NJ State Forest – Blaze To Blaze

Hike Distance: 8.75 miles

Trails: Poppy Allen (yellow), Falkinburg (purple), CCC (orange)

My Map:

Average temperature for this hike was around 35 degrees, and the wind was blowing. There were flurries every so often but no accumulation. I did this hike as a figure-eight, sort of. Both loops were hiked clockwise.

Before I started the trail, I checked out Lake Absegami and the beach area. At the time of this writing there is construction on a new pavilion, but it is still possible to walk down to the water. Plans are for the construction to be completed by summer of 2023.

After viewing the lake, it was time to start the hike. By the water, the wind was really whipping, but in the trees, you did not feel it as much. You could hear the wind, sort of like background noise.

Most of the trails were wide, compact sand. In a couple of spots the trail was the loose, deep, sugar sand. And there were some places where you hike on sand roads. There is almost no elevation gain throughout the whole forest, though that is to be expected hiking in the Pine Barrens.

The Poppy Allen trail takes you right alongside a group campsite; that was busy today with a Boy Scout troop. I would later run into the scouts out on a hike. “Poppy” Allen was the first caretaker of Bass River State Forest.

Every so often you hike into Pine tree plantations, where the trees are somewhat growing close together. It was in these biomes where it was the most peaceful.

All the trails in this State Forest were well marked. There are lots of side trails, woods roads, and sand roads; but if you stay on the trail (and keep your map handy) you will not get lost. What I liked especially: Whenever there was a turn, there was a blaze with an arrow telling you which way to turn, and then a blaze immediately after the turn for you to pick up the trail. And all junctions are well blazed.

After turning onto the Faulkinburg trail, the trail sort of parallels the Garden State Parkway. This was one of two places where there is a bit of road noise. The trail actually comes pretty close to the roadway.

Soon enough it cuts back into the woods.

At the big junction of trails (in the center of the figure-eight in my map) is a sign announcing one of the tree plantations. There are many in the forest, all planted by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the early 1930s.

From this junction I jumped on the CCC trail for the western part of my journey. This crosses East Greenbush road. Where it crosses, I was able to get a picture of the Bass River Fire tower and another plantation.

The forest in this section was my favorite of them all. The trees are HUGE. It is extremely quiet and peaceful in this section. I could have sat there for hours, except it was 37 degrees and the wind was blowing. Maybe in the summer. Definitely a magical place.

The trail winds its way towards the Bass River. I did not have a view of the river, but I could see houses lining it. There are some marshy, boggy areas, and that is perfect conditions for a cedar grove.

At the northern part of this loop you will come to ruins of the Civilian Conservation Corps camp.

And just past the ruins you will come to the Forest Fighter Memorial which has signage regarding two major forest fires; and memorializes lost firefighters in those wildfires. I had been to this memorial driving home from Batsto Village.

Coming back to the main junction, I followed the CCC trail back to my car. The trail follows the park road and goes over a small bridge. From the bridge I could see the southern portion of Lake Absegami.

And across the road, I could see where the lake drained into Faulkinburg branch.

I didn’t know that there were campsites here, so I will have to return to check out the camping. Certainly, it won’t be long backpacking, but it is close enough to home to warrant checking out.

Chiggers: NONE, thankfully

Blazes:

Hiked: 1/14/2023

Worthington State Forest – Sunfish Pond loop, via Fairview

Park Site

Trail Map – park site, I used the NY NJ Trail Conference map 120

Hike Distance: 9.52 miles

Trails: Fairview (yellow), AT (white), Buckwood (turqoise), Sunfish Fire Road, Dunnfield Creek (green), Holly Springs (red)

My Map:

For those wondering, this isn’t the typical Sunfish Pond loop. That loop starts at the Dunnfield Creek lot, and uses the full sections of the Appalachian Trail and Dunnfield Creek trail (and may be a tad longer too.) I wanted to stay away from the circus of people and chose to head to the Fairview lot off of Old Mine Road. When I pulled in around 8:20, I was the second car in the lot, and the first left while I was lacing up my boots. When I drove by the two hiker lots (of which one is the Dunnfield Creek lot) they were already mostly full. When I finished my hike, there was one other car in the lot. That’s not to say I didn’t see people; I saw a bunch of thru-hikers on the AT. But I “missed out” on the huge crowds at Mt. Tammany.

When I arrived at the Gap, there were lots of low clouds. Fortunately, once the sun came out it burned off all the clouds and became a great day. I thoroughly enjoyed the Fairview trail, though coming back I did not get to hike the whole Dunnfield Creek trail – and that’s a trail I really like.

Starting up the Fairview trail, the trail is nice and wide. At this time of year, there is lots of green,with ferns out all over the place.

The sun burned off the clouds early.

I passed a couple of spots with bear droppings, one really fresh. But alas, no bear sightings today.

I quickly came to the junction with the Appalachian Trail, and found this marking on the ground. 1300. I’m assuming miles, but I don’t know from which end.

