3 Family Friendly Hikes

Here are three easy and family-friendly hike options to do with kids (or kids-at-heart) to close out the summer or into the fall.

The Batsto Lake Trail in Wharton State Forest is a peaceful loop through the Pine Barrens, offering lakeside views and historic buildings in the Village of Batsto. It is 4.1miles and would take a little more than a hour to complete the loop along sandy paths, bog bridges, and pine needle-covered trails along Batso Lake. Wharton State Forest is the largest piece of land managed by New Jersey State Parks. The area was a regional hub for glass and iron manufacturing during the mid-1700s to mid-1800s.

The Fairy Trail at South Mountain Reservation in Essex County is a short and magical walk perfect for kids and curious adults. This is an easy half-mile path inhabited by fairies who have built homes along the trail. The rules help to introduce kids to the principles of Leave No Trace.

Watchung Reservation's White Trail (Union County) goes over gentle terrain with scenic views and historical landmarks. At 2.7 miles, it will take you about an hour, depending on how many stops you make. Of course, like most of these hikes, you can extend the hike by continuing on the white or purple and yellow trails or turn back. Information and directions at Watchung Reservation White Trail. The Reservation also has the Trailside Museum and other trails to explore.

Mills Reservation: Urban Trails

Mills Reservation is another one of NJ's urban forests located in Essex County. It is my favorite local walking spot as it is very close to my home. It is located primarily in Cedar Grove with a section reaching into bordering Montclair. It became a part of the Essex County Park system in 1954 due to a donation from the Davella Mills foundation which had previously owned the land.

Mills Reservation consists of deciduous woodland and wetlands with the only development consisting of a small unpaved parking lot located off of Normal Avenue and the development of an extensive trail system for a small area. Though it is surrounded by roads and homes, like many urban parks, it offers a welcome escape close to home.

The Reservation grew from its original 119 acres to 157 acres through a land swap in the mid-1960s with the city of Newark who owns adjoining property and the reservoir in Cedar Grove.

volcanic basalt njurbanforest.com

Mills Reservation is located on the First Watchung Mountain. The word “Watchung” is of Native American origin and means “high hill." Geologically, the rock which forms the Watchungs is known as volcanic basalt which formed when molten lava extruded out of the earth’s surface and cooled rapidly.

Mills Reservation features seven trails totaling 6.1 miles. The trails overlap, which can be confusing, but the most used one is the 1.5 mile Mills Loop Trail. It is essentially a gravel road which is popular with joggers and dog walkers, while the other six trails go deeper into the wooded forest areas and are more interesting.

The Reservoir Trail has red blazes and runs for 1 Mile heading west from the Parking Lot and following the western border of Mills Reservation near Reservoir Drive. The Reservoir trail ends where the southern section of the Eastview Trail begins. 

A portion of the the much longer Essex County Lenape Trail also runs through the reservation. The Lenape Trail is a trail connecting Newark and Roseland, New Jersey. It was established in 1982.
It is the fifth longest trail in the state and it traverses cities like Newark and its suburbs, but also the Watchung Mountains and the Passaic Meadows. The Lenape Trail is part of the larger 156-mile Liberty Water Gap Trail, created in 2000.

The Lenape Trail west is accessible from the parking lot via the short Lenape Link Trail (Yellow on White Blazes) which heads west from the Normal Avenue parking lot to connect with the Lenape Trail. From here, you can connect to the West Essex Trail which is the Lenape Trail's only true "rail-to-trail" section.

The Lenape Trail also heads southwest crossing through the Reservoir Trail, Mills Loop Trail and the Woodland Trail. Once the Lenape Trail crosses the Woodland and Mills Loop Trail, it heads east to Quarry Point and then north paralleling the Eastview Trail and into Montclair’s Mountainside Park on its way to Newark.

Quarry Point  njurbanforest.com

The Eastview Trail (Blue Blazes, 1.1 Miles) starts its southern portion near the Old Quarry Road entrance to Mills Reservation and, as the name implies, heads east to Quarry Point before turning north on the eastern portion of the reserve.

Quarry Point contains volcanic basalt outcrops in addition to a very old cement platform where anti-aircraft guns were installed during World War II. There are great views of NYC and to the south. This is the first ridge west of the lower Hudson River Valley, and runs from northeast to southwest. The view from the platform is south and east. Bring binoculars. To the south, on a clear day, there is a view of the Verrazano Narrows Bridge, and south and east you can see the entire New York City skyline including the Statue of Liberty, and all the way northeast to the Palisades. Looking far north and less easily to the west, peaks from the Ramapo Mountains can be discerned, and the beginning of the Second Watchung Mountain.

The NJ Audubon Society uses this and their Lookout across the road for observing migratory birds, such as warblers in the spring and hawks in the fall. The Montclair Hawk Lookout is opposite Quarry Point (across a road) atop a 500-foot basalt ledge.

The Mills Gate Trail  (Orange Blaze) is a very short side loop of the Mills Reservation Loop that goes through the original entrance of Mills Reservation.

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DIRECTIONS: Take the Garden State Parkway south to exit 151 (Watchung Avenue in Montclair). Turn west from the exit ramp onto Watchung Avenue.  Drive about two miles until the road ends at Upper Mountain Avenue.  Turn north and go 1.7 miles to the traffic light at Normal Avenue.  Turn west and drive 0.3 miles to the entrance on the left.  Limited parking is also available on Old Quarry Road near the southern entrance and that is just steps away from Quarry Point and the Hawkwatch.

MORE INFORMATION
nynjtc.org/park/mills-reservation-county-park
NJurbanforest.com  
At NYNJCT Botany, you can see lists of Mills Reservation's array of native flora including trees, shrubs, vines and herbs.
Montclair Hawk Lookout, a sanctuary of the New Jersey Audubon Society.
Lenape Trail Information: NYNJtc.org/park/lenape-trail  and LibertyGap.org/lenape-trail.html

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New Jersey's Watchung Mountains

Looking west to Second Mountain from a ridge of First Mountain - part of the Watchung Mountains in New Jersey

Though New Jersey has many places that are called "mountains," we know that they do not compete with the western U.S. mountain ranges. Probably the best known NJ mountain area is the northwestern area where we find the Appalachian Trail.

But New Jersey also has the Watchung Mountains (once called the Blue Hills) which are actually a group of three long low ridges of volcanic origin, between 400 ft. (122 m) and 500 ft. (152 m) high, lying parallel to each other primarily in northeastern New Jersey.

All of the ridges lie to the east of the higher Appalachian Mountains, which in northern New Jersey are often referred to as the New York-New Jersey Highlands.

Together with the Appalachian Mountains to the west, the Watchungs pen in an area formerly occupied by the prehistoric Glacial Lake Passaic.

The Great Swamp, a large portion of which is designated as the Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, is a remnant of this lake. The swamp area is presently retained by what we call the Third Watchung Mountain.

200 million years ago, magma intruded into the Newark Basin, then an active rift basin associated with the breakup of the supercontinent Pangaea. The magma formed large intrusions like the Palisades Sill. But the magma ultimately broke out to the surface through large, episodic eruptions and formed the Watchung Mountains.

Throughout the early Jurassic period, the Newark Basin underwent extensive dipping and folding, and at the western edge of the Newark basin along the Ramapo Fault System formed alternating synclines and anticlines warped the layers of basalt and sedimentary rock. Jurassic sedimentary rock layers between and above the ridges form the Feltville, Towaco and Boonton formations.

The Watchung Mountains are known for their numerous scenic vistas overlooking the New York City and New Jersey skylines, as well as their isolated ecosystems containing rare plants, endangered wildlife, rich minerals, and globally imperiled traprock glade communities.

If you drive on I-280 up or down the big hill in "The Oranges", you see the cliffs that consist of a single massive lava flow that cooled and cracked into columnar joints.

In some locations, the joints tend to radiate away from a central core in a pattern generated by an uneven cooling pattern in the flow. There are also complex areas in the middle of the outcrop that show a small normal fault that may have formed from seismic activity that occurred about the time that the flows were still cooling. There are also lots of boulders (glacial erratics) scattered in the woods along the hilltop.

The ridges once held back the westward spread of urbanization, forming a significant geologic barrier beyond the Piedmont west of the Hudson River. But in many places within the state, they are smaller islands of natural landscape within suburban sprawl.

Parks, preserves, and numerous historical sites dot the valleys and slopes of the mountains, providing recreational and cultural activities to one of the most densely populated regions of the nation.

