Hike #461; Far Hills to Middlesex

 Hike #461 1/3/10

1/3/10 Far Hills to Middlesex with Matt Davis and Shelly Janes

Descending the First Watchung to the Middlebrook Encampment memorial.

Say what? This is Bedminster Township near the beginning of the trail system.

I have conflicting stores for the date of this hike...either 1/2 or 1/3!

Here's a video Matthew made of the hike, it's excellent!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SUTiJgKsZ8c

 

I was amazed when I got to the meeting point for this hike no one was there. Jillane decided she didn't want to go, and I drove around looking to find no one. Fortunitely, Matt Davis showed up and we figured we'd just drive to the beginning and Matt's parents were willing to help out with their car.

We shuttled to Far Hills, where a trail was proposed to be extended to the train station, so this was where we parked.

We wandered I think along Prospect Street to a ball field and walked the perimeter. I've seen on maps there is a "Helen Woodman Preserve" here but we didn't get into it, it was probably on the other side of the creek along the fields.

After walking around the field, we turned right onto Main Street, Rt 202. We continued looking for the trailhead for the Bedminster Township Hike and Bike Trail. The first couple of turns found us nothing. We finally picked up the trail from a parking lot near Bedminster Twp. elementary school. It took us into some woods with some lighted bollards, then along the north edge of the school. We followed the walkway then around the west side and stopped to talk to a lady walking her dog who was interested in what we were doing. She told us a guy usually plows this paved trail section. The snow was rather bad to walk in, but on the trail it was just fine.

Ahead, we saw a strange sign reading "2000 more miles" or something. Still can't figure that one out. We walked the trail south which went into woods, then along the west side of ball fields and back into more woods, then past a pond. Soon, large outlandish pedestrian bridges took us across access roads. The trail seemed to end around where Rt 202 and 206 crossed 287 and so we were stuck walking roads for a bit.

Our next stop would be a Kings Supermarket. We wandered through the store for a bit and were joined by our good friend Shelly Janes. From here, the three of us headed south along 202/206 under Rt 78. Soon, we came to a parking lot on the left. Just off of the road here we walked and found an abandoned building on the left! Of course, we had to go in. There were some really nice fake trees inside the place, and I wanted to go back and take them, but we didn't. Just beyond the building there was a ruined old dam with a former pond that has long since silted in. It was quite pretty.

We turned right and ascended a bit of the hillside to our right and I found another ruin of some kind. We continued ascending through the woods, and when we came within sight of houses we descended again toward the stream that fed the former pond we'd just been at. A lot of this was a Bridgewater Township preserve. This took us out next to a driveway at the Sunset Lake community. We walked along South Shore Road around Sunset Lake and then continued straight to a ninety degree bend in the road where we picked up a trail in Gene G. King Park. This trail took us along the small creek that fed the lake to a parking area and entrance with a bridge to Gene G. King Park. We walked across and back on the bridge, but then continued on along the stream. There were signs warning the area was closed for hunting but we of course ignored them. We followed as best we can the creek and then turned away where it looked like, as per my GPS, the preserve touched the end of a cul de sac. We followed this, Papen Road, for a little while and then after crossing a utility line turned left onto Well Road I think it was. This road had a side road on it I think called Spur Court. At the dead end was a pedestrain access to another cul de sac on Howell Road. We followed this to a right turn on Arrowsmith Drive, then turned right on Argonne Farm Drive. At the end of that cul de sac was the beginning of the Middlebrook Greenway which we'd follow for much of the hike. I didn't know it at the time, but we could've faster accessed the trail from the south on Wishnow Way.

The beginning of the trail had a couple little ponds, the headwaters of the Middle Brook. This preserved was created through cluster developing, and the need for a sanitary sewer easement. The public got a free trail in this win win situation.

The trail was largely developed by scouts, and it had many names reflecting the names of the kids who worked on it. This trail was much nicer than I'd have expected, with lots of boardwalks and outlandish bridges. Many of them were still under construction at this time, but the brook was so small where there weren't bridges we could just hop or step right over. There were also many access points to the trail along the way.

A bridge on the Middlebrook Greenway

In one early section we followed an unmarked path to the south, the future trail route that wasn't marked (for the time being it followed some other right of way to the south) but it was clear and easy to follow. The blazing was pretty bad throughout the entire hike. On this section, simple white circles painted on posts were the only marking. It made no effort to conform to universal blazing standards...but everything else was so good I have no room to complain.

We crossed Mt Vernon Road, then after a nice long section came out to Crimm Road School, after which the trail followed the access to Crim Road Park. At the end of the drive it stayed to the south side of the fields before reentering the woods.

