A hidden treasure at the end of Old Bridge Road, the Old Bridge Sanctuary is a wonderful spot for a hike, bird watching and even fishing.

The sanctuary is located at 57 Old Bridge Road according to the town's website, but our GPS didn't recognize it and kept "recalculating."  Luckily, a friendly resident was picking up her mail and told us to "drive all the way down to end of the road and go straight."

Entering the small parking area we immediately heard, then spotted, two red cardinals. They flew away quickly as soon as my dog started barking.  Stepping out of the car onto the trash-littered ground, the quiet moment in nature was quickly stifled by the anger at senseless people who would litter this beautiful place with beer cans, broken bottles and Taco Bell bags.  We thought maybe it was teenagers partying, but then saw a kid's yogurt cup and a dirty diaper.  A large sign at the entrance tells visitors to "Please carry out what you carry in.  Trash containers not provided."

After viewing the other signs posted at the front section of the park, we decided on which trail to follow.  The blue trail was the longest and considering the fact that my 10-year-old daughter's legs get tired after about 20 minutes, we chose the shorter blue/yellow path instead.

The trail is clearly marked with spray painted dots on the trees every few feet.  We noticed lots of bird houses on the trees and heard evidence of wildlife in the area. Following the blue path down it led us to the water's edge, a beautiful spot for reflecting, and fishing apparently, as evidenced by empty "live bait" containers strewn along the water's edge.

There were many interesting looking old trees, huge rocks and lots of peace and quiet.  We even spotted a fox hole at one point.  As we got deeper into the woods we noticed the bug population had increased. Suddenly our dog started going crazy, running in circles and writhing on the ground.  He had gotten attacked by a swarm of bees.  My two children and I each grabbed sticks and began scraping them off of our poor dog.  They stung him all over his back legs and underneath his belly.

Needless to say our hike was cut short.  (FYI, according to our veterinarian the treatment for bee stings on a dog is much like that of a human.  He recommended for us to watch his breathing, give him a dose of Benadryl, and a cold compress of baking soda and water paste on the stings.) Our dog Charlie was fine after about an hour and thankfully didn't go into anaphylactic shock.

We were glad we all wore long pants to protect us from the bees, but wished we had remembered the bug spray.  I would also recommend hiking boots because of the broken glass. 

The Old Bridge Sanctuary is a nice hike and has beautiful views but definitely needs another clean-up soon.  After doing a little research when we returned home we found that the Old Bridge Sanctuary had been cleaned up back in November by Brookfielder Sean Flynn and 15 other boy scouts. 

Flynn, along with Troop 8, collected 15 bags of trash back in November as part of Flynn's Eagle Scout project, according to the Housatonic Times.  They also built and placed 30 bird houses. Rebuilding the bird sanctuary on Old Bridge Road earned Flynn his Eagle Scout status and an award presented last April by First Selectman Bill Davidson and Danbury Mayor Mark Boughton.  Flynn is the son of Brookfield Republican Committee Chairman Marty Flynn.

Sitting on 25 acres, the park offers hiking trails, a beautiful lake, and lots of birds to watch — but no garbage cans unfortunately. So next time you're in the area, grab a trash bag and your hiking boots and visit the Old Bridge Sanctuary for a few moments to be at one with nature.

For a trail map go to the Parks and Recreation Department or click here to print one out.