From near the summit of High Mountain in Wayne - in the right foreground is the eastern slope of Mount Cecchino
 (third highest peak of the Watchung Mountains)
Garret Mountain in the background (First Watchung Mountain) overlooking Paterson.

The two most prominent ridges are known as First Watchung Mountain (the southeastern ridge) and Second Watchung Mountain (the northwestern ridge). They stretch for over forty miles (64 km) from Somerville (in Somerset County) in the southwest through Morris County, Union County, Essex County, and Passaic County to Mahwah (in Bergen County) in the northeast.

The less prominent and discontinuous ridge formed by Long Hill, Riker Hill, Hook Mountain, and Packanack Mountain is sometimes referred to as Third Watchung Mountain and lies on the northwestern side of Second Watchung Mountain.

The First and Second Mountains are often erroneously referred to as Orange Mountain and Preakness Mountain. "Orange" and "Preakness" more properly applies to specific geographic sections of these ridges.

Third Watchung Mountain is sometimes referred to locally as Hook Mountain.

A smaller fourth ridge exists south of Morristown and west of Third Watchung Mountain. This ridge lacks topographic prominence, only rising to about 100 ft (30 m) above the surrounding terrain and the only named portion (at Harding Township) is known as Lees Hill.

The original inhabitants of the Watchungs were the Native American Lenape. They referred to the mountains as the Wach Unks, or ‘high hills’. Evidence of the Lenape presence in the Watchungs can be seen in numerous camps sites that have been uncovered, mainly along the rivers coursing through mountains and in the small caves abundant in the volcanic rock.

It is thought the Lenape favored the Watchungs for their profusion of natural resources, including abundant freshwater rivers and streams, a variety of forests, and plentiful fish and game. They also took advantage of the rich soils and maintained many farm areas where they raised a variety of seasonal crops.

With the arrival of Europeans, the rivers and streams of the Watchungs also supported grain, grist, and saw mills. Later, the energy of these rivers would be harnessed for industry, most notably at the Great Falls of the Passaic River, where mechanical and hydroelectric systems exploited the energy of water falling over the face of First Watchung Mountain.

During the Revolutionary War, General George Washington used the protection of the Watchung mountains to erect the first and second Middlebrook encampment. This position on the high ground also allowed him to monitor the area between Perth Amboy and New Brunswick as well as to identify and disturb British movements between Manhattan and Philadelphia.

During World War Two, an anti-aircraft gun emplacement was made in Mills Reservation (Cedar Grove & Montclair) at the lookout point on the cliffs overlooking New York City. All that remains of this today is a circular cement platform.

In the twentieth century, the Hilltop in Verona, the highest point in Essex County, served as the site of a sanatorium for tuberculosis patients. The county hospital was built there because the high elevation provided clean, mountain air away from the cities to the east.

At the height of the Cold War, Campgaw Mountain was selected to house a Nike missile base. Installed on the mountain between 1955 and 1971, the base’s missiles served to guard New York City air space, standing by to intercept nuclear armed Soviet bombers. The facility ultimately was abandoned with the advent of intercontinental ballistic missiles. Two other missile sites were nestled into the forests atop peaks in Mountainside and Morris Township, creating a triangle of redundant sites.

NYC skyline seen from Mills Reservation, First Watchung Mountain

There are many parks and recreational areas to visit along the Watchung Mountains.

Campgaw Mountain Reservation (First and Second Watchung Mountain) is the northernmost ridge of the Watchungs and its northern terminus is the Ramapo Mountains, near the New York border. A shallow gap separates its southern end from Preakness Mountain and Goffle Hill.

Preakness Mountain comprises part of the northern extent of Second Watchung Mountain between the Passaic River and Campgaw Mountain.[ Along with Packanack Mountain (part of Third Watchung Mountain) to the west, Preakness Mountain forms the Preakness Range. The three highest peaks of the Watchungs are located in this range.

Great Falls State Park in Paterson is on First Watchung Mountain.

Nearby Garret Mountain Reservation is 568 acre park located within the Borough of Woodland Park (formerly West Paterson), although it also extends into the cities of Paterson and Clifton. The reservation covers the northernmost part of the First Watchung Mountain and reaches over 500 feet (152 m) above sea level.

