Paddle a beautiful lake with islands and surrounded by an interesting shoreline.
Wawayanda Lake is in the center of the state park and getting out on the water gives a different perspective than hiking the trails, many of which hug the shore line.
Immediately to the left of the launch is a small cove with a lot of lily pads near a spillway.
In the center of the lake are several islands of different sizes. All the way out to the southern most reaches is another large area of lily pads.
Some pumphouse remains are also visible on the shore, near a view point off the Lake Loop (formerly the Pumphouse Trail).
Miles: 4.0. Entire length of lake. About 3.0-3.5 hrs at a slow pace. Lake Size: 255 acres. Average Depth: 30′
| Miles 4.0 | Detailed instructions and photos follow below. |
| Park info | Wawayanda State Park |
| Nearby kayak | Monksville Reservoir |
| Nearby hikes; this park | Furnace Loop; Lake Loop; Lake Loop and Twin Bridges; Hoeferlin, Cedar Swamp, Red Dot; Iron Mountain and Hoeferlin Loop; Old Coal Trail, Lookout Lake, Laurel Pond Trail. |
Our two cents:
Scenic but very popular. Rentals available and this is a good place for beginners. Pack a lunch and land on an island for a picnic.
Note that the park often closes temporarily due to capacity on summer days… sometimes by early morning. It’s more crowded closer to the launch. Avid paddlers can head out to the far end to try for more solitude, but we found this to be a busy place even with an early start.
Updated: 7/2024 – Page refreshed, not re-kayaked.
Parking: N41.18860° W74.42673° [Boat Lot]
“Wawayanda Boathouse”, Boat Launch, Highland Lakes, NJ 07422.
From the south: 287N to exit 55 towards 511/Wanaque/Pompton Lakes. Right at bottom of the ramp and follow 511/Ringwood Ave/Greenwood Lake Turnpike through town.
The road will curve left and pass Monksville Reservoir and then Greenwood Lake. The road name changes to Warwick Turnpike.
The park entrance on the left, about 19 miles since getting on 511. Drive past the visitor center lot (fee gate in season) and follow the park road for a bit.
Turn left at the sign for Wawayanda Lake. Drive through the first parking lot (for the beach), and continue to the boat launch lot.
Note: Google and GPS software may direct you to the auxiliary entrance near Barry Lakes instead of the main entrance. This gate may be open seasonally, only weekends/holidays, with limited hours (check the park site). If it’s closed you’ll either need to hike from that lot over to the boat launch lot or drive back around.
Google/GPS may also show several of the trails in Wawayanda as drivable roads… they aren’t. Driving is allowed on part of Cherry Ridge but you really don’t want to drive through the park.
Wawayanda charges an entrance fee Memorial – Labor day; which is covered by the NJ State Park Pass.
Restrooms:
Regular bathroom in the main lot by the visitor center and at both Wawayanda lake parking lots – the first (beach lot) and the second (boat launch lot).
Composting toilets are by the Furnace which is near the junction of Laurel Pond and Double Pond trails.
Kayak Rentals:
Available in the boat launch parking lot in season; contact the park office for info on availability.
Book:
Appears in Quiet Water New Jersey (2010) and Quiet Water Mid-Atlantic (2018).
Note: Our go-to kayaking book is Quiet Water New Jersey (2010), available as an e-book or a used printed book.
The newer version is “Quiet Water Mid-Atlantic (2018)”. This contains 13 of the 52 locations in the New Jersey-only book and is available both in printed and online formats.
Related: Kayaking NJ overview page.
Launch:
Easy; from a dock or walk in from the sandy shore. A new floating dock has been installed since we’ve taken these photos.
The Route:
Wawayanda is a wide open lake so if it’s windy it’s will get a bit choppy.
One of the larger islands is on the right.
Rocky shoreline.
Lily pads at the south end of the lake. There were less people past the main island, and this end is quieter.
Heading back, the beach visible in the distance.
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Kayaked 8/28/16. 4.0 miles: