June 11 - 18

Hot Fun in the Summertime

The high water on the Musconetcong makes for a challenging kayaking adventure.

Here come those summer days, so take advantage of a schedule full of cool things for you and your family to enjoy. Or choose among dozens of natural attractions or outdoor activities suggested on our website. You'll feel like yours elf again!

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Dance to the Music

Dance the day away while you explore upcycled and recycled goods vendors, gardening and outdoor groups, environmental preservation exhibitors and related non-profit organizations and vendors at the Sustainably Green Music and Arts Festival on Saturday (June 14) in Washington Borough. The live music, original art, and crafts celebration combines with the Washington Borough Farmers Market annual kick-off. 10am - 5pm. Washington Business Improvement District, 908/689-4800.

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Want To Take You Higher

The view from the top of Mt. Tammany is worth the sweat. Photo: Erin Burnett

Whatever your plans in the great outdoors this summer, make hiking in the Delaware Water Gap part of your adventure. The Gap offers trails for all hikers from novice to expert. Come with a sense of wonder, a willingness to explore, and you may find a trail blazed just for you.

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Everyday People

The Newton Firehouse opened in 1891 and housed two active fire companies until the late 1970s when the Newton fire company moved. The building was converted into a museum in 1979. Newton Fire Company is one of the oldest active fire companies in the United States, in continuous operation since 1836.

A mix of historic buildings of varying architectural styles, a walkable downtown, and plentiful eateries surrounded by rural tranquility make Newton a fusion of the then and the now, with great expectations for the to be. Investigate!

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Stand!

Climate change legislation is getting short shrift these days, while people who tend the land have observed physical weather-related changes that affect their occupations. Some have had to rethink their direction while others continue on, hoping for the best. But onward thinkers all!

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June 5 - 12

Green Pastures, Bovine Beauty

This bucolic pasture along Long Bridge Road is part of a forty-mile loop that parallels the Pequest River through its upper reaches, featuring a spectrum of natural features and the region's heritage.

Ever wonder why a herd of cows seems so smug and satisfied while they munch on tender tendrils of fescue and rye? Go find yourself a green pasture, sit beside some still water and see what all the fuss is about.
Here's your essential guide to the adventures ahead. And keep our calendar close! It's filled with events that will help navigate this most gratifying of seasons.

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Spring Fling

Historic Lusscroft Farm, once home to the finest purebred Guernsey herd in the region, holds its annual Spring Fling this Saturday.

Located in the northwest corner of Sussex County, Lusscroft Farm has a rich and diverse past, an early model of progressive dairy farming that later became one of the first farms devoted to dairy research in the United States, gaining national prominence as the site where artificial insemination of dairy cows was developed. The historic farm, including fields and pastures, ponds, woodland, various barnyards, buildings, barns and farm structures, is now part of High Point State Park.
Take the opportunity to visit this Saturday, June 7 at Lusscroft's Spring Fling! Guided bird walks, Manor House tours, avian wildlife lectures, a photography contest, plant sale, barn sale, cottage sale, vendors and more are all part of a promising day. The event is presented by The Heritage and Agriculture Association, Inc., in cooperation with the NJ DEP/Div. of Parks & Forestry. 10am - 4pm. $5 admission, under 18 free. 50 Neilson Road in Wantage. Click or call 973/940-8855.

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Pasturized Polyphony

Na'bodach - The Band prowls the pasture at Bobolink.

The bovine heritage of Northwest New Jersey is alive and well at Bobolink Dairy and Bakehouse, where they produce grass-fed beef and make artisanal cheeses and wood fired breads. You can get a good taste of Bobolink this Sunday, June 8, on the lawn of the farmhouse listening to Na'bodach - The Band, who “nabodicize” traditional Celtic tunes and songs by incorporating modern rhythms, styles, and instrumentation. And there will be good food as well including selections from Bobolink's delicious farm to fork picnic menu with culinary delights made from their own farm products! Family friendly, BYOB. No dogs please. Food service starts at 3pm, music 4-6:30pm, $15 per person. Reservations are essential!

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Your Neighbor's Cow

Dairy workers at the Springhouse Creamery.

