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Terrace Pond North – Ridge Vistas and around the Pond - 6/22/14

This is one of those hikes where there are so many excellent vistas that they almost get old.

Almost.

And that's before arriving at Terrace Pond, one of the prettiest hike destinations in the state.

The trail starts through a rhododendron tunnel and then heads uphill to arrive at the first viewpoint in just over a half mile.

The trail…

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Added by njHiking.com on June 27, 2014 at 3:00pm — No Comments

Bearfort Ridge to Surprise Lake - Hemlock Forest and Ridge Views - 6/14/14

Bearfort Ridge is one of our favorite hikes because it’s consistently enjoyable.

We’re the first to admit that even some of the best routes have some boring stretches or areas that lack a little in the scenery department that you overlook because of a great destination.

Not this route.

Hike through a beautiful hemlock forest on…

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Added by njHiking.com on June 18, 2014 at 5:29pm — No Comments

Norvin Green – Panoramic Views and Waterfalls - 6/1/14

IMG_0032 For detailed hike directions, maps, GPX, and photos, visit our “Norvin Green State Forest” page.

Norvin Green is one of the best areas in the state for hiking, in our opinion – it has a network of rugged trails with plenty of expansive views and some nice waterfalls for payoff.

We've done this route many times, but not for about five years so it was time to hit it up again. First…

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Added by njHiking.com on June 5, 2014 at 12:58pm — No Comments

Musconetcong Gorge – Pine Run Waterfall Loop - 5/25/14

For us, a holiday weekend means heading in the opposite direction of Jersey's beach traffic. We’d just had a lot of rain so we went west on Rt. 78 to check out Musconetcong Gorge’s cascades.

We hadn’t been since 2009, and planned on doing a similar but longer route by just going further on Highlands to Staats Rd. and then backtracking to the Switchback trail…

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Added by njHiking.com on May 29, 2014 at 12:09pm — No Comments

Jockey Hollow - Grand Loop and Blue Trail - 5/4/14

We only had Sunday available to hike so – of course – the weather threatened to be iffy. So we opted to hit up Jockey Hollow where we could get a decent hike in but it’s only just over an hour drive away.

The park was turning greener but wasn’t in full bloom yet. Most people were jogging or walking dogs on the park roads, and we only passed a handful of…

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Added by njHiking.com on May 9, 2014 at 10:48am — No Comments

Beaver Brook Trail to Lost Lake - 4/13/14

After poking around some older pages in the site, I decided Beaver Brook and Lost Lake would be good to revisit.

Having a site that contains your prior hikes often comes in handy when trying to decide where to go. We hadn't been since 2009, when our hike had been cut short by a bear (“…

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Added by njHiking.com on April 22, 2014 at 8:55pm — No Comments

Apshawa Preserve - Butler Reservoir, Waterfalls, Ruins - 4/6/14

A new trail map for Apshawa came out last September, and while it's not unusual for trails to change, there are some huge differences since we last hiked this in Nov. 2010 ("Apshawa Preserve").

In addition to some changes in route configurations, a few trail colors have changed (the trail in the beginning…

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Added by njHiking.com on April 14, 2014 at 11:30am — No Comments

Jakes Branch – Tindey, Swamp, Interpretive Trails - 3/24/14

We had an errand to run in Toms River so afterwards we popped over to Jakes Branch for a hike so as to not waste a drive down.

This park is just a few minutes off the Parkway so it's a convenient stop.

The trail map had been updated since we first hiked it. The Swamp Trail (WHITE) is now shown on the map as well as an Interpretive Trail (GREEN). By…

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Added by njHiking.com on April 14, 2014 at 11:00am — No Comments

Helyar Woods in the Snow - 2/23/14

We had limited time to get outside this weekend, so of course the weather hit 50+ degrees.

Still, we managed to fit in a test of our new snowshoes at a local field to get them adjusted. There were still several inches of icy, crusty, wet, slushy slop that used to be snow but it was enough to get them set up for the next snowfall.

The next day we swung by Helyar Woods for a quick hike. This…

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Added by njHiking.com on February 24, 2014 at 4:30pm — No Comments

Six Mile Run – Red Trail in the Snow - 2/16/14

Ah, more snow.

We decided to hit up Six Mile Run’s Red trail from the Rt. 27 parking lot but arrived to pile of plowed snow and broad expanse of unbroken snow. Hunh.

We drove over to the Jacques Lane lot to see if we could hike without post-holing through deep snow.

The snow appeared to be 18", possibly 24" in spots, and was not as broken and packed down as much as expected.

Red…

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Added by njHiking.com on February 21, 2014 at 5:00pm — No Comments

Merrill Creek Reservoir in the Snow - 2/1/14

IMG_0846 With several inches of snow still on the ground, we decided to head out to Merrill Creek Reservoir.

It was a beautiful winter day with sunny blue skies and nearly 40 degrees – so welcome after all the snow and bitter cold this winter.

We decided to follow the same route as last time - hitting the RED and BLUE trails from the visitor center then make our way over to the Perimeter Trail to circle the reservoir.…

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Added by njHiking.com on February 6, 2014 at 6:13pm — No Comments

Six Mile Run in the Snow - 1/26/14

With several inches of snow still on the ground, we decided to check out the BLUE trail from the Canal Road parking at Six Mile Run Reservoir.

This is a good choice for snow – the trail was well traveled with bootprints, and ski and snowshoe tracks.

The trails are easily managed on ski/snowshoes and the field edges are a nice option when there’s snow.

The…

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Added by njHiking.com on January 29, 2014 at 4:56pm — No Comments

Edwin B. Forsythe NWR - 1/19/14

This park is mainly for birding and photography. The Refuge sits in an active area on the Atlantic Flyway’s flight path, and migratory birds just loooove hanging out there.

I’d looked up the park ages ago and found only a few short trails listed so it was not even on our “to-hike” list as it was too far to drive for a mile hike.

But the park caught my attention again…

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Added by njHiking.com on January 24, 2014 at 12:23pm — 4 Comments

Holmdel Park - 1/12/14

It had been ages since we stopped by Holmdel Park - so long ago that it pre-dates us keeping track in our trail blog.

We hadn’t gone in a long time because this is small park with short trails, where people go for a jog or a stroll. It really falls into the “light hiking” camp.

The hiking is pleasant enough, and varies between packed dirt trail with some…

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Added by njHiking.com on January 17, 2014 at 12:12pm — No Comments

Cheesequake - Green Trail in the Snow, again - 1/6/14

Our area had gotten around 8.5" of snow so we scampered out for a quick hike at Cheesequake before the expected rain was going to wash it away.

We chucked both the snowshoes and the MICROspikes in the car because we weren't sure what we'd need.

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Added by njHiking.com on January 10, 2014 at 4:30pm — No Comments

Wells Mills County Park - 1/1/14

For detailed hike directions, maps, and photos, visit our recently updated Wells Mills page.

We always try to get out and hike on New Year's Day. It's a great way to start the new year – and a good way to shake off the end of the holiday "eating season".

And the, um, wine and cheese from…

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Added by njHiking.com on January 10, 2014 at 4:30pm — No Comments

Shark River Park

Hike along the Shark River and over boardwalks in this Monmouth County park.

4.2 miles. Trail surface is mostly easy, a mix of root-filled-dirt and sandy trails. Minor hills.

River’s Edge trail is rated as challenging but it just follows along the river, and there are a couple of rough-wood stairs… that’s about it. Road noise throughout the…

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Added by njHiking.com on December 19, 2013 at 5:06pm — No Comments

Cheesequake – Green Trail in the Snow - 12/14/13

We decided to grab a quick hike at Cheesequake State Park as the snow started falling on Saturday.

The temperature was somewhere in the 20s but it was beautiful out, sunny and very comfortable.

We just did the Green Trail which is around 3-ish miles. The boardwalk that snakes through the cedar swamp is now finished being re-built, and the trail no longer detours…

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Added by njHiking.com on December 18, 2013 at 12:40pm — No Comments

Palisades – Alpine to Huyler’s Landing

Outstanding views of the NYC skyline while hiking above and below the impressive rock face of the Palisades… with a little Revolutionary War history thrown in for good measure.

5.5 miles, surface ranges from easy path to rocky trail. One decent downhill to the shoreline and then another uphill back to the upper trail, where there is considerable road…

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Added by njHiking.com on December 12, 2013 at 2:26pm — No Comments

Round Valley Recreation Area

Surprisingly rugged workout from a central NJ park, with some views of beautiful Round Valley Reservoir.

The park also has something rather unique in NJ: remote campsites that are accessible only via hiking or paddling.



10.4 miles. Lots of up-n-down hills with a surface that varies between flat, packed dirt to tons of softball-sized rocks… the kind that…

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Added by njHiking.com on December 4, 2013 at 1:49pm — No Comments

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