Hike #991; Washington's Crossing and Trenton Loop

Hike #991; Washington’s Crossing and Trenton Loop

12/1/16 Washington's Crossing South Loop with James Quinn, Kralc Leahcim (Lerch), Jennifer Berndtt, Sue Bennett, Annika Krystyna, Shayna Michaels, and Dan Asnis.

My life has been quite weird lately. My temporary transfer to Washington’s Crossing has found me there for over a month when I was initially told it would be about two weeks. I don’t know how to plan ahead, so in short notice I’ve been trying to post the night hikes down that way to make the best of it.

Some sort of stone stuff along the road near the canal at Washington's Crossing PA

The “best” of them, or maybe not the best, but at least most convenient, are the easy hikes along the Delaware Canal and the D&R Canal and Belvidere Delaware Railroad beds.
I’d done all of this in the past, but for some of these sections it’s been over ten years for me, so it’s no problem to revisit.
I made the meeting point Dominick’s Pizza, where I started the last loop, in Washington’s Crossing PA. I was blown away on a lunch break one day at the kind of pizza they had, and they allowed us to park in their lot, so this was a really good staging area. Since it’s a loop, it’s a perfect place to park for after dark. I met everyone there, and we soon were ready to go.

Delaware Canal at Washington's Crossing

We simply walked the paved pathway along the road to the west until we got to the Delaware Canal towpath, then turned left to start following it. This was a really pleasant and easy section to be walking.

Delaware Canal south of Washington's Crossing

The Delaware Canal is actually called the Pennsylvania Canal, Delaware Division. It was constructed as part of the “Main Line of Public Works” in the 1820s and 30s. The Delaware Division was started in 1829, and completed in 1832. It’s primary purpose was to carry coal to Philadelphia from the Mauch Chunk (now Jim Thorpe) area down the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company’s Lehigh Canal to Easton, the northern terminus of the Delaware Division. Additionally, the canal carried farm goods, quarried material, and other minerals. The canal is about sixty miles long from Easton to Bristol on the Delaware River at tidewater.

Delaware Canal south of Washington's Crossing

One of the most significant things about the Delaware Canal is the fact that it is probably the longest lived of all of the nation’s canals. It is still used by recreational boaters today, as is the Lehigh Canal, but the Delaware Canal is almost completely intact for it’s sixty mile stretch.

Delaware Canal

A section in Bristol was filled in, and some sections no longer hold water after floods in recent years. When I walked the route first, it was full of water from Easton all the way down to the north side of Bristol. In 2004, floods wiped out portions of it, and some of it has never been re-watered.
The canal lasted into the Great Depression of the 1930s, which is very late as far as canals were concerned. Many of them were abandoned by the turn of the twentieth century. Even after abandonment, it was designated Theodore Roosevelt State Park. It survived plans to build a highway over it’s route, and was saved as a Registered National Landmark, redesignated Delaware Canal State Park in the eighties.

Historic house along the canal

We walked south, through lovely scenery toward Yardley.
We passed at one point an historic stone house with a gabled roof. I’m certain this house must be very old, and I wondered if it was of Dutch or Quaker origin. There were no historic markers to say, but I’m sure it was very very old. In the garden area next to the bridge access over the canal, the ruins of another stone out building were used as a walkway and a sort of planter. The properties along the canal are very consistently beautifully kept.
Lerch and Jen were to meet us in Yardley area. We walked to the south, and a road through Yardley took over the canal towpath.

Stone ruins and garden along the canal

I offered James some of my Triple IPA, which he hated. They are quite bitter, but it’s an acquired taste.
While waiting for Lerch to show up in the middle of Yardley, he showed up behind us. He had parked at a park and ride spot that was really convenient just off of I-95. We all continued from here to the south for a bit more, and passed under the former Reading Railroad bridge over the canal. A train went over top of it just a bit after we had passed under. We continued southeast from there along the canal, which had water in it from time to time. It depended on the area and creeks flowing in. There was one interesting spillway along the way we checked out.
Jen met up with us when we got to Black Rock Road, and used on street parking to the east. From there, we stayed on the canal for a bit more. It’s a really different stretch than most others because we never see the Delaware River until Morrisville, right across from Trenton. For the entire stretch we were on, the canal is on the wide flood plain of the river, on higher ground out of sight from it.

Calhoun Street Bridge

Just before reaching the Calhoun Street Bridge, we came within sight of the Delaware, parallel with Delmore Ave in Morrisville.
We took a quick break on the PA side of the bridge, and then headed across.
The Calhoun Street Bridge is an historic steel truss bridge built by Phoenix Bridge Company of Phoenixville PA in 1884. It’s one of the most historic bridges remaining over this part of the Delaware. The walkway along this bridge is also the route of the East Coast Greenway, which eventually I will work on doing as a series.
Once on the other side, it was like a different world. The look of Trenton, with a lot of run down buildings, or otherwise larger buildings, as well as so much more traffic is so different than sleepy little Morrisville with it’s upscale looking restaurants.