The trails seemed damp, as if it had rained the night before. I don’t recall getting rain the day before. However, the mushrooms were out.

In case you have forgotten, or just don’t know what the AT is like in New Jersey…here is a typical section:

After stopping at the backpacker campsite to check things out, I quickly made it to Sunfish Pond. I had hiked this route close to 40 years ago, and I just don’t remember Sunfish Pond at all. On this day, it was gorgeous. The only sound were the frogs, and there were plenty. Here is Sunfish Pond, looking East.

I followed the Appalachian Trail along the northern edge – be advised there’s a small amount of rock scrambling at water’s edge. I took the Buckwood trail to continue going around the pond, as the AT heads north towards Raccoon Ridge. There is an overlook on the Buckwood trail that is (in my opinion) one of the best views of Sunfish Pond. It looks west, back from where I came.

Those clouds in the distance did start to build, but by the time I left the park, nothing had happened.

A little early…maybe a week or two. Blueberries.

I was worried about what the Sunfish Fire Road would look like, as it is not “blazed” and that was my connection to the Dunnfield Creek Trail. I needn’t worried, it was not only pretty obvious, but signed. Further, the fire road is wide and pleasant to walk.

The junction with the Dunnfield Creek trail leads uphill, to the point of my highest elevation. And I’m glad I did the hike in the direction I did, as I would not have wanted to climb that hill with all the rocks. Going down was tough enough. I like the Dunnfield Creek trail, especially when it joins Dunnfield Creek. Be advised that there are a handful of stream crossings; all pretty easy as I had rocks sticking up above water. It could be a different story with higher water.

I almost stepped on this guy.

Mountain Laurel was still blooming; in some spots more than others.

The junction with the Holly Springs trail is pretty muddy. And it’s uphill almost all the way back to the junction with the AT and the Fairview trail.

All in all, this was a great hike. It was hot, the car said 84 when I returned to it. And it was a little muggy. I’m glad I chose the Fairview lot (and trail) as the Dunnfield Creek lots were jammed when I returned, I assume cars were in the overflow lot on the other side of Route 80.

Ticks: 1

Blazes:

Hiked: 6/25/2022

Wharton State Forest – Batsto Lake Trail and Tom’s Pond Trail

Park Site

Trail Map – official, and the one I used, courtesy of NJHiking.com

Hike Distance – 7.46 miles (and this includes wandering around Batsto Village a bit)

Trails – Batsto Lake (white), Batona (pink), Tom’s Pond (orange)

My Map:

As a side note, this is probably my last hike in the “south” for a while. The weather is getting warmer (yay!) and I have some hikes with the County Park System teed up; and to get ready, I need to work some elevation. However, I have a new found favorable opinion of the Pine Barrens. If you had asked me about my opinion of the Pine Barrens a year ago, I would replied, “bah, it’s nothing more than sand and pitch pines.” And it is. But it is much more than that too. True, there isn’t much elevation and the views are not as jaw dropping, but if you are looking for exercise and the same workout, I challenge you to walk a couple miles in sugar sand. The Pine Barrens are like no other place I’ve hiked. Sphagnum moss, pitch pines, unique plants, berries of all kinds, bogs, Cedar groves. It’s definitely worth a visit. I would recommend visiting out of the summer sun and heat to escape the chiggers and ticks.

This hike leaves from the Batsto Village visitor center. I headed north to travel the Batsto Lake (white) trail counterclockwise, which for a short time travels along the Batona trail. It was a dream hiking here, the trails were wide, flat, mostly dirt, some sand, and a lot of pine needles. And I don’t recall seeing rocks anywhere. Be advised, there are plenty of bike trails here, though I only saw bikes once the whole day.

Early on while walking the Batsto Lake trail I walked through a portion of the forest that had recently (the last ten years?) had a fire. One thing I’ve learned from my hikes in the Pines is that fire is necessary to “clear” the forest and allow for new growth. Without fire, the pines wouldn’t come back, and this would have been The Oak Barrens. It was definitely evident in this section of the forest.

A little after this section, the Batona Trail leaves the Batsto Lake trail and heads north. The Batsto Lake trail starts to head south and parallels the Batsto River – which feeds Batsto Lake. There are a couple of nice viewpoints on this section of the trail.

Believe it or not, the river was about 15-20 feet downhill from the trail.

There was one viewpoint that gave a nice overview of the Lake. Here are two pictures, one looking north, and one looking south.

When the Batsto Lake (white) trails joins with the blue and red versions of the Batsto Lake trail, there are more interpretative signs explaining some of the flora in the area.

Shortly thereafter I made it back to the parking lot. I had to go through the parking lot, and into Batsto Village to get to Tom’s Pond Trail. On the dam there is a great view of the lake, looking north.

