Hike #868; Lockatong, Delaware, and Wickecheoke

Hike #868; Lockatong, Delaware, and Wickecheoke

7/27/15 Lockatong WMA, Bulls Island, Stockton, and Locktown with Shane Blische, Larry Philips, Lowell Perkins, and Shayna Michaels

The group along the Wickecheoke

Our next hike would be a point to point, but near loop focusing on the tributaries of the Delaware River, the Lockatong and the Wickecheoke, with a tiny bit of Jersey Perimeter thrown in there that I had wanted to get out of the way. I could do the missing sections in that area in one shot, but I figured it would be more interesting to do them separately.

I decided to rehash some old hikes and cover some new, some old ground, starting with the Lockatong. We would meet near Locktown on Wickecheoke Creek, then head over to Lockatong Wildlife Management Area to start the hike.

We parked at the WMA lot, and started following the white blazed trail in. I had not been here in a couple of years, and the trail was not at all cared for any more. It had tons of blow downs and was a mess. We tried to follow it across the field, and through woods, but we ended up doing what felt more like a bushwhack. It was alright though, we got through in reasonable enough time. When the trail reached a dry tributary to the Lockatong Creek, it went down stream a bit.

Cascade on the Lockatong

Since it had been so long since I'd been here, I at first thought the first cascades we got to on the Lockatong were the High Falls. I remember that it wasn't really that high, but I didn't realize that it was as good as it is. We stopped at those first cascades because they had a nice deep hole in it for taking a dip, and had a break there.

After the break, we headed down past the ruins of an old dam that used to span the Lockatong.

High Falls of the Lockatong

The actual High Falls were just down stream. We had to descend to get to them. I'd never tried jumping off them before, but this was a really great spot, greater than I'd remembered. Of course, I'd never been to this spot in the Summer time either, so I couldn't fully appreciate it.

We spent some more nice time at this point, probably more than I was planning. Two other guys showed up before I left, and they gave me some of their drink. It turned out they knew my co worker Alyssa, and might be interested in joining a future  hike.

High Falls of the Lockatong

We headed out from the High Falls along the creek, then away from it atop a hill. When we got back near the parking area, we had to head through wood to reach Strimples Mill Road, This was a really rough bushwhack, rougher than the previous time we did it. We managed to find an old jeep road track in the mess, but it was not good to follow the whole way. The two guys dropped a bottle of water on the way in it appears, so I grabbed it up. Extra water is always a help!

We fought through some weeds that were far worse than expected; they definitely weren't so bad the last time I had visited. Shayna's dogs helped here because they found the easiest way to get out and onto the road. Although we had to crawl to do it, we followed them and got out somewhat unscathed. We then followed Strimples Mill Road down to cross the Lockatong at the historic mill of the same name.

Strimples Mill

Shane checked out a beat up old bridge on the way, and we crossed an historic through style truss bridge over the Lockatong, then ascended on the road past a possibly abandoned house and lovely stone walls. When we came out to fields, we turned to the left into the Peters Section of Wescott Nature Center. It is now maintained by Jason Strauss of Hunterdon County Parks, one of the few left there, even though he is actually head gardener.

My trail marking holding up

It was nice to see that the trail mark posts that I had installed maybe seven years ago were still in place, and actually very important to be able to tell which way to go on the trail. They have loops now mowed into the preserve, and the main trail has nothing to mark it off otherwise. I thought for sure they'd have been long since removed or plowed down by farmers.

Deer platform in 2008

We also passed a deer hunter's platform I used to climb up even before I worked for Hunterdon Parks. It is now deteriorated to a point where no one could ever get on it again. It's another one of those moments where the passage of time is all too apparent. Still, it's good to see that these trails I used to care for still have someone looking after them.

Deer platform in 2015

We descended through fields to the woods, and then down to the Lockatong Creek. The trail had been moved a bit from where it used to be, and still passed some rock outcrops, but now had a switchback on it. We stopped to take a dip here for a bit. I didn't want to take too long, and so Shayna and I decided to go ahead, knowing the others would move fast and catch up easily.

Lockatong in Wescott

Lowell caught up first, and we paused where the trail entered the Zega Lockatong Preserve, with a lovely bench and deep pool with a view. We could hear them already behind us, so we continued on to where there is a picnic bench on a slope above the creek, with an experimental American Chestnut plantation. The benches hadn't been often used, and the seats were breaking when we'd try to sit on them.

