West Peak
West Peak rises to 301 m in Connecticut. South Mountain stands 313 m to the northwest, 8.0 miles off. The nearest named place is Mountain Grove Swim Club, a nature reserve 0.5 miles away. Merritt Parkway passes 25 miles off.
The story
Should not be confused with West Rock, another traprock summit in Connecticut
West Peak, 1,024 feet (312 m), of the Hanging Hills, is the highest traprock peak in the state of Connecticut. The peak hangs above the city of Meriden 700 feet (213 m) below and is characterized by its vertical cliffs and sweeping views of southern Connecticut, Long Island Sound, and the Berkshires to the west. On a clear day, Mount Tom, in Massachusetts, can be seen 47 miles to the north. The 62-mile Metacomet Trail crosses West Peak. Activities enjoyed on the peak include hiking, picnicking, and bird watching. West Peak is on an important raptor migration path. Edwin Howard Armstrong, who invented FM radio and was a network radio pioneer, used West Peak as the location of one of the first FM radio broadcasts, in 1939. His original 70-foot radio mast is still there. Currently, West Peak is home to seven FM broadcast stations, WNPR, WWYZ, WZMX, WKSS, WDRC-FM, WMRQ-FM, and WHCN. It is also known as West Peak State Park.
From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Wikidata Q7986180, referenced by the OpenStreetMap record.
What the record says
- Elevation
- 301 m
How to reach it
- 25.3 mi off the Merritt Parkway, National
Named places within 25 miles
- Mountain Grove Swim Club: 0.5 mi
- Riverbound Farm Sanctuary: 1.6 mi
- YMCA Camp Sloper: 1.9 mi
- City Open Space (Grove Street): 2.5 mi
- Seeley Acres: 2.6 mi
- East Peak: 0.5 mi
- South Mountain: 1.2 mi
- Cathole Mountain: 1.9 mi
- Short Mountain: 3.0 mi
- Markham Hill: 3.2 mi
- Johnson Hill Park: 1.3 mi
- Southington Recreation Park: 1.8 mi
- Columbus Park: 2.2 mi
- Mule Well Field: 2.3 mi
- Quinnipiac Recreation Area: 2.4 mi
- Butterfly Garden: 1.5 mi
- Lyman Orchards Sunflower Maze: 7.7 mi
- Cromwell Community Garden: 8.8 mi
- Wallingford Community Garden: 9.1 mi
- Erin Street Community Garden: 9.6 mi
- Andrews Homestead Museum: 2.1 mi
- Meriden Historical Society Museum & History Center: 2.6 mi
- Connecticut State Police Museum: 2.6 mi
- Solomon Goffe House Museum: 2.9 mi
- Bradley Barnes Museum: 3.3 mi
- Red Bridge: 2.8 mi
- City of Meriden WWII Roll of Honor: 3.3 mi
- City of Meriden World War II Roll of Honor: 3.3 mi
- City of Meriden World War II Roll of Honor: 3.3 mi
- City of Meriden World War II Roll of Honor: 3.3 mi
- Spruce Glen Falls: 4.9 mi
- Intermittent Cascade: 5.4 mi
- Westfield Falls: 6.8 mi
- Cascades: 7.1 mi
- Roaring Brook Falls: 7.5 mi
- 1954: 5.5 mi
- Libby's Lump: 6.4 mi
- Hospital Rock: 9.0 mi
- Washington Trail monument: 9.3 mi
- Will Warren's Den: 9.5 mi
- Home: 7.8 mi
- First Tear: 9.0 mi
- Maori Head: 9.9 mi
- Henry Clay Work Bust: 10.1 mi
- CT DOT Infrastructure Showcase: 10.2 mi
- Dossin Park Beach: 2.8 mi
- Mattatuck Beach: 5.8 mi
- Lake Beseck Beach: 6.5 mi
- Boating Side: 11.3 mi
- Waterfront: 11.3 mi
- Green Wall: 9.5 mi
- Porcupine Hole: 9.6 mi
- Whitestone Cliffs: 11.6 mi
- Bluff Head: 12.9 mi
- Petro Cliffs: 13.3 mi
- Southington Rest Area: 3.3 mi
- Jennifer Hodges Memorial Rest Area: 5.2 mi
- Wallingford Rest Area: 7.8 mi
- Rest Area CT-15 (North Bound): 22.2 mi
- Rest Area CT-15 (South Bound): 22.2 mi
- Cold Spring: 16.7 mi
- Hermit spring: 23.9 mi
- Johnsonville Village: 20.1 mi
- Gay City State Park: 23.7 mi
- Picnic Grove: 11.4 mi
Other summits around it
The highest named summits within 9.4 miles of West Peak. Elevation from each summit’s own record; bearing measured between the two coordinates.
| Summit | Bearing | Elevation | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| South Mountain | NW 318° | 313 m | 8.0 mi |
| Lindsley Hill | WNW 304° | 312 m | 7.6 mi |
| Clinton Hill | WNW 294° | 303 m | 9.3 mi |
| Becar Hill | WNW 298° | 297 m | 8.5 mi |
| Compounce Mountain | NW 314° | 290 m | 6.9 mi |
| Southington Mountain | WNW 296° | 281 m | 6.0 mi |
| East Peak | SE 133° | 277 m | 0.5 mi |
| Higby Mountain | E 98° | 272 m | 5.4 mi |
When to go
Light through the year
| Date | Sunrise | Golden hour | Sunset |
|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox | 06:56 | 18:27 | 19:04 |
| June solstice | 05:18 | 19:48 | 20:30 |
| September equinox | 06:39 | 18:14 | 18:50 |
| December solstice | 07:15 | 15:40 | 16:25 |
Local time (America/New_York).
Climate normals
Months averaging 50–80 °F: May–Oct.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avg °F | 28 | 30 | 38 | 49 | 59 | 68 | 73 | 72 | 65 | 53 | 42 | 33 |
| Precip in | 3.1 | 2.9 | 4.0 | 4.1 | 3.5 | 4.1 | 3.4 | 3.5 | 4.3 | 4.5 | 3.4 | 4.1 |
1991–2020 U.S. Climate Normals, NOAA NCEI — Meriden Markham Muni AP, 4 mi away.
Where this comes from
Location and category confirmed against OpenStreetMap.
OpenStreetMapWikidata- USGS Geographic Names Information System feature 211969 — West Peak, South Central Connecticut County, Connecticut.
OpenStreetMap element node/359271920
Day trips start here
- Connecticut River Valley · 26 mi
- Essex · 28 mi
- East Windsor · 29 mi
Take the scenic way to West Peak.
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