Hike #356 7/19/8
7/19/8 Pittsown-Flemington with Jason Itell, Shelly Janes, Mary Tomsia, "Major Tom" Conroy, Tom Petrucci, and Jason-Michael "Jamal" Flintosh
Group shot...well...is it?
Here's a link to all of the photos from this hike. Don't forget to check the sub folders on the left for the great pics by Shelly and Jamal!
http://s278.photobucket.com/albums/kk97/sneezehorse2/hike356%207-19-8/
Sadly, the original journal to this one was lost to the fire as well....if anyone has it let me know!
Old Pittstown Station
Old Pittstown Station
Pittstown Branch of the Lehigh Valley Railroad
Capoolong Creek
Berries!
Praying Mantis
Berries!
Old Pittstown Branch
Pittstown Branch
Barbed wire
Flowers along Capoolong Creek
Flowers along Capoolong Creek
SHEEPS!
Old Pittstown train station
Old Pittstown train station
Along the abandoned Pittstown Branch
Taking a dip in Capoolong Creek
Pittstown Branch
FROG!!
Pittstown Branch
Praying Mantis
Praying Mantis
Along the Capoolong Creek Trail
Along the Capoolong Creek Trail
Along the Pittstown Branch
Mary along the Capoolong Creek Trail
Along the Pittstown Branch
Break along the Pittstown Branch
bowow
Historic marker
Rail car along Landsdown Trail
Along Landsdown Trail
BERRIES!
Too funny
Huh?
YES!
Okay
Historic marker
Hamburger steak
AAA? LOL!
Along the South Branch near Melick's Bridge
South Branch near Melick's Bridge
South Branch near Melick's Bridge
LV railroad trestle south of Melicks Bridge
Former LV rail trestle over the South Branch
Swimming in the South Branch
Swimming in the South Branch
Caterpillar in Rhinehardts Section of the South Branch Reservation
Along the South Branch in the Rhinehardts Section
South Branch
South Branch
South Branch at Pine Hill
Old pavilion at Pine Hill
Old pavilion at Pine Hill
Pavilion at Pine Hill
Pavilion at Pine Hill
Pavilion at Pine Hill
Pavilion at Pine Hill
A Yurt near Pine Hill
Along Hamden Road
Hamden Road
In the Valinsky's Section of the South Branch Reservation
Former Lehigh Valley Railroad near Valinsky's
South Branch Reservation
Valinsky's Section of the South Branch Reservation
Rail car, literally
Along the South Branch
Valinsky's Section of the South Branch Reservation
Valinsky's Section of the South Branch Reservation
South Branch near Valinsky's
South Branch at Valinsky's
South Branch at Valinsky's
Floating in the South Branch
Floating in the South Branch
South Branch
South Branch of the Raritan
South Branch
South Branch near Sunnyside.
South Branch at Sunnyside Picnic Area
Memorial along the South Branch
Memorial along the South Branch
Memorial along the South Branch
Memorial along the South Branch at Awossogame Grove
Memorial site, Awossogame Grove at Sunnyside Picnic Area
Culvert under the LV tracks near Sunnyside
Culvert under the LV tracks near Sunnyside
BERRIES!
This was a great summer for wine berries...
Former LV tracks
Former LV tracks
BERRIES
Berries on Echo Hill
We met a guy and his cat at Echo Hill. Of course, when we see a cat, everything is held up!
We met a guy and his cat at Echo Hill
Sweet cat at Echo Hill
Echo Hill
This guy we met at Echo Hill brought his cat to different parks and somehow determines whether or not the cat liked the area.
Building at Echo Hill
Echo Hill Environmental Education Center
Main building at Echo Hill
Main lodge at Echo Hill...eating hershey bars
Echo Hill
Deer at Echo Hill
Echo Hill
Echo Hill
Stanton Station
Bridge at Stanton Station
Bridge at Stanton Station
Railroad bridge in the Stanton Station section of the South Branch Reservation
Jumping off the South Branch bridge pier
Jumping off the bridge pier
Swimming at the trestle
South Branch trestle swimming
South Branch trestle swimming
South Branch trestle swimming
South Branch trestle swimming
South Branch trestle swimming
South Branch trestle swimming
South Branch trestle swimming
South Branch trestle swimming
South Branch trestle swimming
South Branch trestle swimming
South Branch trestle swimming
South Branch trestle swimming
South Branch trestle swimming
Skyler demonstrates the stroke he invented: "The Retarded Sperm"
Skyler demonstrates the stroke he invented: "The Retarded Sperm"
Skyler demonstrates the stroke he invented: "The Retarded Sperm"
Skyler demonstrates the stroke he invented: "The Retarded Sperm"
Skyler demonstrates the stroke he invented: "The Retarded Sperm"
Skyler
South branch trestle
Former LV railroad
Former LV tracks
Former LV tracks
Bat box near Packer's Island
South Branch Reservation
Wings Section of the South Branch Reservation
Wings Section of the South Branch Reservation
Wings Section of the South Branch Reservation
Wings Section of the South Branch Reservation
Wings Section of the South Branch Reservation
Wings Section of the South Branch Reservation
Crossing the South Branch at the Wings Section
We met in the morning at the Stop N Shop in Flemington and shuttled cars to Pittstown, our beginning point.