We continued on and the trail ended at Raven Rock Rosemont Road next to an historic stone home. We turned right on the road, heading up hill to the White Oak Trail, which leads down to the Delaware River at Bulls Island.

Bad trail marking

The trail was badly marked with arrow markers, hammered all the way in so that they are growing quickly into the trees. I had originally scouted this trail out for Appalachian Mountain Club many years ago, but their involvement must have been limited, and it eventually was developed by the state. It's in bad shape now, and not really maintained. The markers will all begin disappearing too.

Someone has already come through with ugly spray paint and put more marks on the trees in orange, to sort of show this is a continuation of the one out of Wescott, but they look awful. I wish the state would just standarize everything.

D&R Feeder Canal at Bulls Island

We turned right on Quarry Road, and Shane pointed out old quarry operation stuff, including an old wire. We then descended to Rt 29, passing a house with pallets used as a fence. Shane gave us some railroad history, and we crossed the former canal lock to the Delaware and Raritan Feeder Canal. The rest of the group took a break at the restrooms and visitor center while Lowell and I continued on the old canal towpath to the north end of the island. I wanted to try to cover the bit of perimeter missing here, the west side.

However, the towpath was only mowed a short distance. A tree was down blocking the way further on, easy to step over, but not to cross with a mower. I continued to walk it al the way to the north side, and it was in bad shape. It was really sad to see this historic resource getting ruined. At first it was upsetting to think this was being allowed to happen. I got to the north end and took photos of the lovely Delaware view. There were people swimming and a fire ring despite the fact that the camp grounds had been closed since a man and his kids were killed by a fallen tree.

Delaware River at Bulls Island

I turned to head along the river south, and there was a paved camp ground road that was now growing over badly. The picnic tables were grown over, carsonite posts with camp site numbers faded and rusted, it looked as though it had been abandoned for twenty years. Then there were area closed signs, no trespassing, etc. I hadn't seen them anywhere before here. I figured the whole section of island must be as such, but didn't see the signs till earlier. Signs now faced the direction I came in. They did a bad job missing the path that most would be inclined to take to go in, the canal towpath, another bad miss.

Abandoned camp road

Abandoned camp road

Walking through, my mind wandered to a land management thought. First, it was not well marked. I made my way out of the camp grounds by way of a gate that was overly posted probably twenty times or so to stay out, but the way I went in was not marked at all. The way in that I would think is most popular. It remains unmarked today. Second, the longer this remains closed and unmaintained, the worse it gets. If the plants continue to grow, we'll get Autumn Olive and other invasives that are just too difficult to remove. Third, there are tons of picnic tables out there and other items that could be used in other parks. Parks spend over $30K on new picnic benches, yet these are left to rot away, when we know the campgrounds will never re open. Finally, we have created more of a liability than we ever had before. People are still camping there, they are swimming there, they are going there without even knowing it's closed just as I did. If there were an emergency, it is physically impossible to even get a car back there because trees have fallen and blocked the road. We are far worse off than before.

Shane waiting for a train that will never come

We headed back out to the former Belvidere-Delaware Railroad, now the main trail through, not the canal at this point, and began following it south. Shane pointed out where the station stood and told us some of he history. The station used to stand about where the parking lot was, and he pointed out the platform, where a signal used to stand, and further down where there are railings typical of Pennsylvania Railroad.

Historic view of Raven Rock Station

1920s photo of Raven Rock Station, opened 1852 and closed early 1940s, torn down for lumber during WW2, replaced by a shelter that remained active until 1952.

The Bel Del Railroad was originally it's own line, but then was absorbed into the Pennsylvania Railroad system in later years.

Present view of Raven Rock Station site

We continued south, passing by where access would have been to the former quarry we went by.

Shane brought with him some of his history books. He's got several on the Bel Del, always ready to pull them out and show history or comparative photos.

Down along the Old Bel Del

Two BLH RT624 diesels haul an iron ore train north to Phillipsburg through Raven Rock. Shot 1966 by Martin Zak.

The canal and the railroad in many places ran together, and in fact the rail line was built on the towpath, but today's trail follows more closely the railroad bed than the canal in the feeder section. The canal is actually farther away from the rail bed for a good while, and becomes more noticeable again when we reach the Lockatong confluence.

