Experience the Beauty of Fall: Day Tripping in Ridgefield, CT
I love adventures and experiencing different parts of the world, and I also love exploring local places. The experience of jumping into a car or a train, and getting to my destination 1 to 2 hours later, comes with its own level of excitement.
Day trips have been a part of my and my family’s adventures for a long time. We’ve explored different towns to try new restaurants, taken scenic drives, gone to festivals, and so much more. I have also taken solo day trips to hike in different places, walk along the beach in a new place, look up the skies at beautiful sunsets in new places, and simply wandered around new towns.
Reasons to Take Day Trips
There are many reasons why you would want to start incorporating day trips into your life.
ADVENTURE
Exploring the world around you, always opens you up to new experiences. Sometimes we forget about the beautiful cities and towns we live in, and the places close by.
Taking day trips to explore unfamiliar places will open you up to the possibility of meeting new people and hearing great stories, listening to great live music on a weekday afternoon, catching a glimpse of a view that will leave you with amazing memories, enjoying a delicious meal outside while people watching, and so much more.
I have always looked back on my day trips with fond memories.
TAKE A BREAK
This is so important to do for your mental and physical health. I love to change my environment any chance I get, which always leaves me refreshed and recharged.
Experiencing a new environment gives you the opportunity to relax. It takes your mind off your daily to do list, and transforms you into another reality of exploration and new things.
AFFORDABLE
One thing I love about day trips is affordability. Grab a snack and your water bottle from home to reduce your costs. Find a free museum or a concert at a park.
Walking and hiking is also free (some trails might have a small entrance fee). It is easy to spend less than $100 between gas, food, and activities on a day trip.
EASIER TO PLAN
Planning a day trip takes little to no time. You can pick 2 to 3 things you want to do, and run with it.
CONNECTING WITH FRIENDS AND FAMILY
It is easier to take a day trip with a friend. Both of you can take a day off work or pick a weekend day. You can also split costs. It will be a time to take a break and connect with friends on a fun hike, catching a great show, trying a new restaurant, and so much more.
My Day Trip in Ridgefield, CT
Fall is my absolute favorite season, and I make sure to make the best of each day in the Fall. The crisp air, the colorful leaves, the cool weather, the sound of crunching leaves, and the falling colorful leaves when you look out the window, all make the Fall season a beautiful time of year.
I wanted to experience another town on a beautiful Fall day, and I had heard Connecticut is absolutely beautiful in the Fall. I got to googling “beautiful Fall towns in Connecticut”, and found a few. I was looking for towns an hour and half drive from home, and Ridgefield checked all the marks.
On this beautiful Fall Friday, I took the day off work, and headed to Ridgefield, Connecticut.
The beauty of the drive to Connecticut convinced me I picked the perfect Fall day trip even before I got to Ridgefield. The different colors on the trees along the highway, the crisp air, and the relaxed drive made for a very pleasant trip.
As I arrived in beautiful Ridgefield, I couldn’t help it but slow down to admire the beautiful colored trees, stores and cafe lined Main Street.
My First Stop
I was met with an amazing aroma of freshly baked bread and friendly staff at my first stop in Ridgefield – Ross Artisanal Bakery and Cafe.
This cute cafe has an array of delicious treats, breakfast food, fresh bread, sandwiches, salad, and a variety of coffee. I ordered a delicious avocado toast and an iced latte, and enjoyed it as customers filled the place with chatter.
My breakfast time at Ross Cafe was a pleasant one. On my way out, I ordered a delicious brownie for the road.
MY NEXT STOP - EXPLORING THE TOWN
After my delicious breakfast, I made my way out of the cafe parking lot, and found parking at a shopping center down the street to start my adventure exploring the town.
The walk down Main Street was absolutely beautiful. I was met with friendly people, beautiful scenery, crisp air, and falling leaves. I walked a few miles on Main Street, meandered through the library, and walked through neighborhoods enjoying every bit of it.
THE DESSERT
I couldn’t resist the variety of goodies at Deborah Ann’s Sweet Shoppe on Main Street. It is a very beautiful sweet shop with variety of chocolates, sweet goodies and ice cream. I grabbed some chocolate and peanut brittle, and sat outside to enjoy my sweets.
It was fun people watching, as they went about their day – shopping, enjoying lunch, exchanging pleasantries, reading outdoors, and enjoying the sweet shoppe goodies.
THE TOWN OF RIDGEFIELD IS BEAUTIFUL
After my dessert break, I continued to explore beautiful Ridgefield. The weather was pleasant on this beautiful Fall day.
TIME FOR LATE LUNCH
I found my way to Bareburger, where I enjoyed a delicious burger and relaxation.
It was time to round up my wonderful day trip. I drove out of Ridgefield slowly, enjoying the beautiful scenery and excited I made this wonderful day trip.
Planning a Day Trip
Day trips are fun and easy to plan. There are a variety of day trips you can take.
To come up with some day trip ideas, enter keywords search in google: “day trips from {town name}”, “best day trips from {town name}”. You can also enter seasons; “best Fall day trips from {town name}”, “winter day trips from {town name}”.
This will bring up a bunch of results. In the results, you may find a great blog written just for you with ideas on day trips from your town. You will also find a link to Trip Advisor with day trip ideas and reviews.
If you are a beach addict like me, searching for beautiful beach towns near you will bring up variety of things to do in a beach town.
After I have narrow down my search, I make notes on my phone on activities, how far the town is and best time to leave home based on traffic patterns. I also research a few cafes and restaurants.
THINGS TO BRING WITH YOU
Don’t forget to wear appropriate clothing for the weather and comfortable shoes.
I always bring snacks with me to lower the cost of food. If you are going hiking, don’t forget your water bottle and other hiking essentials.
I hope you always choose open roads to a new adventure.
~Eliza
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sonia
These are great tips and lovely fall foliage photos
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Mette Larsen
Loving your photos in this Post! Looking forward to checking out some more of your writting 😊