On a whim, we decided to revisit Baldpate Mountain on Memorial Day Weekend.
It had been over 2 years since we first checked it out (“Baldpate Mountain in August“) and we were looking for something under an hour away.
For complete hike details check out our main Baldpate Mountain – Ted Stiles Preserve page.
This is one of the best parks for hiking in Central Jersey, right next to Washington Crossing with several parking areas to choose from and a decent amount of trails.
By linking most of the non-out-and-back sections of the park we put together an 8.3m route.
Want less? Just cut out the Honey Hollow section listed below (turn back before taking the ORANGE trail) and reduce this route by about 2.5m and/or leave off the RED (NW Loop Trail) to reduce by 1.2m.
We’d had rain all week long and it was humid out. That special kind of thick Jersey humidity that makes it hard to breathe. (Good thing there is a nice uphill first off on the Summit Trail).
On the way there, I looked up our trail blog and hike page we have for Baldpate… and in it, I noted that the park had the potential to be muddy after rains and that the Honey Hollow section was buggy.
Hmmm. I suppose I should check my own hike notes before choosing a trail.
The trails were muddy in spots but not really bad. Honey Hollow was buggy but not as much as when we’d gone in August (really need to check out this park in the Fall next time).
The trails in that section are more overgrown and see less use – though recent trail maintenance was obvious on some of the trails. Cedar Grove and the south part of the Kuser Trail were the most overgrown, with some sticker bushes.
Since we’d first checked out this park, there is a new trail map, a new trail (Yellow – Switchback Trail), and it looked like the trail markings had been improved.
Miles: 8.3
Parking: N40 19.094 W74 53.425 [note: there are multiple parking areas for this park.]
Route: BLUE (Summit Trail) – WHITE (Ridge Trail) – RED (NW Loop Trail) – WHITE (Ridge Trail) – ORANGE (Copper Hill) – RED (Honey Hollow) – ORANGE* (Cedar Grove) – BLUE (Kuser) – RIGHT onto ORANGE (Copper Hill) – WHITE (Ridge Trail) – Paved Park Trail – BLUE (Summit Trail)
*Did not notice an ORANGE trail marker at the junction. It is a RIGHT off the RED trail, just before crossing a bridge.
I love Baldpate. And did you know there is another group trying to kick butt and fix up the trails? Check out the Baldpate Riders group for future trail maintenance dates!
facebook.com/groups/baldpateriders/
Once again, you provided another great writeup!
-Jeff C
Jeff – Thanks for the info, I wasn’t aware of that group.
-Dawn
We hiked yesterday (3/29/2014). It rained steadily. Some places on the trail, around the open meadow, were very muddy, but the mud was not very deep. Steady hiking shoes are needed to cross these muddy places. Howell Living Farm is a nice stop. You can buy hot food in its visit center. We tried their lentil vegetable shop. Delicious.