Bel Del in 1971

An ALCO RS11 and RSD12 haul a northbound freight train to Phillipsburg through Raven Rock. Shot 1971 by Martin Zak. Penn Central has taken over the Bel-Del at this point. Pennsylvania Railroad merged by that time with New York Central forming the Penn Central. The first of many mergers in the decline of US railroading before Conrail.

Old mile marker

We passed an old mile marker, and Shane knew what numbers it was going to be before even passing it. The numbers were the same on both sides visibly, "22". But on the north facing side, it was bold and lower, and the number "46" was clearer above. This was 22 miles out of Trenton, 46 out of Manunka Chunk.

Delaware and Raritan Feeder Canal at Lockatong spillway

We walked on and eventually reached the confluence of the Lockatong Creek. This bridge crossed by the rail bed is different from most Bel Del bridges because it was an open deck. Most of them tend to be concrete save for the one over Pohatcong Creek to the north, and here, although this one is decked and not easy to notice.

We headed down to the Lockatong for a swim in the canal. The canal really just flows along with the Delaware River here, and a spillway across kept the Lockatong from washing out the canal. It's actually a great place to swim. I swam out across to the spillway and walked across it. Quite nice.

When I got back, there was a lady sitting there relaxing while her kids swam. Talking to her, I mentioned that the most accurate guide to the trail could be found on the Metrotrails website, and she said "Ohhhh I follow that on Facebook!". She knew exactly who I was then. We chatted for a bit, and she called her daughter over to meet me. That was sort of neat, a minor celebrity type of situation.

Bel Del quarry spur

While heading south, Shane pointed out an old spur from the Bel Del I didn't know about, with a nice stone retaining wall. This was a spur to a nearby quarry he knew of. I didn't even know the thing existed. I only knew of one of them directly off the rail bed to the left from the first time I walked this section back in 2000.

Wickecheoke reaching the canal and Delaware at Prallsville

We continued to the crossing of the Wickecheoke, with another spillway at the canal. I was going to walk the towpath on to the south, but Shane mentioned that it was closed for now out that way. Shayna took a break near the bridge, at Prallsville, and Lowell, Larry, Shane, and I headed quickly to Stockton to stop at the store for some food. We had some delicious sandwiches at the old station.

Stockton Station today

The new life of the station is as a cafe. I got some chocolate milk in addition to my overpriced sandwich, but I really needed it. I was extra hungry. I also got some wine from the place across the street for cheap but quality stuff, which made up for it.

Historic view of Stockton Station

Stockton Station, opened 1852, rebuilt 1870s by Pennsylvania Railroad and closed to passenger service in 1958. Today its a convenience store. Shot 1962 by Norman Lipponcott.

We got back on the trail from here and headed to the north. Shane went over more history almost non stop. He knows the Bel Del better than anyone I can think of. He also had found some spikes further back closer to Raven Rock Station, at Bulls Island. He said he knew exactly where to put them.

At a section of track that was left in for history's sake between Prallsville and Stockton, he drove the spikes back into the ties where people had pulled them out in the past. A fitting place.

Historic Stockton Station

Unloading freight off the train at Stockton Station. Shot 1953 by Don Wentzel.

We found Shayna resting with the dogs at one of the old railroad shelters. From here, we all headed out to the road, then past the Prallsville Mill. I am supposedly descended from the Pralls somehow. The trinomial nomenclature had it that often middle names were given for the matriarchal last name of families, and my Great Grandfather's name was George Prall Allen. I know that my Great Great Great Great Great Great Grandfather, Nicholas Albertson, moved to this part of Hunterdon County in about 1742, but I know little more as of now.

Our next job was to hike the Wickecheoke Trail back. This trail is interesting in that it is not marked the entire way through. We had to cross the creek on Rt 29, where Shane pointed out the original bridge location.

We turned right on Rt 519, then right again onto Lower Creek Road where we cut into the woods. The first bit of the Wickecheoke trail is in there. The blazes weren't easy to find, but we came upon them and walked up stream. We cam to a deer exclusion fence that had blocked the trail briefly, but then it followed the road. We barely saw any traffic for the entire rest of the hike, so it was fine to walk the road sections.

