Hike #170
The group along the NYS&W Rail bed.
5/1/5
Paulins Kill Valley Trail; Swartzwood-Colombia with Gerry Martiniak, John Iskrant, and Billy Neuman
Another one I lost the journal entry for.
Phantom bridge near the south end of Paulins Kill Lake
Newly replaced dam at Paulins Kill Lake
Old creamery site along Paulins Kill Valley Trail
Stream from Paulins Kill Valley Trail
Billy along Paulins Kill Valley Trail
View from Paulins Kill Valley Trail near Fredon
Derailment site, wheel trucks still in place, Paulins Kill Valley Trail
Stream crossing of Paulins Kill Valley Trail
This one brought back the team of Gerry and John, who's first hike with me was the Portland to Washington one the previous Fall. Also joining was newcomer Bill Neuman. I'd come to respect Billy because he had been in the past a high mileage hiker through Appalachian Mountain Club and he continued to lead shorter hikes on a weekly basis with a regular following. He'd had some knee trouble more recently, but was determined to keep moving.
I'd arranged it so that Billy could cut out early in Blairstown while Gerry, John, and I would do the entire Paulins Kill Valley Trail from Swartzwood to Colombia.
It was a beautiful clear day, an dI got to see the new dam at the base of Paulins Kill Lake that had apparently been built recently, because on a trip in 2003 the lake was drained.
Paulins Kill at Paulina
ALong Paulins Kill Valley Trail
I was consulting a book I had called "24 Great Rail Trails in NJ" on the history and stuff along the way for this trip, and we located a few things I'd never noticed previous times I'd hiked it including the wheel truck left over from a derailment years and years ago.
After Billy cut out we continued on through Blairstown and across the airport at Kalarama, which seemed to take the trail right onto a piece of runway (and the abandoned house that we'd visited previously had been completely cleared of vegetation), then out to Hainesburg. Neither Gerry or John wanted to climb into the viaduct, so we continued on to where the trail officially ended at Warrington. We then continued through the somewhat overgrown section out toward Colombia Lake WMA and hiked the part that was now an access road.
At the Paulina bridge
Truss bridge in Paulina
Rt 94 underpass on Paulins Kill Valley Trail
Foot bridge park at Blairstown
Abandoned house at the airport, Kalarama
Del Water Gap from the Blairstown Airport, Kalarama
Airplane coming in at Blairstown Airport
Former NYS&W right of way at Kalarama, on the airport runway!
View from Paulins Kill Valley Trail in Blairstown Twp.
Paulins Kill Viaduct at Hainesburg
View of Colombia Lake from the NYS&W rail bed
Pipe under Rt 80
As I recall this time, rather than going through the giant pipe under Rt 80 near the lake, we climbed up to Rt 80, ran across the bridge, and then descended on the other side to another giant pipe under the highway which then took us onto another abandoned section of the former NYS&W Railroad which originally went through Colombia, on up through the Water Gap on Karamac Trail, and then to Stroudsburg. Only a short section of it was walkeable. I was able to see where the original right of way turned off in an overgrown cut, and we continued on along the access road along the Paulins Kill which took us out to Rt 46 by the 80 on ramp. We then just walked along the road to the Portland-Colombia footbridge where we parked.
Portland Colombia Toll Bridge
Here's a link to all of the pictures from this hike:
http://s132.photobucket.com/albums/q13/sneezehorse/hike170%205-1-5/
Rt 46 in Colombia NJ
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