Stay on the main “road” and go through the village, passing the worker’s houses. The other side of the village contains the additional trailhead. I headed west to explore the Tom’s Pond trail. This area was a little different from where I had just hiked. Yes, there is still pitch pine, but the area is made up of bogs, so the Cedar groves stand out. Shortly in, I came to this boardwalk that led to a bridge crossing the Mullica River.

Heading north, I came to this plant. The sign next to it said Inkberry.

And it wouldn’t be the Pine Barrens without sphagnum moss. It was all over the ground in this area.

I think the Cedar groves are really neat to walk through. The trees are close together, more times than not it’s wet, boggy, and you’re on boardwalks, and I love the aroma of the Cedar trees. Some of the trees are huge, and some of the groves are really compact.

I really enjoyed my time on this hike. In the Fall and Winter I will probably search out more trails in the Pine Barrens. The Pine Barrens are HUGE, and I have only scratched the surface. As I mentioned earlier, be wary of ticks and chiggers in season. I didn’t have to worry on this hike.

BONUS:

I’m not hiking a historical village without touring the grounds. (I did not tour the mansion, to do on another day.) Batsto seemed to me to be a lot like Allaire; a “corporate” mining village that was self-contained. To start, right by the Tom’s Pond trailhead were the worker’s houses. These were small.

And yes, behind each house:

I went inside one of the houses that was open. Dinner was served, though it looked a little dusty.

The worker’s houses were set off from the rest of the village. On the way back, I had to recross the dam. What is interesting is that a fish “staircase” has been built so that fish can travel upstream, “around” the dam, and get back to Batsto Lake to spawn.

An interesting facet of cedar groves is that any of the water around them runs red. And actually, it’s considered very pure, without bacteria because of what leeches from the cedar trees. I wasn’t going to try it, I was carrying enough water. But I got a good shot of the RED water.

After, I explored some other portions of the village: The grist mill, corn crib, and the general store. I waited quite a while for service, then gave up. Prices looked pretty good, though.

I wandered around the ice house and woodshed before heading to my car to eat and call it a day. But Batsto Village alone requires its own visit.

Double Bonus:

On an earlier trip down to the Pine Barrens, I traveled on East Greenbrush Road, and passed a memorial to fallen forest firefighters. I didn’t stop the last time, but as I passed it on my way to Batsto, I thought I would return and check it out. The memorial is to firefighters who lost their lives battling both the 1936 and 1977 forest fires in the area. The memorial is tucked right off the road and there is a small parking lot (which incidentally is a trailhead – I have to look that one up.)

Ticks: 0

Blazes:

Hiked: 3/5/2022

Belleplain State Forest

Kiosk picture taken from the south parking lot

Trailhead – I went left though, and returned from here.

Park Site

Trail Map

Hike Distance – 7.27 miles

Trails: East Creek trail (white)

My Map:

The lesson today is to remember to bring both your driving directions and trail map. I forgot both. Fortunately, GPS got me where I wanted to be without issue. As for the trail map, I had AllTrails. Funny thing though. If you look at my map, the right hand side appears to be bushwhacking – AllTrails doesn’t think there’s a trail there. Rest assured, the East Creek trail makes one big loop. It is well defined, easy to follow, and with good blazes. Bonus – when bike trails or spur trails joined in, there were appropriate signs as to where to go. The only “issue” I had was starting out: I parked in the picnic lot, found the trailhead I would return from, but needed to find blazes heading south by Lake Nummy. A short walk down the road led me to blazes – a blaze or two is needed on the road by the lake.

Once on my way I found the trails to be wide, flat, and ultra-soft. It was all dirt, or sugar sand, covered in pine needles. It was like walking on clouds. I didn’t see one rock all day, and questioned if I was really in New Jersey. There were a couple of long boardwalk sections as well. And I saw three people on the trail the entire time.

The only green besides Pine trees, Eastern Holly

I did the loop clockwise. My first stop was to look at a field that the trail skirts.

After heading southeast, the trail makes a 90 degree turn and heads right into a marshland. There wasn’t much water here on this day; I imagine there might be more in the Spring. It was at this point that I walked on a long boardwalk.

The boardwalk deposited me right into a Cedar grove, with lots of running water.

After the cedar grove it was another straight shot. Except, I found water.

The water appeared to be about six inches deep, with a very thin layer of ice on top. Fortunately for me:

A small trail cutout to circumvent the water.

The trail lets you out at Route 347, and there would be a short road walk. However, it is really well marked and not hard to follow. The road is not very busy, but the cars go flying by. I hugged the guardrail as I walked by East Creek Pond.

The trail turns right, and goes through a small pull off parking lot. There is a nice bench to stop and have a snack and admire the pond; which I did.

The trail heads north back to Lake Nummy and the picnic area. There were nice hardwood sections and two cedar groves. Also, there was one spot on the trail I really had to bushwhack around due to standing water.

Belleplain State Forest is probably the furthest I’ll drive in New Jersey to get to a trail. Had I gone the other direction from my house and driven the same time, I would have been in New York. This is a great location though, that was not crowded today. It costs to get in in-season. And, walking around Lake Nummy after hiking, I noticed a beach that would have life guards in the summer. I passed a couple of camp grounds, so I will keep this on the camping list as well.