Continuing along the Watchung Mountains, popular locations include:
* Mills Reservation, First Watchung Mountain
* Hilltop Reservation, Second Watchung Mountain
* Eagle Rock Reservation, First Watchung Mountain
* Riker Hill Park, Riker Hill (Third Watchung Mountain)
* South Mountain Reservation, First and Second Watchung Mountain
* Watchung Reservation, First and Second Watchung Mountain
* Washington Rock State Park, First Watchung Mountain
* Washington Valley Park, First Watchung Mountain
* Leonard J. Buck Garden/Moggy Hollow Natural Area, Second Watchung Mountain

The Blue Hills of NJ and the Revolutionary War

map via www.revolutionarynj.org/crossroads-guide/mountain-refuges

What we call the Watchung Mountains today was known to General Washington and the Continental Army as the Blue Hills. They were the natural barrier that could keep the Army safe from incursions by the British who held Manhattan.

You may have visited some of these sites, or you might drive by them every day. 

Bound Brook Village and the surrounding area were British targets during their encampment at New Brunswick in 1777. On April 13, there were 4,000 British and Hessian troops under General Cornwallis that moved from New Brunswick and surprised the American garrisons who were guarding the Raritan River crossings. They were overpowered and the Battle of Bound Brook was lost by the Colonists.

The village of Middlebrook, between the first and second range of the Watchung Mountains, was a site where the Continental Army camped along in June 1777 and returned to in the winter of 1778-1779. 

That portion of the Army was made up of 10,000 troops - which equaled the population of Somerset County at the time. So as not to overwhelm the local residents, state brigades were spread out across the area. There was a Maryland brigade to the east of Middle Brook and the Virginia troops were on the west side. Pennsylvania was assigned across the Raritan, on the west side of the Millstone River, and the artillery was camped at Pluckemin. 

General Washington identified "Middlebrook" as the location in his dispatches. That 18th century village no longer exists. It is now the western end of Bound Brook. 

Explore and learn about the Mountain Refuges Area

Further Along on the Watchung Mountains

This post concludes our virtual walk along the parks and reservations of the Watchung Mountains.

We pick up the trail in Washington Rock State Park which is a 52-acre (210,000 m2) state park on top the first Watchung Mountain in Green Brook Township, New Jersey. The park is operated by the New Jersey Division of Parks and Forestry and is currently being managed by the Somerset County Park Commission. It is open daily sunrise to sunset.

It is famous for the scenic overlook which was used by General George Washington in 1777 to monitor British troop movements when the Continental Army was stationed at the Middlebrook encampment. The 30-mile (48 km) panoramic vista covers the eastern plains of New Jersey up to New York City, making it a valuable lookout point during the American Revolution. General Washington used it in June of 1777 when the British army under General William Howe was moving toward Westfield. From the vantage point of this natural rock outcropping, General Washington was able to instruct his troops to circle behind Howe’s troops and cut off their retreat.

One of the oldest state parks in New Jersey, Washington Rock was originally purchased in 1913 to commemorate the historical events of 1777. Situated on top of Watchung Mountain, the park is a popular site for easy walks, picnicking and relaxation.

Closely connected is Washington Valley Park. This 715-acre (2.89 km2) public park is between the first and second Watchung mountain ridge in the Martinsville section of Bridgewater Township. It is also administered by the Somerset County Park Commission.

This partially developed park has a western and eastern section separated by the Bound Brook Gap with the Chimney Rock Road that connects Bound Brook with Martinsville. The terrain is rocky and mountainous and covered with pine and hemlock.

At the center of the western section of the park is the 21-acre (85,000 m2) Washington Valley Reservoir. The reservoir was created in 1920 when the western branch of the Middle Brook was dammed. (Its former name was the Bound Brook/Elizabeth Reservoir.) The eastern section of the park has the much smaller East Branch Reservoir and the Buttermilk Falls of the eastern branch of the Middle Brook.

Adjacent to the park is the Chimney Rock Quarry built atop the old Chimney Rock Copper Mine (a.k.a. Bound Brook Quarry or Washington Mine).  There are still copper mines over 165 feet deep and active mining continues today. Copper from here was used to mold a small brass cannon later used at the siege of Yorktown during the Revolutionary War. There is also still calcite mined from the Chimney Rock Quarry and marble and granite taken from this area.

