Hike #328 2/3/8
2/3/8 Wharton/Mt Hope-Hibernia with "Amish Paul" and Wyatt Hassler, Fred Hafale, Jack Lowry, Shelly Janes, Jason Itell, Jackie De Melo, Jean Fletcher, "DJ Ray" Cordts, "Major Tom" Conroy, Irina Kulikovskaya, Russ Moyer, and Craig Nunn
Group shot near Picitinny
My next hike would be a point to point trip between Hibernia and Wharton NJ connecting previous section hikes I had yet to connect. We met at the Wildcat Ridge Wildlife Management Area parking lot in Hibernia NJ at 8:30 am.
Former Mt. Hope Mineral Railroad in Wharton
Former Mt. Hope Mineral Railroad at Rt 80 underpass
Former Mt. Hope Mineral Railroad at Rt 15 underpass
Former Mt. Hope Mineral Railroad
Major Tom on a major rock
Mt Hope Historical Park
Mt. Hope Historical Park
Mt Hope Historical Park
Old mine pit in Mt. Hope Historical Park
Mine Pits in Mt. Hope Lake Park
Mine pit in Mt. Hope Lake
Old road in Mt. Hope Lake Park
Mt Hope Lake
Mt Hope Pond
Mt. Hope Lake Park
Mt Hope Lake Park
Along former Mt. Hope Mineral Railroad
Along former Mt. Hope Mineral Railroad
Mt. Hope Tilcon quarry
Mt. Hope NJ
The group at Mt. Hope
Iron master's house
Mt. Hope NJ
Mt. Hope NJ
Historic marker
Mt. Hope NJ
Ford-Faesch Manor House, Mt. Hope
Ford-Faesch Manor House, Mt. Hope
Ford-Faesch Manor House, Mt. Hope
Old iron masters house, Ford-Faesch Manor House, Mt. Hope
View into Mt. Hope quarry
Mt. Hope quarry
power line
Mt. Hope
Mt. Hope
Abandoned mine pit
Abandoned mine at Mt. Hope
Mine pit, Mt. Hope
Mine pit, Mt. Hope
Abandoned road at Mt. Hope quarry
Abandoned road at Mt. Hope
Mt Hope quarry
Abandoned road at Mt. Hope
Tilcon, Mt. Hope
Overlooking Mt. Hope quarry
Mt Hope Quarry
View of Mt Hope quarry
hello
Farney Highlands bushwhacking
Off trail near Mt. Hope
Off trail near Mt. Hope
Lake Denmark Road
Lake Denmark Road
Picitinny
howdy
border line
border line
BORDER LINE
Following the boundary
ham
huh
Farney Highlands bushwhacking near Snake Hill Road
Hydrant in the woods
Farney Highalands
hat
Hat tricks in Farney Highlands
Structure off trail in Farney Highlands
Abandoned road in Farney Highlands
A bulldozer in the Farney Highlands
A bulldozer in the Farney Highlands
A bulldozer in the Farney Highlands
Good will is a bulldozer
Caged
Abandoned road in Farney Highlands
Lake Denmark Road
In the Farney Highlands
Lake Denmark
Former Wharton and Northern Railroad, Lake Denmark
Former Wharton and Northern Railroad, Lake Denmark
Former Wharton and Northern Railroad
Former Wharton and Northern Railroad along Lake Denmark
Lake Denmark
Lake Denmark
Lake Denmark
Lake Denmark
Lake Denmark
Lake Denmark
Lake Denmark
Lake Denmark
Development built near the old railroad spur
Tracing the old Oreland Branch of the Wharton and Northern at Marcella
Sign sitting
Along Lake Denmark Road
Looking for the rail spur
Sign sitting
Abandoned spur from the Wharton and Northern railroad to the northern mines at Hibernia
Former rail spur and possible former siding near Marcella
Rail spur, Farney Highlands
Rail spur in the Farney Highlands
Rail spur in the Farney Highlands
Rail spur in the Farney Highlands
Rail spur in the Farney Highlands
Rail spur in the Farney Highlands
Rail spur in Farney Highlands
Rail spur in Farney Highlands
Rail spur in Farney Highlands
Farney Highlands rail spur
Swamp in the Farney Highlands
Former railroad cut for the mines at Upper Hibernia
Former rail bed in Upper Hibernia
Upper Hibernia area
Lake Denmark
Ruins in Upper Hibernia
Climbing ruins in Upper Hibernia
Climbing ruins at upper Hibernia
Ruins at Upper Hibernia
Ruins at upper Hibernia
montar en motocicleta
Along the rail bed in Farney Highlands
Bike along a rail bed in Farney Highlands
Abandoned Hibernia Road descending Wildcat Ridge WMA
Hibernia Mine
Hibernia Mine
Platform at Hibernia Mine
Hibernia Mine
Historic marker
Hibernia Mine
Hibernia Mine Railroad bed
Hibernia Mine ruins
Hibernia Mine ruins
Hibernia Mine railroad, now parking lot at Wildcat Ridge WMA
Joining me this time were "Amish Paul" and Wyatt Hassler (though Paul would only join us for a bit), Fred Hafale, Shelly Janes, Jack Lowry, Jason Itell, Jackie De Melo, DJ Ray Cordts, Jean Fletcher, "Major Tom" Conroy, Irina Kulikovskaya, Russ Moyer, and Craig Nunn. We shuttled cars from here to the Wharton Shop Rite where we walked the road a short distance to the right of way of the former Mt Hope Mineral Railroad which we'd done before. We walked northward on the right of way under Rt 15 and Rt 80 and eventually reached Mt Hope Historical Park. Amish Paul turned back at about this point, and Fred, Russ, Shelly, Jack, Jean, and Craig went ahead. DJ Ray, Jackie, Jason, Major Tom, Wyatt, and myself turned left and began following one of the trails up hill. We established that we'd meet at a trail intersection ahead via cell phone. Jason and Jackie took the time to bust up some ice in an old mine pit along the way. We continued along and met the rest of the group, and turned left following the northernmost blazed trails passing huge mine pits along an ore vein. The trail led us up hill a bit more, then back down passing more ore pits, and another trail led us to the left through a meadow and then out of Mt Hope Historical Park, into Mt Hope Lake Park where the blazes ended abruptly in the middle of the woods. We descended to find some more mining areas along an old woods road and then soon reached Mt Hope Lake. We followed some woods roads to the east for a bit and then headed back south to the Mt Hope Mineral Railroad bed where we'd joined it on a trip a year prior. I wanted to finish walking the line so we continued from here north to hike the section I had'nt done. We soon reached the public road and the entrance to the Mt Hope Quarry, now operated by Tilcon. There was an historic building on a hillside nearby which we checked out, and then decided to bushwhack behind it to get around the quarry. We made