My Suburban Escapes

There’s a ring of woodlands about an hour from here, the lakes region of northern NJ, due west on 287 until it banks a hard right north onto I-87 to avoid a mountain. In spring and summer, its beauty is evident: lush forest and babbling brooks, wineries and apple orchards, and of course, lakes galore (1,700 in the state).  I suspect a secret lake lifestyle not unlike summer camp.  I stumbled into it last August returning from a water park with a gaggle of girls in search of a Dairy Queen.  A gentle rain fell as the sun set, the steam rising from Upper Greenwood Lake to mix with pink and purple clouds. We couldn’t resist running down a pier and jumping in, ostensibly to bath the water park funk away….heavenly. And I’ll bet dollars to doughnuts this is the way they spend their summers over there.

            In winter the beauty is in ice formations and long views afforded by lack of foliage. It’s austere, lacking people and cars, a frozen tundra.   Fishermen dot the solid lakes, waterfalls freeze into glistening sculpture and snowshoes have the right of way. But don’t let that “closed for the season” feeling fool you.  There’s plenty to do and see.

            From a God’s eye view this area is part of the Appalachian Mountain Range, and the Appalachian Trail serpentines its way throughout.  Bring the focus in and it’s the Ramapo Mountains, a forested chain of the Appalachians; further yet, an extension of Harriman and Bear Mountain state parks. It all came about when a glacier slid by millions of years ago, carving the whole landscape. Man carved it further into states (New York and New Jersey), counties (Rockland and Orange, Bergen, Passaic and Sussex) then private parcels and public parks.  You’ll weave in and around the state and county lines many times as you explore. 

I love spending a winter day on reconnaissance, just driving through the countryside and popping in wherever suits me.  Recently I forged a fun path through the middle of this northern NJ ring on a simple route:  287 west to 87north to17 north to 17A to 94 west/south and back home via 94 south to 23 east to 287 north.  

There are plenty of diversions along the way: a renaissance village, a shooting range, ski lodges, crumbling mines and mansions, old stone churches and hundreds of hiking trails.  The New York-New Jersey Trail Conference has great maps from which to chart your path. Or just set your GPS to the following coordinates and head out: 

Sterling Forest State Park, Ringwood State Park, Mount Peter, Warwick (grab lunch downtown), Wawayanda State Park and Mountain Creek Resort.  

Ringwood State Park

1304 Sloatsburg Road

Ringwood, NJ 07456

973.962.7031

4,444 acres assembled from pioneer farmsteads. Highlights include Skylands Manor House, the New Jersey Botanical Gardens, St. Luke’s Chapel on Shepherd Lake and Thunder Mountain public shooting range. Ramble around the deserted grounds to find crumbling statues and old fountains, sphinxes and columns peaking out from the snow.   Another cool spot just up the road in the town of Ringwood is “Live at Drew’s,” a semi-secretive live music pop up in the living room of a former ad exec turned producer.  He does it his way, with a super chill byob atmosphere. It’s an incredible find for live music lovers.

Sterling Forest State Park

116 Old Forge Road

Tuxedo Park, NY 10987

845-351-5907

22,000 acres originally owned by the Sterling Iron Works which mined and shipped iron ore from sites still seen in the park, including the one from which came the iron forged to build the chain across the Hudson River during the Revolutionary War.  The park was established in 1998 when NY State paid $55 million for 12,280 acres with a combination of public and private funds. The Visitors’ Center on Sterling Lake is awesome:  a huge horizontal interactive topography map, gift shop, trail maps and informative helpful employees.  Begin your journey here, especially if you’re hiking.

Mount Peter

51 Old Mt. Peter Road

Warwick, NY 10990

845.986.4940

This is the cutest lil ol’ ski area you ever did see. It opened in 1936 to showcase Macy’s ski apparel and has since become the oldest operating ski area in NY.  There’s a charming lodge if you just need a cuppa joe, and 15 trails served by 3 double chair lifts if you need some exercise. Lessons and equipment rentals are available. A perfect spot for beginners. 

Waywayanda State Park

885 Warwick Turnpike

Hewitt, NJ  07421

973.853.4462

34,350 acres spanning from Vernon Township to West Milford. There are 60 miles of hiking trails, including 20 miles of the Appalachian Trail.  Its first inhabitants were the Wolf branch of the Leni-Lenape tribe whose Chief Black Eagle was one of the few chiefs who supported Washington in the Revolution. 

Mountain Creek

200 Route 94

Vernon Valley, NJ 07462

973.827.2000

Known as Great Gorge/Vernon Valley from 1971-1997 (for you old timers), it was sold, renovated and re-named Mountain Creek in 2010. I’ve taken the kids often in summer to its water park (affectionately called Class Action Park or Liability Land as it’s a bit rough and tumble), but hadn’t yet experienced it in winter.  I visited over MLK weekend and had a ball, even though we skied in negative 15 degrees with the wind chill.  There’s just enough terrain to work the ski kinks out for a day after a year off.  We stayed at The Appalachian, the lodge at the base seemingly dropped down into New Jersey from the West by tornado.  We hit the heated poor and hot tub après ski, then had a fantastic dinner at The Hawk’s Watch in the main Mountain Creek lodge. It’s a gorgeous room, with a great outdoor firepit from which to watch the night skiiers freeze.