Ticks: 0

Blazes:

Hiked: 2/19/2022

Penn State Forest

Park Site

Trail Map – There are no marked trails. I hiked roads, though they were just as good as trails. Bring a GPS, because there are unmarked side roads and trails.

Hike Distance – 8.86 miles

Trails – (roads, in this case) Jenkins Road, Penn Place Road, Cabin Road, Sooy Road, Chatsworth Road, Stave Road, Lost Lane Road

My Map:

It was cloudy all day. It rained for a few minutes, but not enough to break out the jacket, and only two times as I can remember. When I left for the trailhead it was 49 degrees. During the hike I saw it in the mid 50s, and when I returned home, it got above 60. So much for December.

After doing the hike with the State Forest service a couple of weeks ago, I realized I wanted to explore more of the Pine Barrens. Penn State Forest seemed as good as any place to start. Bear in mind, there really are not trails here (though you can find them – they appear to be unmarked.) The roads were my trail. Most were sandy, a couple of the sugar sand variety. Some of the smaller roads would have been difficult to navigate with a car. I only saw a couple of other people the entire time here, most were drivers, no hikers.

This hike is in my copy of 50 Hikes in New Jersey (second edition,) I did it backwards of that hike. My goal was to find Bear Swamp Hill and see the Pygmy Pines.

I parked next to Oswego Lake, and explored it for a few minutes before taking off. The wind was pretty strong, but it was relatively warm.

Just before embarking on the road I found these large Birch Polypore.

And then I was off. There isn’t much elevation in the Pine Barrens and I would be on “roads” so I knew I would cover ground more quickly. Looking at my splits, it looks like 20 minute miles, which doesn’t happen often.

I get asked what it’s like hiking in the Pine Barrens. Here’s a typical view (on a cloudy late Fall day.)

Pitch Pine, Scrub Pine, Cedars, Oak trees make up most of the Pine Barrens. But don’t let this picture of a “typical” view fool you, there’s lots of beauty in the Pines, and finding it is the fun part.

Here’s a picture of the typical roads I traversed, in this case it is Jenkins Road.

On a cloudy day, color is easy to spot.

Before I came to my turn (Penn Place) there was a junction. The road to the right leads to an old Civilian Conservation Corps Camp, which I’ve read planted many of the groves in the area. I did not check the camp out.

About a hundred yards down the road, I noticed it was getting darker. The wind started picking up. I didn’t notice rain, but all of a sudden there was a loud rumbling that was getting louder and louder. Great, I thought, this is how the Jersey Devil gets me.

Nope.

It took me a minute to get my heart back in my chest, and by the time I got the camera out, the truck was by me. I saw three of them before turning off Jenkins road. I have no idea where they were coming from or where they were headed. That was the last of the noise for the entire day. I went on undaunted.

At one point I came across this locked “cabinet” for lack of better description. The US Geological Society has set up wells where they measure water levels and content; and I just happened to come across one.

Sooy Road is probably the “biggest” road that goes through the forest, though bear in mind it’s all sand. Eventually, I found the turn from Sooy road to Bear Swamp Hill. The road up is steep in some sections, even though max elevation peaked at 160 feet. Parts of the road were paved. It later dawned on me I could have driven all the way to (and up) Bear Swamp Hill. But what fun is that? At the top of the hill is a “parking lot” which is not what I was expecting. To my right was a rhododendron tunnel which looked interesting. And, it went further uphill.

At the top were the remains of the Bear Swamp Hill Firetower – which is what I was looking for. And rather then write out what occurred here, I’ll let the picture speak.

Here is what is left.

I was tempted to try and find the crash site. But A) it would have taken quite a while, B) since the tower is gone, my guess is the wreckage is gone too, and C) I would be trekking into the swamp. If that wreckage exists, feel free to leave a comment.

After descending I took Sooy up to Chatsworth, then turned onto Stave Road; where it proceeded to rain pretty hard. Fortunately it did not rain long. Along Stave Road, you come up to the Spring Hill Plains and the Pygmy Pines it contains. You could see the difference in trees, but it was more noticeable when I turned onto Lost Lane Road.

(The trees in the background are the Pygmies)

Eventually I left the plains and headed back into the taller Pitch and Scrub Pines. In this picture, I tried to capture the edge of the plains. The shorter trees (and the plains) are to the left, while the taller trees start to appear to the right.

The effect is much better live.

Here is Lost Lane Road deep in the Pines.

Fires occur naturally in the Pine Barrens, and they are good for the environment. I remember reading about a particularly big file in Penn State Forest just recently, and evidence was all around.

Just before reaching the car, I passed a really cool and dense Cedar swamp. The trees were really close together and it looked foreboding deep in the forest.