our way into woods, and then across a power line on a faint path which led us to some large mining pits. We made our way around them on an old woods road that led us out to an abandoned paved road ascending the hillside to the left. We were afforded a great view of the Tilcon operations from here, as well as the giant lake that was once quarry land. We continued on this road leading us to several quarry roads coming together. We tried to get through this area as quickly as possible as not to be detected. The road we chose wrapped around a bit of a knoll leading to a high area with piles of dirt. We climbed up some of them and made our way into the woods. I found myself atop a giant vertical cliff with an awesome view over the Tilcon operations. Fred led much of the group deeper into the woods to meet up with me ahead. After a break we descended a bit making our way northeast, trying to keep away from the quarry to the right, but also away from the Picitinny Arsenal lands to the left. We continued through the woods and ended up having to descend to the west to Lake Denmark Road, County Rt 666 where we'd walked on our previous visit because the tract of land between it and the quarry was far too narrow to walk undetected. We were skirting the large fence work that was around Picitinny, and continued on until the quarry boundary began turning off away from the road. Here, we opted to wait until no cars were around and dash into the woods. Jean and Craig decided they would walk the roads for a bit while I led the rest of the group running into the woods close to the property line. We continued through and came to a faint woods road which we tried to follow. We passed by the pyrotechnics area that was fenced from the rear, and then headed around it a bit to the right. We were startled by two men on motorcycles riding an atv trail, and when they did'nt pursue us I figured they were cool, so Wyatt and I went to ask them for directions. They were indeed cool, and they ridiculed the Superbowl which was going on the same day. We continued on heading into a piece of county park land on Snake Hill Road, a nice dirt road, and then had a break. Miraculously, Craig and Jean showed up the exact same time as us here! After our break, we bushwhacked into the woods on the opposite side of the road through a bit of wetlands and then onto a high hill above a pond. We continued on until we hit some sort of an old woods road in a field with a small tower in it. There was also a large earth mover and an abandoned camper on a piece of abandoned road. Fred had the road shown on his map as a former through road as well. I can't remember the name of it. After taking a group picture on the machine, we continued down hill on the abandoned road to Lake Denmark Road just north of Lake Denmark itself. There was a little pull off along the road here, and we continued across the road into some of the Picitinny Land down to the right of way of the former Wharton and Northern Railroad and checked out the land bridge across a finger of the lake. We tried standing on the ice, which made noises so it probably was'nt so safe. Just ahead of us we heard voices and dogs, so we decided to get out of there as quickly as possible. We continued on the rail bed out of the Picitinny area until we found an abandoned spur line that headed off to the right. This led us to another part of Lake Denmark Road in a more residential area. The railroad once crossed the road here, but the right of way was obliterated by the new houses. We walked Lake Denmark Road north and soon had to turn right on I think it was Rt 513. This road led us sort of southeast to where the spur line we were walking before used to cross the road. Ahead of us to the left, or northeast, the right of way lay in part of Wildcat Ridge Wildlife Management Area and looked to be in great shape. We began walking the line into the woods. There were a few homes above us on our shelf to the left, but soon we were in deep woods again. We had a couple small tributary crossings, but for the most part the rail bed was very easy to walk. It led us sort of east and then made sharp turn to the right heading more south. The right of way seemed to give way to some sort of a field, but it actually did continued. We crossed a small road, then had to bushwhack parallel to the right of way above to the right (except DJ Ray who decided to fight through the weeds in the cut). Some of the others decided to go over to the right while I stayed on the rail bed, leading us to a parking area for Wildcat Ridge WMA. This was also the location of the northern Hibernia Mines which I'd never been to. There were a few other trails I had never done that connected with Four Birds Trail as well as other things. I knew I'd have to come back here to explore further. Fred convinced me that this time it would be prudent to head down hill to the parking area using the abandoned Hibernia Road since it would soon be dark. Fred went ahead with some of the group, while most of us waited behind and checked out some of the incredible ruins of some of the mining operations. We climbed around on some of the structures before heading down hill on the abandoned road. We got lost off the road one time, but soon found it, and then began to descend to the others waiting on the Hibernia Mine Railroad right of way below. I slipped and fell on my elbo on my way down, which I was a bit concerned about because the next day was to be my first day working for the the Hunterdon County Department of Parks and Recreation, a life changing thing. Fortunitely, I was not too injured, just a little sore. We continued to the rail bed and checked out the mouth of the old Hibernia Mine, now a preserved home for thousands of bats. We headed out of here and then went for dinner at the diner across from the shop rite in Wharton.