We first walked up the road in Pittstown to the access to the former Pittstown Branch of the Lehigh Valley Railroad, now a 3.7 mile rail trail in Capoolong Creek Wildlife Management Area. The old station was still standing where we got onto it. I think we actually got on it and then had to backtrack to the station, then turn around and go the other way again because we got on it at the wrong point.
The first section of this hike went incredibly slow because we were stuffing our faces with red wine berries. We ate a considerable amount. Jason accidently ate a stink bug which we still joke about to this day. I also stopped to take a dip in the creek which was nice.
At the end of the trail section we crossed the active former Lehigh Valley RR tracks and then turned right on Lower Landsdowne Road for a bit. Skyler joined us a bit late, having parked in Clinton and walked the Landsdown Trail to meet up with us. There was a church with a very amusing sign in front of it "Is your butt as big as God's but" or something.
We continued and turned right on Hamden Road which was blocked off just ahead. The road was now a trail beyond with a foot bridge where the road bridge used to be. We followed the road, but just before the footbridge we turned right on the South Branch Trail, a Hunterdon Parks trail which led along the South Branch of the Raritan down stream parallel with a field. We took a good long swim in a somewhat deep spot underneath the Lehigh Valley Railroad bridge just ahead.
From here, the trail continued through the South Branch Reservation Pieces (we'd just left Melick's Bridge), and this one was the Rhinehardts section. We walked until the trail began to turn back inland and we could see the next road bridge at Pine Hill. We decided to skirt a cliffs on the edge of the river to the bridge. I stayed in the water to spot people. At one point, Mary slipped and began to fall forward. I actually caught her somehow, but not before she got some nasty scrapes. We continued to Pine Hill/Camp Buck Road where there was a loop trail on the opposite side of the road. It was not a through route, but I gave people the option of doing the loop or not. I forget all who went, but we did it.
Next, we crossed the old truss bridge and the road became dirt as it passed former Camp Buck. We then turned right on Hamden Road which immediately became dirt and very nice along the South Branch. We then turned left into the Valinsky's Section. This section did not have a trail yet, but easements were in place that it could be done. Hunterdon just has never pursued it. We were able to walk for a while on an unmarked trail but it disappeared and we were bushwhacking. We soon reached the railroad tracks. We paralleled them briefly and then a perfect cleared area led us on a high hill above the river heading down stream. We had an easy time for a while, but then ended up in weeds. It was so bad we gave up on it and decided to make our way south in the river itself, which was pretty refreshing anyway. We came back up when we reached Kiceniuk Road and Sunnyside Picnic Area. This was our next trail section.
The trail here took us into Awassogame Grove where there was a 9-11 memorial, then along the river across Old Clinton Road. The trail continued to a tributary where it turned up to the railroad tracks and ended. We continued on the tracks and made a left turn up into Echo Hill Environmental Education Center. We followed the main trail here to the left which took us up to the north fields and then towards the buildings. We met a guy there who had a cat in a carrier, and he told the story of how he brings his cat to all of these different park areas all over the state, and described which ones the cat liked and didn't. Quite an interesting fellow, and a nice friendly cat too.
We went to the main building where we ate all of the chocolate bars that were left there. So bad. We then continued around on the trail and back down to Lilac Drive. We took that south to Stanton Road and turned right. We cross over the river on a bridge and then got on the next trail section at the Stanton Station Section.
While we were heading up the trail, the group went ahead of me and somehow got on the abandoned former trail route to the left. The current trail route gos right and circumvents "Cole's Cliff". A dangerous, narrow section of the trail went along a very steep drop off where a fall might be fatal. A former park employee named Tammy Cole once fell off of this section and so everyone referred to it as Cole's Cliff. I had'nt been on the section yet, but really liked it. Even though the trail was closed, no one ever bothered to remove the blazes and so people were walking that way anyway. Part of the problem was the location of a sign at the beginning of an easement section telling to stay on the trail. In the months following this I moved the sign to the proper trail route and painted the old metal blazes brown so I could still find them but they would'nt confuse hikers on the regular orange blazes.
We soon reached the crossing of the railroad tracks, and I jumped off the abutment of the bridge into the South Branch a bit. We then moved on along the trail heading south. This trail was interesting, as it took us back through a field, then parallel with the tracks, back into the woods, and then across a shallow section of the river onto an island, then across the second shallow section and out under Rt 31. This section was unofficial and maintained by a horse group, but still great for hiking. We were now in the Wings Section. From here, the trail took us along the river out to a dead end on a little peninsula. It was necessary to wade across here as well.
After this I think we turned right, headed south on River Road (which has since been realigned) and then turned right on Minneakoning Road to Rt 31. I misinterpreted the distance on this one because we had to go quite a distance to get back to Stop N Shop!
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