This was a fun hike, I almost wish I had a forest ranger with me to learn more. While it was eerily quiet in the forest, I thought this might make a nice hike with a small amount of snow on the ground and in the trees. The hike would probably be silent. Definitely a hike for another day.

Ticks: 0

Blazes: (none, I did find two “road signs” though)

Hiked: 12/11/2021

Norvin Green State Park – Wyanokie Torne and Osio Rock

Park Site

Trail Map – The map isn’t 100%. There’s a new trail, blue with black dots, that routes a steep section of the Hewitt Butler trail. The Hewitt Butler has been re-routed. If you stay on blue, you won’t miss any junctions.

Hike Distance: 3.09 miles

Trails: Hewitt Butler (blue), Torne (red)

Mountains: Wyanokie Torne

My Map:

It started out bright and sunny, but clouds moved in for most of the day. Knowing that I might not get out for a couple of weeks I wanted to do one more hike without adding much driving. I knew this would be short, but not having to drive much made up for that. I parked in the Otterhole parking lot, and snagged the last legal space.

I took the Hewitt Butler up, and the Torne down. Hewitt Butler is a lot of climbing, not necessarily a bad thing. On the way up, I came to a good-sized rock, and I didn’t think this guy was going to let me pass.

Both trails were really nice to walk. The trails were either typical Jersey rocks, or nice and wide, flat, with soft dirt.

One thing I was looking forward to finding was the Stone Living Room, a Weird NJ attraction. I’ve read about this in numerous issues and didn’t realize it was right off the Hewitt Butler. You’ll know when you come to an open area and there is a cairn right by some bushes. Push through the bushes and their is a small trail that leads right to the Stone Living Room.

I sat for a bit.

The view from the Stone Living Room is pretty darned good too.

A little further down the trail you’ll come to a large rock with a stone bench on it. From here you can see New York City, probably better without leaves on the trees or some of the haze.

New York City was a lot more prominent with polarized sunglasses on.

Staying on Hewitt Butler, you will come to an unmarked junction (at least, on the official map.) Hewitt Butler goes left, the original trail goes straight. The original trail has a steep descent, while the re-routed Hewitt Butler is a little more gradual. (There’s still one steep section.) They meet back up, just before the junction with Red. Cross Red.

After a steep climb, there will be a really big rock off to the right. I thought this was Osio Rock, as I didn’t see anything else around. And I knew that there were 360 degree views from the top. I wasn’t scrambling to the top of this, and I hoped there was really more.

I needn’t have worried. Further down the trail you’ll come to a small scramble, then you’ll know you’re on Osio Rock. Views all around. Except for some trees right on the top, it’s virtually 360 degrees.

I stuck around for a while, I had it to myself; and I knew the hike back was not as long. Again, you could just make out New York City. Continuing on the Hewitt Butler trail, you have to scramble off the rock, and it wasn’t the easiest. From here, the trail sharply descends. Even though I saw no one on the trails today, I came across a spot where someone had dumped water bottles – which got packed up, but still.

The cool thing about these mushrooms is that they are growing INSIDE the tree.

Once you finish descending off Osio Rock, the trail levels out for much of the way back to the lot.

At the junction with the Torne trail (red), you’ll see a stream on your left. Don’t bother crossing, it appears the Hewitt Butler used to continue south; but the trail is now closed.

I took the Torne all the way back to where it initially junctioned with Hewitt Butler. There is one section (right in the middle of the two trails figure eight) where there is a scramble, while on the Torne, that is not the easiest. It’s not high, but I had to pull myself up the rock. That, or I picked the worst way up. After that, it’s a straight shot, and doesn’t take long at all.

Looking to add a little more, I crossed the road where my car was, and headed to the Otterhole. I’ve been to the Otterhole before, but from the other side. There wasn’t as much water this time, but I did find a new trail companion.

And with that, I’ve completed almost all of the trails in Norvin Green. This is truly a fabulous place to hike; it really has it all: climbs, views, water, long trails. It can get crowded, especially at the “attractions,” I got lucky today and didn’t see anyone on my section of trails.

Ticks: 0

Blazes:

Hiked: 8/7/2021

Long Pond Ironworks State Park / Norvin Green State Forest – Horse Pond Mountain, Lake Sonoma, Overlook Rock

Park Site(s): Long Pond Ironworks State Park – Norvin Green State Forest

Trail Map(s): Long Pond Ironworks State Park – Norvin Green State Forest – Revised trails

Hike Distance: 8.19 miles

Trails: (in order) Burnt Meadow (green), Highlands (teal), Stonetown Circular (red triangle), Lake Sonoma (orange), Manaticut (yellow), Overlook Rock (white), Tapawingo (blue), Burnt Meadow (green)

Mountain(s): Horse Pond Mountain, Mount Harrison, Long Pond Hill

My Map:

What a day. Temperatures were in the low 80s with lots of sunshine. I had been to Norvin Green State Forest before, but I hiked the southern trails. And, I had (unknowingly) been to Long Pond Ironworks State Park before when I hiked the Stonetown Circular trail. I ended up hiking a little over a mile on the Stonetown Circular trail today and it was nice to see a familiar section of the trail.