Weird display on D&R Canal

Once on the other side, we simply continued straight until we got to where the road crossed over the Delaware and Raritan Canal.
The main Delaware and Raritan Canal traveled from Bordentown, on tidal Delaware River north to Trenton, then crossed over land to Raritan River tidewater at New Brunswick. The section we walked on this hike was the D&R Feeder Canal, first intended to supply water to the rest of the canal, but used also for navigation of boats from the time of it’s completion. Work began on the canal in 1830, and the entire system was completed in 1834.
We turned left to follow the canal towpath through town, and soon passed by some weird fences of back yards with clothing and stuff all hanging from it.

Big tree in Trenton

I’m not sure what the purpose of all of the stuff was, but it sure looked interesting.
We continued along the canal to the north, and paused at one point to look at our phones for places to eat nearby. Lerch climbed up a big tree along the edge of the canal while we were figuring out what we were doing.
Ahead, the towpath of the canal switched sides, and soon we reached the right of way of the former Belvidere Delaware Railroad. The line was built much of the time on the original towpath of the Feeder Canal in 1850. In reality, most of the D&R Canal State Park trail from this point in Trenton all the way to Bulls Island is more the railroad bed than the canal towpath.

Abandoned

The canal deviates from the railroad at some places, and very much so from just south of Lambertville through Stockton and to Raven Rock at Bulls Island, which was the northern terminus of the feeder canal. North of that point, the trail is solely the “Bel Del” railroad bed all the way to Frenchtown.
It’s always been a pet peeve of mine that this historic railroad line is given little or no credit with regard to it’s existence through the area. All of the credit goes to the canal, and rarely do we see an historic marker to the Bel Del. On some of the occasions when we finally do find one, it gives incorrect data.

Abandoned

The Bel Del Railroad traveled north and eventually connected with the Delaware, Lackawanna, and Western at Manunka Chunk. It’s been the subject of many of my hikes. The line was abandoned and finally torn up in 1982, and made into part of the trail system in the eighties shortly after.
It’s really a sad one to be gone. The River Line on the old Camden and Amboy south of Trenton is a good route, and there are still tracks in place in Lambertville, and then twenty miles north of there in Milford. It would one day make a good public transportation route, but it’s unlikely it could happen now because it was allowed to be destroyed.

We made our way along the rail bed, beside the canal, heading back north toward Washington’s Crossing. We crossed an aqueduct, and when we had a couple of close by stores, no one wanted to go down.
At one point, we met another guy walking the trail, which was rather surprising. It turned out he worked for BASF, and we chatted with him about the Belvidere site that I have long wanted to see turned into a public park. One of the problems with acquireing the property I understood was that the owners had made political contributions, and were therefore unable to work with the state for acquisition. We had talked about acqiring it as a county park, but it never happened. After this conversation, we were at the understanding that it would possibly be mutually beneficial to both BASF and the state or county, whoever gets it, to have it preserved. Maybe something will come of it....
By the time Lerch and I were done talking to him, everyone was very far ahead. We walked fast and caught up pretty well, but Lerch ran ahead faster than me. They had a plan of turning off of the trail to get some food at a nearby restaurant.
As I was walking by myself, I spotted something to the left that merited further attention.
There was what appeared to be an abandoned structure. Only ambient light from nearby roads and homes was enough for me to tell what it was. I walked over to the back entrance to have a better look. I couldn’t resist going in.
The building had marks that it was to be demolished, but it was full of all sorts of crazy stuff. I looked through the entire thing. One of the coolest things was some old window sash weights.

Window sash things

It’s sad that the building will likely be demolished complete with everythign in it, whether it’s historic or not.
Everyone came back and some went in with me. It was an interesting little excursion.
When everyone decided to make the turn to go and eat, some decided to go ahead. Dan was one of them, but when he heard about food, he turned back to join us. Shayna and Sue headed onward to the end and I believe finished quite early because Sue put a comment that the pizza was excellent. I had proposed that we head for the pizza place at the end, but no one was going for that. I wasn’t hungry and was far too tired really to be eating.

Abandoned

Still, I followed everyone on down to Rt 29, then down that busy road until we get to the Revere Restaurant.
There was a weird Santa Claus thing outside, which had a rubber head that Lerch couldn’t resist messing with.
We went inside, and found it to be a very pretty establishment. I’d not really noticed the place in the past, with all of the times I’d driven down Rt 29. I also didn’t realize that there was any history to this area at all. Today, it just looks like a spot along the busy four lane highway, in the town of Wilbertha, but this was once a much more significant community.

SANTA!!!

The town owes it’s existence to the Delaware and Raritan Canal, as it came about at around the same time. Like many places, a coach stop was built along the Delaware River, at the entrance of the Yardley-Wilbertha Bridge. This was the predecessor to the present Revere Restaurant.