A new section, to the left, kept us parallel with but off of the road through fields. I'd not been on this piece yet. We followed it, and it came back to the road before the next bridge across.

Wickecheoke Crossing

We crossed the bridge, and continued on the trail up stream after having another nice dip in the creek. Larry and Shane held back to swim for longer, and we wouldn't see them for at least another hour.

We stayed along the road until another section of trail went off to the left. We turned onto it, and it was very pleasant. Some of it followed an old road route, possibly an earlier route of Lower Creek Road.

Wickecheoke washout

At one point a bench sitting on the trail had an "unstable" sign on it, as it had almost washed off into the creek. The trail became a foot path again, then we continued back onto the road to the north.

On this stretch of road, there were constant signs saying "Penn East Go Home" and "Stop the Pipeline". This was another area where natural gas pipelines are coming through to devastate the land.

I had the pleasure of writing the Resources Impacted and Mitigation paper for Tennessee Gas Pipeline in the northern region of state parks, and they just tried to get away with whatever they could. They didn't acknowledge the most important trails that it was crossing, they didn't even answer at all a request made to mitigate by repairing the Outlook Lodge. Counties in Pennsylvania were getting far more money from them than NJ was, and it's just crazy, they are another bought and corrupt thing.

Penn East had recently been on the Wickecheoke property, and had to be kicked off for not having the right to be there.

Proposed pipeline crossing

These pipelines are controversial because of Fracking, or Hydraulic Fracturing, the process by which gas is extracted from Marcellus Shale layers by using chemicals. People are now able to light their tap water on fire, and it's getting crazy. Now, these lines are not really meant to carry the gas as they say. In fact, they are intended as storage facilities. These volatile chemicals cannot be stored in one place, and they do need to be carried to consumers, so they create a pipeline as a holding unit for it more than a conduit for it.

Green Sergeant's Covered Bridge

We continued along Upper Creek Road to the Green Sergeant's Covered Bridge, only remaining authentic historic covered bridge in NJ. The bridge had once been damaged by fire, but public outcry forced the county to rebuild it using the parts of the damaged bridge.

We continued through the bridge and turned right on Upper Creek Road. We headed up hill to the next trail section and had a break, where soon Shane and Larry met back up with us.

We headed down to the creek passing where there used to be a building on the left, now gone (it was there my first time through), and we crossed the creek. I think we crossed too early; the trail was harder than I'd remembered it being my last time through, and there were now more trails through here than there used to be.

Washed out road

The section of trail followed a long abandoned road, sometimes recognizable as such, and sometimes not. It eventually got to where it was so washed out we couldn't make it out as anything, and trail markers were nowhere to be found. We ended up bushwhacking up hill off trail, steeply to get to someone's long driveway. We were able to follow this at least out to Pine Hill Road.

When we came to a map at the next trail head spot, I could see we were farther south than I'd thought we were. This trail system definitely merits coming back to do some more exploring, because it is much larger than it was on my first few visits. We turned left to follow Pine Hill Road north.

Myers-Holcombe Mill

We turned left on Old Mill Road, where was the original Myers Holcombe Mill. Delaware Township doesn't even seem to have a record of who built the mill and when exactly. I wonder if it could be some of my Colonial ancestors who settled somewhere in this area.

I got to the through Pony Truss bridge over the Wickecheoke far ahead of everyone else. We were almost done. A bit of a walk to the right up Upper Creek Road would lead us to the cars.

I stood in the middle of the bridge by myself, and looked all around. It was an absolutely beautiful moment, at the last light of day with the sound of  the creek passing below. I put my hands up on top of the small trusses and felt the riveted bolts holding the structure together. I started to think about the people who made the bridge, if they had ever considered that these pieces of metal they had assembled would outlive them and their children, and their children's children. The truss bridge is of course well over 100 years old. To my left and right, I began to consider how much has changes since this bridge was installed. I saw no lights. There was no pavement. The only thing I could immediately think of that had changed at this special spot in the last century was the installation of overhead phone and electric wires. I took comfort in this thought.

I brought up these thoughts to the rest of the group as they arrived, but I couldn't expect them to be into it at this time of day.

It's a great feeling to know we have an abundance of beautiful places that still somehow remain unspoiled, with no indication of them being ruined any time soon.