Of note, there are not as many pictures as normal. I had read that this hike would be one of solitude, except around Lake Sonoma. However, when I reached the pull-out parking lot, it was already packed. Luckily, I found a space. But I would soon learn that a large group was meeting up for a hike. And they were loud, and not making any effort to hide that fact. I took off and hoped they would stay behind. However, they caught me at the top of Mount Harrison. They took a break, as their drill sergeant really pushed them up to the top. I took off, and thought I heard them once more, but never saw them again.

From where I parked I took Burnt Meadow up to Horse Pond Mountain. Horse Pond Mountain has been on my list a while so it was good to find a good route to get here. I had heard the views of Monksville Reservoir were impressive, and they were; however, there was lots of foliage And I couldn’t see as much as I would have liked.

From there, it was south on the Highlands trail.

The Highlands Trail goes straight up Mount Harrison, no switchbacks, no real curves; just straight up hill. I remembered when I hiked the Stonetown Circular trail that Mount Harrison would be the fifth peak you climbed. And it was brutal. It was no less brutal going up the Highlands trail. I stopped for a good couple of minutes to get something to drink and cool down. It was neat being in a familiar place and knowing this short section of the trail.

There were lots of mushrooms and fungus about. I found it odd to find these Ghost Pipes in broad daylight.

Not one, but TWO cars off the trail in Jersey. Where else. (Of course, I had seen both of these before. Still.)

Just before meeting the Lake Sonoma trail, I went through a small wetlands and almost stepped on this guy.

The Lake Sonoma trail meets the Stonetown Circular trail at a section of Burnt Meadow Road that is closed to vehicular traffic. I remember this junction from my last hike, and it was off into the woods instead of continuing on the Stonetown Circular trail.

The Lake Sonoma trail headed over a large hill. There were portions of the trail where I got the distinct feeling I was the first person on the trail in weeks. A couple of times the trail just disappeared. Excuse my finger in this picture.

I just kept walking towards blazes, and it all seemed to work out. This happened a couple of times, and I thought I would be covered with ticks. (Spoiler, I wasn’t.) Most of the berries I saw were past their prime.

Eventually, I made my way to Lake Sonoma; where I thought I would run into more people as the lake is more easily accessible from a lot close by. However, I didn’t see a sole.

There was a nice breeze by the lake, so I hung around a bit. After, it was up to Overlook Rock. Where the Overlook Rock Trail is joined by the Manaticut Trail, you will come to a sizable rock in front of you, a little off trail. Scramble up, it’s only about four feet or so…but then you will have a huge view. The rock drops down quite a bit and is really quite big – but you don’t see that from the trail. Lunch was served here.

After lunch, it was north on the Overlook Rock and Tapawingo trail. A word of caution here….there were spiderwebs EVERYWHERE. I can’t tell you how many times I walked through them. Fortunately, a park ranger got one of my attempts on camera.

No, I didn’t actually run into the spike trap, but I could have.

One complaint I had is that the Tapawingo trail isn’t the best marked in this section. I know that the NY NJ Trail Conference is building some trails and re-blazing others. But there are a couple of spots that are downright confusing. There are significant blow downs in the area, and one or two areas that are vastly overgrown. More than once I needed to pull out GPS.

Just before merging with Burnt Meadow (which led to the car) there was a large rock that the trail paralleled and eventually climbed up onto – with very nice views for the short walk.

After finishing the hike I stopped at the Long Pond Ironworks State Park Museum which is run by the Friends of Long Pond Ironworks. Secretly, I was hoping they had vending machine to get something to drink. They didn’t. But the museum is neat and I definitely learned something about the area, the history, and certainly who many of the trails were named after.

I hope to come back and see the more historical side to Long Pond Ironworks State Park.

Ticks: 0 (And I’m still shocked by that)

Blazes:

Hiked: 7/24/2021

Worthington State Forest / Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area – Raccoon Ridge

[I took a picture of the trail kiosk, but for some reason it wasn’t saved.]

Park Site

Trail Map: here, but I used map 120 from this set.

Hike Distance: 12.1 miles

Trails: Garvey Springs (orange), Appalachian (White), Buckwood (turquoise), Coppermine (red), Kaiser Spur (blue/red), Kaiser (blue)

Mountains: Mount Mohican

My map:

Rain was supposed to come in later in the day (it didn’t) so I thought I would try and beat the rain, knowing I probably won’t get out next week. There were a couple of times that dark clouds hung around for a few minutes, but I didn’t get wet. And it was an otherwise perfect day with temperatures in the high 70s with low humidity.

To get to my starting point, take the last exit in New Jersey on Route 80 (heading west), and wait at the light. It’s a long one, as it controls the portion of Old Mine Road that is one lane. Incidentally, as I drove by the Mt. Tammany lot, I could see that it was bedlam already just before 9:00 a.m. I parked in the Douglas lot, which is after the driveway to the Worthington office – about four miles from the light on Old Mine Road.