Revere Ristorante

The original building was supposedly built in the 1700s because there was a ferry at the point.
The original bridge was a covered one built in 1835. The bridge was severely damaged, three spans of it swept away in 1841, but they were rebuilt and lasted for over sixty years, until the Pumpkin Flood of October, 1903.
The old covered bridge was destroyed, as were many other bridges up and down the Delaware. Shortly after, the bridge was replaced by a through style steel truss structure. The old hotel on the NJ side survived the floods surprisingly well.

Historic inn, Wilburtha NJ

The bridge remained in place until the Flood of the Century, in 1955. This remains the worst flood in recorded history on the Delaware River. It washed away the truss bridge, and destroyed the old hotel.

Pumpkin Flood of 1903 in Wilburtha

The new hotel was erected across the street from where the old one was. I don’t think any of the original structure was used during the rebuilding of it at all.

The hotel next to the Yardley Wilburtha Bridge

It was believed by the people of Ewing that the Yardley-Wilburtha Bridge would be rebuilt, but by that time, Interstate 95 was already planned and in the works to cross over the Delaware just us pstream at Scudders Falls.

The destroyed old inn

The old bridge was never rebuilt. Not permanently anyway. The Army Corps put in a Bailey Bridge to temporarily be used at the site. It was demolished after 95 opened.
The Yardley side and approach of the original bridge, with the one abutment, was turned into a Veterans Memorial. The New Jersey side appears to be completely gone.

The new Revere in the sixties

We had walked along that section of the Delaware on a path below 29 over a year ago, and I don’t recall seeing any remnant of a bridge on the NJ side at all. 29 is so wide now, one would never even be able to tell where the approach was.
Lerch and I checked out historic photos hanging on the walls inside the Revere which was really cool.

Yardley Wilburtha Bridge

I was too tired to enjoy eating. They brought out bread and salad, and I had some of that. I just layed my head down on my arms and went to sleep for a little bit. It was probably a good idea because I’d otherwise have had a hard time getting home.

Sleepy me

I didn’t know it at the time, but of course Lerch had to mess with my while I was sleeping. He apparently stacked chairs up so that he could make it look like he was sitting on top of my shoulders. I don’t recall being messed with at all!
Annika treated everyone to dinner, and we were on our way after a bit. It took me a bit of time to get my energy up enough to walk any reasonable speed.
We turned right up the street and eventually reached the canal and railroad bed again, and began to follow it to the north.
We passed beneath I-95, which was very open and had what I thought were some eerie lights. That was just about the end of the developed looking area.
The time seemed to go by rather quickly, because it didn’t seem too long before we had gotten to the former Reading Railroad bridge underpass at the start, and we were soon passing beneath the same railroad on the New Jersey side.

Sleepy me

We continued to the north, and I wandered away from the group for a bit to follow a lower route closer to the river. It was really quiet and peaceful.
Somehow, I ended up going from the back of the group to the front again, and I tried to regroup when we got to the forme Somerset Junction site.
The Mercer and Somerset Railroad existed for a short time in the area, and was built haphazardly to block the construction of the National Railway, which became part of the Reading, which we passed beneath just earlier. It went all the way to Millstone, but was very short lived. Several of my hikes had focus on tracing it’s route as best we could.

Sleepy me

After reaching this point, it wasn’t long at all before we reached the Washington’s Crossing area. The old junction site is recognizable because it’s wider than the rest of the line, and it is right about where the Jacob’s Creek passes beneath the canal. The old rail line is the present route of Jacob’s Creek Road to the east.
We soon reached Washington’s Crossing. We could see the bridge through the trees to the left before we even reached it.
The Bel Del used to have a railroad station at this point, just to the left before reaching the road. It was torn down and replaced by a pitiful little shelter, as were many other nice stations from the early Bel Del.

Bel Del Station at Washington Crossing

The Washington’s Crossing Bridge was also erected at the site of a former ferry. The New Jersey side was known as Johnson Ferry, where Washington crossed the Delaware on Christmas 1776. The Pennsylvania side was known as McKonkey’s Ferry.
The first bridge was completed in 1834, the same year as the D&R Canal, but like the Yardley-Wilburtha Bridge, it too was destroyed during a flood in 1841. Similarly, it was replaced by another covered structure, also washed out in the Pumpkin Flood of 1903.

Historic image of Washington Crossing Bridge

The current Washington Crossing Bridge was erected on the original piers of the old covered bridge, but lifted up a bit, in 1904. It’s been damaged a few times since, but it’s still holding strong. It’s got a weight limit of three tons, so large vehicles can’t cross it.
We soon got to the other side and walked the short distance back to the cars to conclude the hike. James took Jen back to her car, and I took Lerch back to his, and we were on our way.

Despite the negative feelings associated with my transfer, this turned out to be just another positive experience to offset it all.