The reservoirs have no boat access but are of interest to anglers. Species that can be caught include largemouth bass, black crappie, bluegill, pumpkinseed, and yellow perch.

The park contains numerous trails that are used by hikers and mountain bikers.

At an outcropping of the first Watchung mountain ridge is Chimney Rock Hawk Watch. In the fall, the area is visited by birdwatchers to observe the annual southward migration of species including broad-winged hawks, sharp-shinned hawks, bald eagles and golden eagles. Hawk watching lasts from early September into November, the second half of September being the peak time.

The eastern part of the park was the site of a military fortification that was used by the Continental Army near the site of the 1777-78 Middlebrook encampment. Remnants can be found in the shape of earth walls. A look-out point is preserved that was used to observe movements of the British Army in the plains towards New Brunswick.

Two more areas to visit that are connected brings our walk to a close. The Leonard J. Buck Garden and the Moggy Hollow Natural Area are our last stops along the Second Watchung Mountain.

The Moggy Hollow Natural Area is a 14-acre (5.7 ha) nature preserve near Far Hills in Somerset County. It's an area of geologic interest. The area was designated a National Natural Landmark in January 1970.

As the Wisconsin Glacier advanced and ancient Glacial Lake Passaic formed, it deepened to 240 feet until it found an outlet to spill over at Moggy Hollow. From here the water drained to the Raritan river.

The ledge of harder basaltic rock at 331 feet (101 m) above sea level served as a spillway for Lake Passaic carving a deep ravine out of the softer soil as the lake drained. Moggy Hollow remained the main outlet as the glacier retreated due to natural debris dams until Little Falls and Paterson (Passaic County) emerged from the ice.

This 20-acre property adjacent to the North Branch of the Raritan River and the Far Hills Fairgrounds is a testament to the beauty of once-unchanged floodplains of the region. The floodplain is forested with a mixture of Oak, Maple, and some outstanding Sycamore trees. It is an excellent place to spot Kingfishers or Great Blue Heron. A trail runs parallel to the river and fishing is allowed in the trout-stocked waters.

The woodland and bog have ecological value, providing a diverse mixture of trees, shrubs and herbaceous plant species. But this is not an especially visitor-friendly site. The terrain is very steep and hazardous. Rocky slopes abruptly meet the bog, and walking is difficult, but worth the challenge for those who are interested in glacial geology.
The property is owned and managed by the Upper Raritan Watershed Association. Most of the current site was donated to the association in 1967 by J. Malcolm Belcher, a former mayor of Far Hills, on behalf of the Belcher family.

The ravine is located adjacent to and above the Leonard J. Buck Garden. Visitors can either ask to cross the Buck garden to reach the lower portion of the ravine, or park above on Liberty Corner Road to access the top of the ledge.

The garden is one of the premier rock gardens in the United States. It features native and exotic plants displayed in a naturalistic setting of woodland, streams, and rock outcroppings. A wooded, rocky ravine is home to numerous wildflowers interspersed among flowering trees and shrubs.

The best and most popular time to visit is in the spring.

The Garden began in the 1930s when geologist Leonard J. Buck, a trustee of the New York Botanical Garden, met landscape architect Zenon Schreiber and the two created varying exposures and microclimates.

The garden is sculpted from the glacial stream valley where waterfalls once cascaded, leaving behind rock faces, outcroppings, ponds and a stream. After Mr. Buck's death in 1974, the garden was donated by Mrs. Buck to the Somerset County Park Commission and was opened up to the public in 1977. A small donation is requested.

The plantings are extensive and include aconite, anemone, azalea, beech, birch, bloodroot, boxwood, Chinese fringe tree, columbine, cyclamen, daffodils, Dawn redwood, dogwoods, enkianthus, forget-me-nots, forsythia, geraniums, grape hyacinth, heathers, herbs, hornbeam, hydrangea, Japanese maple, Japanese painted fern, Japanese peonies, Labrador violets, magnolias, mahonia, maidenhair fern, maples, mountain laurel, narcissus, oak, ostrich ferns, primroses, rhododendron, saxifrage, shagbark hickory, Siberian squill, skimmia, snowbell, star magnolia, sweet woodruff, trillium, viburnum, violets, Virginia bluebells, and wind anemones. You can check their website to see what is in bloom during this season.