To get up on the ridge I took the Garvey Springs trail which is short (1.2 miles) but steep; only leveling out where it joins the Rockcores trail briefly. As the trail climbs there is a nice creek to your right.

It rained the night before, so I would see all kinds of mushrooms and flora.

Once Garvey Springs junctions with the Appalachian Trail, I took a right to head to Sunfish Pond, which I hadn’t been to in about 30 years. I took the Buckwood trail to a rock outcropping that had great views of the pond – and you could see where people had walked down to the pond to swim. After climbing Garvey Springs, it certainly would have been refreshing to jump in.

I rested there for a good twenty minutes. It was back to the AT to head towards Raccoon Ridge.

Both sides of the trail were lined with all kinds of berry bushes. I admit, I helped myself to some big fat blueberries.

You get an idea of the quantity of berries in this picture:

Raccoon Ridge had some great views, both north and south. South overlooked the reservoirs, and north had distant views of the Delaware River.

After hiking off Raccoon Ridge you enter the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation area. My plan was to reach Catfish Pond Gap (where I was two weeks ago) and take the Coppermine trail to make a loop.

As I mentioned, it was a great day, and I was passed by numerous through-hikers (some multiple times) as they made their way from Georgia to Maine. They all commented on the great views, but all mentioned the rocks – all thinking they were done with the rocks after leaving Pennsylvania.

All the way to Catfish Pond Gap there were great views of Lower Yards Creek Reservoir.

The trail off the ridge was steep heading into the gap, and I was glad I was not coming back up this section of the trail.

I took a left onto the Coppermine trail. After a little way I found the largest fungi I had ever seen.

Right after the above picture was taken I was approached by a couple heading the opposite direction. They asked how far I was going, because they had just seen three bears! A mother and two cubs. The bears immediately bolted into the woods. They saw the bears beyond where I was turning, but now I kept my eyes open more than normal. (Spoiler – I never did see them, it would have been cool.)

I took the Upper Kaiser Spur trail to connect from Coppermine to Kaiser (I would have come to the bear sighting location if I continued on Coppermine. I thought about it, but my route was long to begin with.) While the spur trail is short (less than a quarter of a mile) there were three stream crossings. And the rhododendron were just starting to bloom.

The Kaiser trail is only about a mile (from this point – back to the AT) and mercifully is a long slow gradual incline; nothing steep like coming down the AT to the gap, or Garvey Spring.

Taking the AT back (towards Garvey Spring) you cross back into Worthington State Forest.

From there it was back to Garvey Spring and the descent down. This was a long hike (longer than I normally do) and I was looking forward to getting back to the car. The descent was grueling, especially late in the afternoon.

Garvey Spring is surreal as there are times you fell like you are in a sea of ferns. Ferns as far as you can see.

This was a great hike, with a near miss on bears. After having two successive trips in the Kittatinys, I’m ready for something a little different.

Ticks: 5 (There was lots of high grass. Two ticks were found on my pack.)

Blazes:

Hiked: 7/4/2021

Stokes State Forest – Culver’s Gap to Sunrise Mountain

Park Site

Trail Map: park map, and NY/NJ Trail Conference map

Hike Distance: 10.68 miles

Trails: Appalachian

My Map:

The day before this hike we received a storm that was biblical in nature. It wasn’t long, but it was hard with lots of cloud to ground lightning. I didn’t think much of it until I got to the trailhead parking, and wondered if I was going to be in for a lot of mud. I needn’t have worried; while there were a couple of spots that were muddy, it was mostly soft dirt – which made walking extremely pleasant. Rocks were wet; but with temperatures reaching into the 90s, by lunchtime most everything was dry.

This picture doesn’t really capture what the forest looked like. It was early in the morning, with the sun out, the leaves were still wet, and it sparkled everywhere.

From the Culver’s Gap trailhead parking lot, there is a steep climb to get up onto the ridge.

There were lots of these guys scampering around, apparently enjoying the moist forest floor. Once I reached the ridge, I saw less and less of them.

More Mountain Laurel was blooming.

Once on the ridge there is a great view southwest.

The ridge is pleasant, with a few ascents and descents, but nothing serious until you come to Sunrise Mountain. Note, Sunrise Mountain is the second highest mountain in New Jersey. (Sort by elevation.) The Appalachian trail on the ridge makes for a great walk; I did see a bunch of section hikers during this time.

The first point of interest you will come to is the Culver’s Gap Lookout Tower, originally known as the Normanook Fire Tower. You can climb the stairs, but unless it’s manned you can’t get into the top. I didn’t even consider it.

There’s a great view out towards Blue Mountain.

There are three trail junctions before Sunrise Mountain, and plenty of views, some probably better after the foliage has fallen. There are a couple of streams to rock hop, and at least one section with small boardwalks.

