Tunxis State Forest

About Tunxis State Forest

The Tunxis State Forest covers approximately 9,152 hectares and is divided into sections on both sides of Barkhamsted Reservoir. It covers an area of about 1,500 hectares in the north-east of the state forest and about 3,200 hectares in a section in the south-west.

Even before Tunxis was originally bought in 1923, much of the area was heavily forested, and many other parts of the state were only gradually moving from agriculture to forests.

Today, Tunxis is home to a large area of wild land, including adjacent land owned by the Metropolitan District Commission, which is a major water supplier.

Tunxis is home to many species of wild animals, and at the end of the 20th century the area was one of the first in the state to see moose and black bears. There is a wide range of forest products that are produced from the forest, as well as a variety of natural resources such as water, trees, grasses, shrubs and other plants and animals. Forests are actively managed to improve the health and diversity of forests, and there are a number of programmes for those interested in working with forests, from education and nature conservation to research and development.