1.) On former Mt Hope Mineral Railroad bed in Wharton NJ1a.) Passing under the freeway in Wharton (FH)1b.) Me under the freeway (FH)2.) On Mt Hope Mineral Railroad bed heading north from Wharton3.) Major Tom on a glacial erratic near Mt Hope3a.) In Mt Hope Historic Park (FH)3b.) I think this is the group waiting for me to catch up...(FH)3c.) The group walking along the mine pits (FH)3d.) A mine pit (FH)3e.) Walking by a fenced in foundation full of water (FH)4.) Old mine pit in Mt Hope Historical Park5.) Mt Hope Lake in Mt Hope Lake Park5a.) Mt Hope Lake (FH)5b-5c.) On the old woods road heading down to the rail bed (FH)6.) The group on the Mt Hope Mineral Railroad bed7.) Heading north on Mt Hope Mineral Railroad8.) Passing by the entrance to Mt Hope Tilcon place8a-8b.) At the entrance to the quarry area (FH)9.) Ford-Faesch Manor House at Mt Hope10.) Historic marker at the historic house11.) Jackie and Jason at the manor house yard in Mt Hope12.) Behind the Ford-Faesch Manor House13.) View of the Tilcon Mt HOpe facility13a.) Another view (FH)14.) View of Tilcon from a power line and abandoned road14a.) Another power line view (FH)14b-14d.) An old mining pit in the woods near Tilcon (FH)15.) View from an abandoned road toward the quarry area16.) The group on the abandoned road16a.) Quarry view17.) View of the Tilcon operation at Mt Hope17a.) On the dirt piles overlooking Tilcon at Mt Hope (FH)17b.) The group on the quarry road (FH)18.) Another view of Tilcon18a.) A sign....(FH)18b-18d.) Heading along the Picitinny border from the quarry (FH)19.) Wyatt at the border of Picitinny Arsenal20.) Me at the army border21.) Pyrotechnics area at Picitinny22.) DJ Ray on the log that gets you into the pyrotechnic area22a.) Tributary crossing (FH)23.) An old fire hydrant out in the woods!24.) Some sort of an old tower on a hill near Picitinny25.) Abandoned road off Lake Denmark Road with a trailer on it26.) The group on an earth mover along the abandoned road27.) Another group shot, only Wyatt's head got cut off28.) The abandoned road heading down toward Lake Denmark29.) Crossing Lake Denmark Road30.) Wharton and Northern Railroad bed crossing Lake Denmark on a land bridge31.) Wharton and Northern Railroad land bridge on Lake Denmark31a-31b.) The group approaching the land bridge (FH)31c.) The group on the land bridge rail bed (FH)32.) View of Lake Denmark33.) Lake Denmark34.) On the ice on Lake Denmark34a-34b.) More of the group on the ice (FH)35.) The rail bed along Lake Denmark36.) Wyatt on a sign entering a developement37.) On the spur from the Wharton and northern heading northeast38.) What may have been a siding on the W&N spur39.) Jack playing his guitar on the mining spur line39a-39b.) The group on the rail spur I think (FH)40.) DJ Ray on a log along the rail bed41.) Large cut on the rail bed42.) The rail bed overgrown near the northern Hibernia Mine43.) North Hibernia mine area44.) Wyatt with some ruins near the end of the rail bed45.) Wyatt and Jason atop some ruins46.) Jason on top of the ruins47.) View from abandoned Hibernia Road48-49.) Abandoned lower HIbernia Mine, now home to thousands of bats.50.) Historical marker at Hibernia Mine50a.) Hibernia Mine entrance (FH)51.) Hibernia Mine Railroad right of way52-53.) Some of the old mine works ruins54.) DJ Ray in the parking lot
Major Tom on Mt Hope
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