TJ Karakowski's Blog (25)

Except when you get back to your car and have a $71 ticket for parking there after the park closed! URGH! I was literally carrying out beer bottles and garbage I picked up on the quick 6 miler (office to campsite #7 and back) on the Cushetunk and told that cop that I was glad he ticketed us while I was out there cleaning up the park! He didn't appreciate my trail maintenance apparently! I just assumed the park was open till dusk, but it's only open until 6pm in March. Lesson learned I guess.…

I filmed and edited this stuff on my iPhone 5c and posted when in towns. I lost my NJ hiking credentials to log on, along the trail, so I never updated here.  Sorry guys. 

The smartphone question I posted a year a half ago, was the start of an amazing relationship with my iPhone. 

Filmed, edited  and posted End Sept to Mid Oct 2014. PA, MD and…

Happy 2015 NJ Hikers! Now that I've left our amazing state for an extro-spective look, I can report back here that in fact, NJ is the best state. 

I completed my AT Sobo (FYI = Sobo means Southbound) thru hike on the Winter Solstice (12/21). In dismal Georgia. I plan on posting here all my thoughts about that experience over the months to come.. I'm working on my flickr, youtube and white blaze, but NJ Hiking here is my home base. If any one has questions, please ask. No parameters.…

SOme highlights of these 300 miles!

Hi NJ Hiking Gang. I haven't given up posting here - I've been in the woods hiking! Started a Southbound thru hike attempt on July 9th, and just recently (9/3) entered Massachusetts. 600 miles down, 1580 to go!

Here's some highlights of Maine. It's no Jersey of course!

Tom

Great park. Perhaps not the best day hiking spot, but good campground and Saturday night fun at the observatory.

Headed up to Stokes for the 3rd annual “May Days” cabin outing on Friday, May 2^nd. This year I had bagged my 1^st choice -  cabin #6. It’s a great waterfront location with a neighbor on only one side and a nice picnic table/fire ring backyard. The only issue at #6 is waterfront access which is very swampy and unuseable, but that’s pretty much true of all the cabin sites.

I was joined by my Dad(TK), Uncle Jim(JK) and cousin Will(WK). JK and WK had…

March was dubstep, April is ragtime. I'll be doing spoken word by the fall! Great hike, lots of views and lots of history. And hopefully the end of cold weather camping for 6 months.

I'd be lying if I said I enjoyed this hike. March is my least favorite month of all.  Next up is Harriman Easter Weekend.

Managed to get out the last weekend of February to south Jersey and escape the snow!…

Happy 2014 NJ Hikers. Perhaps a few of you read the long-winded blog posts that I put up in 2013. New year, new agenda. I would like to commit to making 2014 the year of the hiking "Vlog". I'm not looking to make these informative really (titles, places, maps) but concentrate on getting good shots and better editing, along with making up the music and perhaps trying different styles with the vids. Of course I'm happy to engage in any questions or comments (about the hiking itself or the…

Hi NJ Hikers- If you're bored at work, here's a video I made of hiking the AT through our lovely Garden State back in September of this year. Be sure and change the quality to 720 (lower right hit gearbox and select 720) -TJK

When I got into this backpacking thing this year, I never thought it’d be anything more than a summer time hobby to get out, shoot some photography and get some exercise.  Turns out though, that I enjoy the planning, physical challenge, and quite honestly, the solitude, so much that I can’t wait until next May to get out there. In fact I now see winter backpacking as a new chapter with it’s own challenges and rewards.…

Back in June I mentioned that I wanted to give back some labor after seeing a chain gang out there working on that hot and humid Saturday. Well today was that day (minus the hot humid weather!)

After I completed my NJAT hike in September I contacted the NYNJTC about volunteering for some work, and - once you offer free labor, you start getting emails. The West…

I originally planned to head out to Sussex County (10/5-10/6 2013) for Millbrook Days with my Old Man and tent overnight at Worthington but with the Fed shutdown causing the cancellation of Millbrook Days and closing down Old Mine Road we decided to check out Raccoon Ridge and Swartswood SP instead.

Hit the AT going south at Camp Road (basically the Mohican Outdoor Center) on Saturday afternoon around 11:30. Beautiful day, slightly humid, but otherwise good fall hiking weather. This…

Hitting hotel in DWG, PA tonight and getting started at 6am tomorrow. Goal tomorrow night is Catfish tower (about 12-13 miles). Hope to hit Greenwood Lake Next Saturday.

All my stuff - minus some food I mailed to High Point.…

Video comp of my outdoorsy summer here in Jersey

I headed out to Harriman (via the train) on Saturday 8/24 intending to do a 13-15 mile overnight loop again. Met some fellow hikers (June and Nilly) on the train out of Secaucus and we started talking about different spots in Harriman, hiking equipment,  etc. Well turns out we got so caught up in our conversation we missed our train stop! Once we realized our dilemma we asked the conductor and she advised that if we got off we’d have to wait until 3 o’clock for a train going back in the…

I decided to push and get to the shelter so I could get the pack off, tent up and look for water. The Conklin (White) hit the Yellow (Suffering Bear) and I quickly turned right.

The map showed another ‘Egg” over here. At this point I’d had it with the &*%^ eggs at Harriman! Twenty minutes later, and I was yet to see anything that looked like an “egg”.  Forty minutes later and I was somehow in a swampy area cursing to myself -  definitely  the lowest I’d felt out…

I cheated on our lovely garden state, and crept just over the border to Harriman for a 14 mile overnight loop on Saturday 7/27/13. Took the train from Rahway up to Tuxedo and started hiking around 10:45am, with the NYC crowd. Other than a previous excursion up to the Bear Mountain a few years back, I’ve never explored Harriman, and really had no idea what to expect. My goal was to hike 7-8 miles to Stone Memorial Shelter and return Sunday, hopefully in time to catch a 12…