Gillette Castle & Devil’s Hopyard

In the heart of Connecticut exists one of the very few castles in the United States. Before I arrived, I actually knew more about Gillette Castle itself than anything about the residents that had once lived here. As it turns out, the famous actor William Gillette who was active during the late 1800’s to the early 1900’s built this castle in 1919. British writer Arthur Conan Doyle created Sherlock Holmes, and his personal friend William Gillette was the one who brought the character to life in plays. Though Gillette performed many other roles in his life, to the vast majority of Americans of the early 20th century he was always identified with Sherlock Holmes. In modern times many people haven’t heard of William Gillette, including myself, but his castle lives on as one of his final accomplishments.

His castle was built using a unique design made up of rough cut stones rather than smooth walls and polished surfaces. From a distance, the castle almost looked abandoned or in ruins. As I got closer, I could see the details of the design. I’m not so proud of my first photo on this page showing the front of the castle, but this one with the rear gives a better perspective on its size.

Touring the castle is easy, and I’d definitely recommend it for anyone in the area! You basically self guide yourself but there are plenty of staff around to answer most of your questions. The living room photographed above is the largest room in the house. In the photo below you can see some of the paintings that Gillette had collected over the years.

True to his character of Sherlock Holmes, Gillette definitely had a love of interesting architecture and gadgets. Nearly all the doors in the house had these unique designs such as these pictured above and below. I didn’t get a photo of it, but one of the doors had an owl creatively added to the artwork that was only noticeable to me after a staff member pointed it out.

You should have second thoughts about being a guest in this bedroom when Gillette was alive. One of his creations was a complex system of mirrors that would provide a way to spy into other rooms in the house. I’m not sure if he was up to something creepy or just didn’t trust some of the guests. Below is one of the study rooms where he would design his creations.

Within the castle is a library and a small sort of museum where they display some of the works of Sherlock Holmes. Sherlock Holmes was originally written printed in 1887 by Arthur Conan Doyle. Above you can see some of the first tales ever of Sherlock Holmes. The first play by Gillette appeared in the very late 1800’s, and below is a portrait of him in character.

After you’re finished exploring the inside of the castle, you’ll find yourself outside in the backyard where you can continue to explore the castle grounds. These two photos above and below show some of the beautiful scenery of the Connecticut River passing through Gillette’s estate.

Less than 10 miles from Gillette Castle is a nice state park called the Devil’s Hopyard. The Devil’s Hopyard covers about 1,000 square acres and are a popular destination for day hikes, bike rides, and other activities. Part of the trail actually went through this covered bridge, and was probably my favorite scene in the entire state park.

The photos above and below show some of the trails in the Devil’s Hopyard. The vast majority of the state park is flat with very easy trails. Occasionally you’ll get some short but steeper terrain like in the photo below.

Even though the Devil’s Hopyards are pretty small, there are several trails to choose from and a few points of interest along the way. This one above is called “The Oven”, and is a natural rock formation that gets its name from a small cave. Someone was nice enough to spray paint “Oven” just to make sure you didn’t miss it.

The Oven was actually located up on top of an extremely steep hill; steep enough that you have to grab onto trees and plants to support yourself as you climb up! The oven itself was pretty small, I took this photo using my camera’s flash. At best it might be big enough for a single person to lay inside but wasn’t a true shelter as I had originally imagined.

The two main attractions of the state park are photographed here. Above you can see the “Vista” which is an overlook roughly 150 feet (50 meters) above the surrounding woods. This is probably no more than a 30 minute hike from the parking lot and is pretty easy to reach. The view is worth the simple hike, but aside from that there isn’t anything too spectacular about it. Chapman Falls photographed below is actually right by one of the main roads, so hiking isn’t even required. The falls drop 60 feet (18 meters) and are probably the best waterfalls in the small state of Connecticut!