The Curlis Lake Woods Trails loop through mature beech, maple, and oak trees and traverse a half-mile of undeveloped lake-shore. The trail system consists of a backbone trail used by horseback riders, cyclists, and walkers that alternates between open fields … Read More
Writing this review was a struggle because the whole of these three preserves is less than the sum of its parts… Herrontown Woods sits in the center, and is charming. The trail system is well marked, and while there are … Read More
To stay true to the Army’s line of march, we strongly suggest that you start this walk at the D&R canal parking area in the far SW corner of the map. Downloading the GeoPDF map and installing it on your … Read More
Formerly the Stony Brook-Millstone Watershed Reserve, the Watershed Reserve is a 930 acre site in Pennington, about 20 minutes from Princeton and half an hour from Trenton. It provides 10 miles of hiking trails, is home to Honey Brook Organic … Read More
Pole Tree Pasture In 2010, Mercer County merged 5 separate parks into the “Mercer Meadows, a 1,619 acre utopian park for walking, cycling, and wildlife observation. Primarily consisting of acres upon acres of wildflower meadows. Frankly, while there are some pretty … Read More
Carson Road Woods is a superb, 183 acre swathe of preserved farmland midway between Princeton and Trenton. The preserve is a mix of woodlands and open fields, with mowed walk-ways along the margins. In a few places, trails are cut through woodlands, including, notably, an awe-inspiring stand of beech.
Goat Hill Park was acquired in 2009 by the State of NJ, and is managed as a satellite park of Washington Crossing. The current park is mostly flat, but delivers 5 spectacular viewpoints, all of which are now accessible on blazed trails.
The Laurie Chauncey Trail (“LCT”) is a gorgeous, 2 mile loop around the fringes of the ETS Campus. It stands next to the Ettl Farm Trail (“EFT”), a second loop, which adds some scenic variations and another mile or so of hiking. Both trails track along Stony Brook, a fairly considerable stream that drains much of Hopewell Township and Princeton before joining up with the Millstone in West Windsor. These trails are relatively flat with just enough undulation to be interesting.
Every July, usually a week or two after the 4th of July, the wineberries (wild raspberries) start to ripen in open shade along the slopes of local mountains more than 300 feet or so above sea level. I’m not necessarily suggesting you need to go for a big harvest. My wife and I love hiking this time of year, just scanning the sides of the trail for ruby-red raspberries.
Suitable for hiking or biking (see Biking Notes): This has been one of our favorite walks on Baldpate for years, but we’ve never written about it in part because a critical segment was missing from the County’s map. This hike takes you through one of the very few stands of pine trees to be found on Baldpate, via a narrow, twisting trail that’s beautiful and fun to walk in almost any season. However, my favorite time to do this hike is in the winter, after a dusting of snow. Another great time to walk this is in July when the wild raspberries are in season. (Driving time is about 25 minutes; rated for intermediate to experienced hikers for elevations and because trails are poorly blazed. Intermediate hikers should load a GR Series Map into their smart phone, and be prepared for a longish hike.)