Throughout the whole trail I encountered lots of millipedes; way more than I am accustomed to seeing.

After a small rock scramble you will come to the top of Sunrise Mountain. A small concrete cairn holds the summit disc.

Here’s a shot looking south:

It was hot at this time, and I had lunch on a bench in the pavilion.

While there, I met a section hiker who was hiking the Appalachian trail in New Jersey. He mentioned that he was in a shelter the night before when the storm hit, but he heard from hikers that were still on the ridge. They said it was more than frightening.

The walk back was pretty uneventful other than it was oppressively hot.

Puddingstone – I didn’t expect to see this

As this was an out and back, I was essentially retracing my steps. On the way TO Sunrise Mountain I passed a small spur trail, but I couldn’t see where it led. On the way back, I decided to investigate. It looked like it led to a viewpoint on the NY/NJ Trail conference map. Sure enough, it did. Probably the best view of the day. I apologize for the picture, it was in the 90s at the time, and I was beat.

I hadn’t been in Stokes State Forest before, and I think the next time I come I may hike south on the Appalachian Trail. Or, I may backpack to the shelter for a short trip. The lot was packed when I arrived at 8:45, though there were still spots available. When I returned to my car, the lot was fairly empty.

Ticks: 0

Blazes:

Hiked: 6/5/2021

Ramapo Mountain State Forest – Ruins and Wanaque Ridge Trail

Park Site

Trail Map: Official, and revised NY/NJ Trail conference map (I used this)

Hike Distance: 7.32 Miles

Trails: Ramapo Lake Spur (blue/black), Castle Loop (white), Cannonball (red circle w/ white C), Wanaque Ridge (orange), Ramapo Lake Loop (blue)

My Map:

Last week was a short hike. I wanted to clock some miles this week; however the holiday weekend didn’t look good. I happened to have Friday off, and waking up earlier than I wanted to and seeing the sun out, I decided to hit the trails today, as I didn’t think I would get to for the rest of the weekend. (As I type this, temperatures have plummeted and are barely cracking 50.)

I’ve read about this area in the past, and the ruins of Van Slyke castle are pretty famous. The ruins and the Wanaque Ridge trail were on my agenda for the day. And while it started out sunny with great temperatures, I knew that bad weather would be rolling in. I’m glad I went, and yes, I beat the bad weather.

500 feet in, on the Ramapo Lake spur trail, I was greeted with:

The NY/NJ Trail conference does a great job maintaining trails here, and you can see the stream crossing, though the stream was pretty low.

The trail to the lake is used heavily. It’s wide in many spots, and there is plenty of evidence of its use. I picked up lots of garbage in this area, but couldn’t begin to grab all of it. As you hike away from the lake you will see less and less people, with the exception of up by the ruins.

The lake is gorgeous, with numerous places to sit and take a gander; including a dam I would cross at the end of the hike.

Lots of great foliage, though it was about a week early for the Mountain Laurel – I suspect next weekend will be full bloom.

After reaching the lake, I took the Castle Loop trail up to the ruins. This trail is popular (for the ruins) but also has the steepest grades. I completely passed the junction with the Cannonball trail (which I would be taking later) on the way up. There’s nothing too crazy, a lot of rocks, but, to be expected.

I came to stairs, which I hadn’t read about.

Turning around at the top of the stairs gave me this great view.

You hike through some bushes, and the ruins open up right in front of you.

It’s really impressive what still stands. I hiked past the ruins to see the tower and came across this view, looking west, towards Wanaque Reservoir.

After this you pass the old pool, and shortly after that, the tower.

This would be the highest elevation of the hike. It is unfortunate the amount of graffiti that exists; however, considering the castle was burned by vandals it is not surprising. In the doorway to the tower was a solitary Red Columbine.

I saw lots of other critters on this hike, at one point I thought I heard a bear in the undergrowth, turns out it was only a gopher. I almost stepped on:

Coming down the Castle Loop, I found the junction with the Cannonball trail, the blazes were completely missing from the other side of the tree. All Trails has it marked, but it’s difficult to find on the way up. There’s an area by a stream with tons of ferns.

Up on the ridge that the Wanaque Ridge trail follows I was reminded of the climb on Bearfort Ridge. There are a few spots where it is probably not more than 15 yards wide. There are some great viewpoints, of which, I made use of for lunch.

At one point a viewpoint opened up looking east towards the ruins of Van Slyke castle.

Clouds started to roll in on the way down from the ridge and I could feel it starting to cool off. Keep the map handy because there are some areas where there are unmarked trails – it almost looks like the original trail has been re-routed. After crossing the pipeline cut for the second time, the trail ascends on stairs, thank the trail maintainers for these.

This was the perfect hike for the day, and given that I just made it out before the rain I was even happier. There are trails in the northern part of the forest which I will have to come back and explore. As I was there on a Friday, the lot was not too crowded with cars, but I bet this gets packed on weekends.

Ticks: 0

Blazes: