New Jersey Photo Album

I was thinking that might be another pond that's a hike up off the notorious Clinton Road. Clinton Road is off rte 23 up at the end of Green Pond Road, which connects to rte 80. That road is in Weird NJ website as a haunted road. All kinds of stories about it. There's a nice running stream that has a little waterfall with centuries old eroded rocks in it; nice place to take a dip in the hot summer. Across the road from that is a place we used to call "washing machine lake. There's a small bridge that goes under the road and the stream drops off 50-60' into a basin. We went down there once and realized a lot of people had dropped stuff off that bridge into it, including a washing machine Right next to it is a jumping off place that's pretty dangerous. I think they chase people out of there these days. All kinds of legends of ghost cars and evil murderous hillbillys up that way
Another cool place is in Montville off Boonton Road, a little hike and you come to Tripod Rock, a massive boulder that sits on top of three smaller rocks. They think it was placed there by glaciers. You can crawl under it if you dare. You could see the Twin Towers from that hike before 2001.

I wonder if them thar Hillbillies hang out with the Piney's from the Barrens??? Hell, I'd drink with all them.

Sure are a lot of good hikes in this neck of the woods. Use to be some good apple jack stills too

Fred, I added some annotations to the picture so you know the juxtabout location of Sunfish Pond. It's up on the ridge bout four miles North East of the Water Gap. I'd guess I was about 12 -14 miles to the South East when I snapped the pictures. Neat thing about this vista is that the sun sets right in the Water Gap on the summer solstice.

VigIIPeaBurner - really good map and picture view there! I never even heard of wind gap, looks like 33 goes through it.

Yeah Vig, it's one of the prettiest places I've ever been to & trust me, I've been around Thanx for the pix & map

Sometime in the mid to late 1950's I spent a night camping with a Boy Scout troop at Sunfish pond. Don't remember much about it other than being scared to death of sleeping outside. I was younger than a teenager at the time.

Since you are showing nice pictures of New Jersey. I thought you would want something to compare them too. Here is a horrible eye sore that shows up in Hoboken Terminal on a regular basis.

Yanche wrote:Sometime in the mid to late 1950's I spent a night camping with a Boy Scout troop at Sunfish pond. Don't remember much about it other than being scared to death of sleeping outside. I was younger than a teenager at the time.

Interesting viewpoints about hiking in NJ...

My gf and I maintain sections of the Appalachian Trail in NJ, and Sunfish Pond in particular is her section. It is one of the most beautiful, though I can honestly say, as short as the AT is in NJ, most sections are quite nice. Some have better views, others varied terrain, and then some downright challenging depending on the time of year and weather.

There's a real nice hike up from Route 94 north in Vernon.."Stairway to Heaven", as well as the Vernon Boardwalk section between Route 565 and Canal Road. My own section is from Canal Road to Route 94, which compared to other sections is probably the most boring in that it simply cuts through lots of grasslands, which are a PIA to keep clear. Nonetheless, as you come out of the forest section, before the cow field, you have a great view of the mountain you'll be climbing once you cross of Route 94.

I'll have to open another backup drive to share some photos, but I take many and regularly share them on FB if anyone's interested to share a friendship there...or simply to view some of my other photos posted on two sites. The main is listed under my profile on this site.

NICE JJ, much appreciated and I'm not even FROM Jersey

Thanks for sharing JJ. Nice early spring pics from that section of the trail.

Though it often gets a bad rap from those who fly into Newark Airport and don't know anything more than the view they have of a congested urban landscape, New Jersey has been home and a place to happily return to for 60 years. I lived in Miami during the 70s while at the University of Miami and beyond, and can't imagine living in Florida ever again, despite the fact that there are some incredibly beautiful wilderness areas.

What it lacks that Northerners enjoy every year...is Autumn, Winter, Spring....and hills and mountains.

That being said, my girlfriend who lives in a suburb of Philadelphia spends a lot of time visiting with me in NW Jersey...as well as hiking the trails throughout. This past Summer, after camping in our small toyhauler at Pleasant Acres Campground in Wantage, NJ...she purchased an elder couple's mobile home overlooking the countryside... Though it is a seasonal site, and water is turned off after the middle of October, we could stay up there for a weekend if we chose. In this case, we simply were visiting to pick up a few items and I decided to take some photos of the site and surrounding views.

I'll make a point of located other season images from other drives sometime soon...no denying it, NJ is beautiful in the winter, spring, summer and fall!

Last Winter my son and I backpacked a couple of weekends as a shakedown for his imminent hike on the Appalachian Trail starting in Georgia at the end of January. It had been quite a long time since I had backpacked, but one weekend we camped in our one man tents, and the other at the High Point Shelter north of Route 23 at High Point, NJ.

The hike itself was not very challenging, but spending a night while temps dipped into the teens was a bit. Still, we enjoyed the camaraderie of father and son sharing the wilderness once again, and it is a memory I will forever hold dear. If you haven't shared such an experience with another family member or close friend, winter is indeed the time to try it out..

We were also testing a SOLO wood stove I purchased for him to hike with. Instead of hauling fuel on the trail, he simply needed to obtain some small kindling to boil water and heat up meals...a perfect addition to anyone's survival gear.

Nice photos! Thanks for posting them.

Yeah well done!

MA is the same way - some really beautiful areas ..... ruined by politics, a few cities, and *censored* drivers. It's nice to get "out there" and pretend your somewhere else.

Wood'nCoal wrote:Nice photos! Thanks for posting them.

You're welcome...glad to share the beauty of the state.

Since Sunfish Pond has been mentioned previously, and is a reasonable hike up the AT from the Delaware Water Gap parking lot, thought I'd share some random shots I took a few years ago. It is definitely more beautiful in person, and a welcome place to cool off on a hot summer hike...just stay clear of the AT Ridgerunners...they will enforce the No Swimming Rule.

If push comes to shove, tell them I told you to cool off...and they can take it up with me. No, I doubt have any more clout, only I have maintained most of that trail with my gf for over 8 years...and when it's hot, I too cool off close to shore. If you're looking to camp, then please do so about a mile south at the Backpacker's Campsite where there is a latrine, bear boxes and strong wires for hanging your backpacks above a bear's reach...which for those who are not aware, do exist and can be a nuisance if they think you have food.