below and find the letterbox.
- Stamp your journal and the journal inside the box. Write the date next to the stamp in your journal too.
- Take a photo of the stamp in your journal. Post the photo on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter and mention or tag TLGV.
- And then send us an email with your address so we can send you the patch!
Expand each location below to get the clues!
Learn More About Letterboxing
Letterboxing is a form of treasure hunting that rewards the hunter with unique stamped images as a memento of each find. Letterboxing started in the United States around 1998 after Smithsonian Magazine wrote about the letterboxes in Dartmoor England.
Letterboxing is a great way to get outdoors and explore new places. Fellow letterboxers will plant boxes and then post the clues on the internet for others to find. The clues can be simple directions or more challenging puzzles and ciphers. Once you have your clues, all you need to go letterboxing is your own personal stamp, your own personal logbook the record the images you find and ink pads or broad tip markers for the image. Many clues tell you what color ink to bring, so read the clues carefully before you go. Do not have your own stamp? It is perfectly fine to use a small doodle or even a thumb print animal as your signature. And your logbook? It can just be a simple ruled notebook, but most letterboxers prefer to use unlined artist’s sketch pads. For this challenge you may request a starter logbook from TLGV.
Remember, you are on a treasure hunt, so stealth is important. Do not let others around you know what you are up to and do not give away the location of the box! When replacing the box, make sure it goes back where it belongs and that it cannot be seen from the trail. Make sure the baggies and the box are well sealed so there is no water damage.
A group of letterboxers have planted 8 letterboxes in The Last Green Valley. The clues are on this page. Some of these are nice hikes, others are short walks.
Before you go, make sure to check out the locations you will be visiting. There may be other things to do at the park while you are there. There may also be more letterboxes in the same area.
Important! Please read the Waiver of Responsibility and Disclaimer before you go.
Planted and carved by Mim
Drive to the end of Tracy Court in Webster, MA and park in the large lot. French River Park's main area is just east of here, at about 75 Davis St. Please feel free to check it out. This location, however, has some interesting signage. Go first to the gazebo and read about the settlement of this area. Then head left, toward the 2 triangular information posts. Enjoy reading about nature along the French River. Pay special attention to the post with the owl on top. Read about The River's Wildlife. Then bend down and reach behind the middle of that side. Resting on the crossbar is your remembrance of the French River. Please replace the box close against the back of the sign and balancing on the crossbar.
Westville Lake, 200 Majorie Lane, Southbridge, MA
https://www.nae.usace.army.mil/Missions/Recreation/Westville-Lake
Planted and carved by Arf!
Follow driveway to the end at the flag pole
Enter the trail right of the kiosk
Cross over the dam & enjoy the spectacular view
See the vista bench at the corner & continue left onto the gravel path
Between the second and third bench on the right is a large 8 foot long boulder on the right
Walk off trail to this sleeping boulder
Left of the boulder is a dark gray flat rock embedded in the ground
In its cave is the letterbox behind a lighter-colored rock
Goodwin State Forest, 23 Potter Road, Hampton, CT
Planted and carved by Lowland Lass
Link to Trail Map: https://portal.ct.gov/-/media/DEEP/education/goodwin/goodwintrailsmappdf.pdf
From the parking lot across the road from the Goodwin Conservation Education Center, go down the paved road toward the lake. Just past the Pavilion, take a right onto the Blue-White and Yellow Trails. At the Pine Acres Pond kiosk, stay on the Yellow Trail and follow Yellow to Grand Junction kiosk. At Grand Junction, turn left on Red toward, Governor’s Island and at the next sign post, take the Red-White Trail. Stay on the defined path, ignore any red or blue blazes and stay with the Red-White blazes. When you come to an intersection with a dirt road, turn left toward the Pond. At the intersection with the Blue Trail, turn left and go up the small hill to the clearing with three benches. Go and face the middle bench and look left for a two-sister tree with the sisters rather distant from eachother. Slight to the left and behind the sisters is a small tree with rocks around it’s base. Go to this tree and tilt the flat rock on the left side away from the tree to reveal your treasure. After stamping, please make sure the boxes is place securely behind the rock and cannot be seen from the trails. From hear you my continue on to Governor's Island or retrace your steps back to your car. To get to Governor’s Island you may take the Blue Trail (go right on Blue to Red and turn left on Red. To get back take Red to Grand Junction and follow Yellow back. Note that the Blue trail is rougher than your trip so far.)
