Woodbury

Flanders Nature Center & Land Trust is a nature center and land trust that spans over 2,100 acres of open space across seven preserves in Bethel, Middlebury, Southbury, and Woodbury.

• Established in 1963 and located in Church Hill Road, the nature center aims to foster an appreciation and understanding of nature, art, and the wonders of the natural world through a variety of classes and workshops in art, nature and land preservation.
• The center also offers after-school and educational programs for adults, children, and youth groups, and summer camps.
• Facilities at the Flanders Nature Center include the Buz Russell Museum of Antique Tools and Farm Life, the North Barn, the Studio, the Trail House, the Sugar House, and the Natalie Van Vleck House.

Where You'll Find it: 596 Flanders Rd, Woodbury, CT 06798, Phone: 203-263-3711

Set in the historic center of Woodbury and surrounded by the picturesque Litchfield Hills, the Glebe House is a historic house museum on Hollow Road and one of earliest historic house museums in the nation.

• Built about 1740 in the Georgian colonial, the house was also the site of the first Episcopal Church election in the United States and is a significant architectural building.
• The house also features an incredible regional furniture collection and is surrounded by the Gertrude Jekyll Garden, a magnificently landscaped garden designed by famed English horticultural designer and writer Gertrude Jekyll in 1926 and featuring a classic English style mixed border and foundation plantings, and a planted stone terrace.

Glebe House Museum & The Gertrude Jekyll Garden, 49 Hollow Rd, Woodbury, CT 06798

The Highwire Deer and Animal Farm is a community farm that has been caring for injured and abandoned animals since 1982. The farm is home to a collection of exotic animals that visitors to the farm can enjoy interactive experiences with, touching and feeding them. Animals include a kangaroo, a camel, deer, donkeys, sheep, and a zebra and her baby Zeedonk (a cross between a zebra and donkey) and is only open Wednesday through Sunday during the summer months.

68 Park Rd, Woodbury, CT 06798, Phone: 203-263-4522

Activities and Attractions for Couples and Singles:

The Hidden Acorn is a charming store on Route 47 in Woodbury that sells antiques, vintage furniture, home décor, and restoration products. The off-the-beaten-track gem in Litchfield County is part retail store; part refurbished, refinished, and restored furniture, part home goods store, and part art studio. Owned by Debbie and Andy Smith, who opened the store in 2017, the Hidden Acorn has an art studio where visitors can enjoy classes in the art of restoration, as well as arts and craft classes and workshops. The Hidden Acorn store is set within a barn built by Burton Judson in 1850 that was once a timber frame mill and has a charming rustic-workshop feel to it. In addition to selling a range of antique and vintage home décor, furniture, and housewares, the store also has an inventory of restoration hardware and refinishing supplies.

385 Washington Rd, Woodbury, CT 06798, Phone: 203-586-1223

Abrash Galleries is a store on Main Street North in Woodbury that sells rugs and carpets and offers a wide range of rug services from washing and restoration to appraisals to design services. Owned by Karen Reddington-Hughes, the one-stop rug shop boasts a hand-curated selection of exceptional and high-quality oriental rugs sourced from around the world. The shop also offers services such as rug washing, rug restoration, rug appraisals, rug cushions, rug lectures and design services.

40 Main St N Woodbury, CT 06798, Phone: 203-263-7847

What to do if you are traveling with kids:

Quassy Amusement Park & Waterpark is a fun family destination that features a Splash Away Bay Water Park, a beautiful sandy beach, and a variety of fun-filled classic and newer theme park rides. Established in 1908 and located on the south shore of Lake Quassapaug in Middlebury, the family-friendly park boasts a vast family redemption arcade, an award-winning Wooden Warrior roller coaster, swimming at a lovely beach, a huge water park with more than 22 rides and slides, picnicking and a catering service for private parties. Once populated by Native Americans, the 20-acre area was bought by three Waterbury businessmen in 1937 and transformed into an amusement park with a carousel, paddleboats, a hot dog stand and a tearoom. During the late 1970s, rides were added almost every year and today also has its clambake facilities.

Rt. 64 (2132 Middlebury Road), Middlebury, CT 06762, Phone: 1-800-FOR-PARK or 203-758-2913

The Charcoal Chef is a family-friendly restaurant and Woodbury landmark that has been serving delicious homecooked food for more than 63 years. Established in 1956 by Robert Sanderson and his wife, Vee as a small drive-in that serviced long-distance truckers, the Charcoal Chef has expanded to a family restaurant that now seats over 100 people. Originally set up a 1950s-style diner, the restaurant served a menu that focused on charcoal-grilled meats. And still does so today. The menu features signature dishes such as Charcoal Broiled Hamburger with French Fries, Pickles and Cole Slaw, a Steak Basket of Charcoal Broiled Top Round Steak and French Fries; Steak Sandwich Served with French Fries and Chili Burger with Chili with Beans and Onion. The restaurant also serves a variety of craft beers, casual wines, coffee liqueurs, and handcrafted cocktails.

670 Main St N, Woodbury, CT 06798, Phone: 203-263-2538

Hogpen Hill Farms Sculpture Park is part of Hogpen Hill Farms, a 234-acre landscape sculpture park and tree farm in Connecticut’s Litchfield County that features one hundred works of art created by Edward Tuft. The artwork in the park remains “open space in perpetuity.” Visitors pay for admission to Hogpen Hill Farms Sculpture Park by car and admission tickets include a map guide to the property, access to the sculpture barn, and parking. Guests are also welcome to have a picnic in the park. It’s also possible to drive-in to Hogpen Hill Farms without a ticket and pay when arriving.

100 Weekeepeemee Rd, Woodbury, CT 06798