Turkey Swamp Park is another Monmouth County Park that I had never been to before. So, on a hot sunny Sunday I started out. There’s lots to do in Turkey Swamp Park so the parking lot was packed by the time I got there. As it was a hot day, the obvious attraction were the boat rentals. While starting the trail, which starts out by the lake, there were lots of people out and about.
I started out on the Old Lenape Trail, rated green, which starts by the lake then winds around the campgrounds. The walking was easy, a sandy trail through the trees. Again, in a Monmouth County park, I noticed numerous unmarked trails and trail junctions that were not marked well. The main trails were easy to follow and were for the most part flat.
I followed the Old Lenape Trail until it junctioned with the Manasquan trail. I enjoyed the solitude of the Manasquan trail as it headed further away from the crowds. The trail passed some large fields and the archery range within the park. At about the furthest part from the parking lot, the trail makes a 90-degree turn to the south and follows briefly along the Manasquan River.
The Manasquan trail winds its way westward back towards the lake and the parking lot. You will use a couple of bridges (more like boardwalks) over some swampy land. The trail will cross the access road to the parking lot and join the Alder trail as it follows the coast of the western shore of the lake. The Alder trail will take you back to your car and parking lot.