Owen Bell Park, 540 Hartford Pike, Killingly, CT
https://www.killingly.org/parks-recreation/pages/town-parks
Planted and carved by Lowland Lass
From the parking lot, take the paved path left toward the ball field. Turn left on the path and go past the stage. At the end of the paved path, turn right toward the track with the soccer in the infield. Turn left on the track and follow the track to the dirt path to the left of the garages. At the first intersection follow the white arrows to the left. Continue on this path, following the arrows until you see a white house through the trees on the left of the trail. Take the path to the right where the arrow tells you to go left. Keep straight on this trail. The trail will turn grassy and then to dirt again. When you get to the intersection with the “rock garden” in front of you, turn left and take the narrow trail up the hill. Keep a look out on the right for a three-sister tree with two of the sisters splitting higher up. Count 20 steps up the trail and look in the wood on the right for a rock next to a small tree. The treasure is hidden under the uphill side of the rock, covered with leaves and sticks. After stamping in please replace the leaves and sticks so the box cannot be seen from the trail. Return to the rock garden and turn left. Follow the trail until you are in familiar territory and make your way back to your car.
Creaser Park 100 Case Rd, Coventry, CT.
https://www.coventryct.org/518/Disc-Golf-at-Creaser-Park
Planted and carved by Mim
Park at the sign for the park. Find the red trail behind the front cabin to your right. Take the trail into the woods. Head uphill. Take a right on blue. Continue going uphill. Reach the top. Head downhill. A small trail will cross your path. This is the intersection with the yellow trail. It is not obviously marked. Take a left on yellow. Look right, uphill, to see a large boulder. Go up there to its leftmost end. Turn left and start walking. You will see a skinny birch with its toes making a cage around an old stump. Look around the side of the stump, behind rocks.
Continue yellow. Very shortly you will intersect with the red trail. Head left on red back to the trail outlet at the cabin.
Mohegan Park, 189 Mohegan Park Rd., Norwich, CT
https://norwichct.org/Facilities/Facility/Details/122
Planted and carved by Lowland Lass
Bring red ink or red and green markers. Note there are several parking lots in Mohegan Park, the closest to the trail head is the Spaulding Pond Beach Parking. If you end up at one of the others, it is a short walk to the beach. Find the paved path around the pond and go counterclockwise around the pond to the Beach lot. Proceed to the far corner of the Beach Parking, near the road and locate the wide Red Trail (stroller accessible). Follow the trail and shortly there will be a series of logs along the right edge of the trail. Continue down the trail until the logs end. On the left is a large tree by the trail and a medium sized boulder. Your treasure is hidden on the backside of the boulder, under the edge of the boulder and held in place with a small rock. If you reach the bridge you have gone too far. Once you have replaced the box, you may retrace your steps or continue on the Red Trail for a nice little walk.
Lebanon Historical Society Museum, 856 Trumbull Highway, Lebanon, CT
Planted and carved by Travel’n Turtle
Make your way to Lebanon Historical Society Museum located on the Lebanon green. When you pull into this complex, look for the Pastor’s Library as seen in the photo. Look under the left side of the front stairs behind the rock. Use stealth and make sure it’s completely hidden from sight before you leave.
Lauter Park, 625 Jackson Street, Willimantic, CT
Planted and carved by burning feet
This box may be found by a short walk or a paddle.
Walking clues:
Main entrance of Lauter Park at 639 Jackson St.
- Take a left onto the gravel road
- Pass the community garden on the left then the skate park on the right. Start at the canoe launch sign.
- Go around the yellow gate
- Follow the water on the left
- Pass a bench on the right then head right through the large stones to cross over a stone bridge
- Turn left at the yellow hydrant
- Follow the the waters edge along the beach
- Cross a paved path
- When you cannot go any further you will be standing at the woods line. cross a concrete path at a spot Where you can see a makeshift stone path on the other side
- Take 15 steps across the concrete path to the fence line. follow the fence line right going around a Downed branch (there is a large 2 sister tree on the other side of the fence at this point) to a single oak along the fence line.
- Box is at the base of the tree near the fence under a flat rock. beware of poison ivy in this area but it is avoidable.
- Return the way you came.
Clues by water:
Same as above for starting point but at yellow gate put boat in water on the left. Paddle south passing the beach on the right. In the distance on the right see a black metal fence. At the end of the fence beach the boat and walk onto the beach. Look left into the woods and go across the concrete path to the other side. At the fence line go right around a down limb to a single oak at the fence line. Box is behind under flat rock near the fence.