After a bit, we entered Washington Valley Park. I'd led a hike here before, and the blazing was again bad. Somerset County's parks rely on shapes rather than any turn blazes, and they're all screwed into trees and soon grow out of them. It leaves the trees no room to grow. I'd talked to their head ranger who was not at all receptive to adopting standard blazes over the phone.

We continued along the south side of the Middle Brook and reached Newmans Lane, then turned away from Washington Valley Resevoir to follow some more of the trails up hill. They were utilized by Mountain Bikes a lot and so they had a lot of pointless turns that were not really good for hiking. We continued to a neat view over the quarry to the south, then made our way along the trail back to the north, to the shore of the resevoir. I followed an unmarked old woods road down to the shore line, then an unmarked path that led through a low area and up through a hole in a chain link fence to a drive that led back out to Chimney Rock Road at a point just below the main dam. Matt and Shelly fell behind a bit but soon caught up. A group of mountain bikers went by so I felt safer going through this area that sort of looked like we shouldn't be there.

After reaching Chimney Rock Road, it seemed as though a trail went across and up the road a bit before ascending steeply on the other side via some switchbacking. We followed this although it was unmarked. When I talked on the phone with the ranger he'd told me this was an unofficial trail and not to use it, but the next time I'd hike at this place these trails had been added to the map!

This trail led us up to another marked one which we followed right to a spot high above the East Branch of the Middle Brook, then to East Branch Resevoir. We descended off trail here for a little bit down to rocky outcroppings overlooking Buttermilk Falls and the East Branch Resevoir dam. There were two people here to my surprise. We all climbed steeply down the rocks and Matt headed down stream to find a safe crossing. I made my way out onto the slippery dangerous rocks. I was able to jump in the middle and then pulll myself up the other side, and I sort of coerced Shelly into trying it. She made it quite well, but I went back to give her a hand and help pull her up the other side.

Once we were out of the dangerous area, we made our way to the trails and climbed to Chimney Rock, an outstanding viewpoint with a white painted rock. Much of the view was over a quarry which wasn't so nice, but oh well. We followed the trails through the park to the far east side, and then I think we went out a road to Vosseller Ave. From here we didn't go with my original plan, Matt led the way along Vosseler to Hillcrest Road and turned left. It wasn't a very long road walk before we descended through the woods through a property on the First Watchung Mountain that was owned by the Washington Campground Assosiation or something. This was part of the site of the Middlebrook Encampment. On the way down off trail we found a deer head with a giant set of antlers. I showed the guys at work pictures later, and they drooled over them and tried to figure out ways to get out to this park on work time to get them. ugh.

When we reached the base of the ridge, we were at a nice little mowed area with an early American Flag flown by a special act of congress. It was here that may have been the first time the stars and stripes were ever flown over the Continental Army. It had just been delivered from Philadelphia. There were also a few cannons and an outdoor classroom area.

We walked Middlebrook Road from here I think to Mountain Ave and used it to cross Rt 22. As we walked the road south Shelly found a box of free junk along the road, and she took stuff but I don't remember what. I think we turned left on Stephens Ave and then headed off trail through a section of woods along the Bound Brook I think it was. It was a cool section, but it was getting dark. I kicked around a beach ball we'd found, and I also walked across a crazy narrow pipe across the brook.

I think when we reached Union Ave we turned left. Shortly, we reached Crowell Park, with a little pond that was on a tributary to the Bound Brook. We walked along it, then sort of bushwhacked through the dence thickets along the south shore between the lake and houses. When we reached the other side we were almost out to Matt's parent's house.

I was really happy and ready to be done, but then I realized I'd lost my cell phone, my somewhat new Blackberry. We looked around, and Matt and Shelly both were calling it like crazy. Nothing. I ran all the way back to the other end of the lake, then looked on the road and went back Union Blvd to where we crossed, then ran back again. No sign of it. We wandered back and forth for a while along the water, and I was afraid I'd dropped it and that was the end of it. If it was wet I knew it'd be done for.

While calling the thing, Matt noticed a light coming from the water. It was my blackberry, still ringing underwater! I pulled it out, amazed that it was working after having been under water for twenty minutes! It had gone back to it's default ringer from what I'd had it at, but it was working. I immediately took the battery out and put it somewhere dry.

I let it dry by the heater all night, then gave it some time. I turned it back on and it worked perfectly, with some weird blotches on the screen and the buttons stuck a bit. The buttons soon went back to normal and the screen cleared up. Amazing phone! It never stopped working, but after dropping it and submerging it in a puddle another time, the speaker was working poorly, so I decided to trade it in for a new one at the Sprint store, totally free.

Matt went back to his parent's house and got the car to drive us back. I helped him return the car that night before going home. It was an awesome hike, save for the end of it!