A gallon of milk from the supermarket is a combined effort of thousands of cows, raised on any number of farms who knows where. But single herd milk is just that: milk exclusively from the cows that reside on one dairy farm. Northwest New Jersey is now home to a few dairy farmers who sell their milk directly to the consumer. It may not seem like much, but it is an important step forward in developing a more direct relationship between food and farm. Cream at the top!

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Grass to the Glass

Debra Natyzak uses her dad’s old DeLaval bucket milker, the one he employed here at Valley Fall Farm in Frelinghuysen, where he and his wife arrived in 1930. Retired from a career as a chemist at M&M Mars, Inc., in Hackettstown, Debra and her late husband, Roman Oscada, kept Valley Fall productive.

Many states have adopted regulations to allow consumer access to carefully produced fresh, unprocessed whole milk. New Jersey is the only state with a complete prohibition against distribution of “raw” milk, according to the Farm to Consumer Legal Defense Fund. Here's why choices matter...

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Shear Delight

Bob Thompson

Jacobs are the sheep of choice at Jenny Jump Farm, where Joan Schneiber has raised them for more than thirty years. This rare, black-and-white horned breed is prized for its wool, mothering, and hardiness. While commercially worthless because of their natural color, their fleece is a favorite among hand-spinners. Joan spins and crafts with about half her annual fleece—creating hats, shawls, blankets, and more on looms and by hand—a long procession of things to work on, until its time to go outside and tend to the sheep. You can meet Joan and the Jacobs during this weekend's NJ Fibershed Barn Crawl, June 7-8, 10am-4pm. The farm is located at 668 County Road 519, Belvidere. Call (908) 319-0382 or email for more information.

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Calendar Markers

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May 28 - June 4

Walks of Life

The way to Tillman Ravine in Stokes State Forest begins on a narrow path through a dense stand of towering bare-trunked red and white pines. (Mary Jasch)

Make your spring complete by following any number of paths and trails in Northwest New Jersey. Stretch your legs, breath fresh air and stay strong! You got the action, you got the motion! Here's your essential guide to the adventures ahead. And keep our calendar close! It's filled with events that will help navigate this most gratifying of seasons.

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Serious Steps

For a less formal visit to hallowed historical turf, journey down to the northwest corner of Bernardsville, to a road named Hardscrabble, and the field where the New Jersey Brigade arrived in December, 1779 to begin the Jockey Hollow Encampment. Trails crisscross wooded knolls, open meadows, and streams through, not only Morristown National Historical Park, but the neighboring Scherman Hoffman Wildlife Sanctuary, the historic Cross Estate, and mysterious hillsides full of legends. More...

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Walking the Line

Cinder path on the Sussex Branch.

At one time, nearly every town in New Jersey was served by railroads, despite the great effort they took to construct. Countless people's lives focused on the railroad, relying on it for industry, food, employment, and transportation. Nearly all the railroads have, of course, been abandoned; tracks removed, buildings demolished. The remaining "scars" in the earth are level paths of black cinder dirt or ballast stone connecting towns and villages, factories and mines. Because railroad grades traverse such varied terrain, a walk along them can be just as rewarding as hiking on conventional trails.

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Lush Life

Construction of the Delaware and Raritan (D&R) Canal began in 1830 to provide a swift and safe route from Philadelphia to New York City. The ensuing endeavor cut a large meandering letter "Y" through central New Jersey and the southern reaches of the Skylands region. Today the canal's route provides a sixty-seven mile corridor of recreation and wildlife that invites your pleasure by foot, pedal or paddle. The tow path, along which mules drew loaded barges along the waterway, still exists for the most part uninterrupted, providing a natural surface of negligible incline easy on walkers and bikers.

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Passages

What was left of Riegelsville Bridge after flood of 1903 was replaced by Roebling's Steel suspension bridge which still stands.

Although the New Jersey historical writer, Frank Dale, was nationally recognized for his book Delaware Diary and other work, he was always generous in assisting our efforts to characterize the personality of Northwest New Jersey. He provided sketches from a book he was preparing, called Bridges Over the Delaware, that described the many river crossings in Hunterdon County. The story still makes a wonderful travel guide to that section of the Delaware Valley. Here it is...

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Up and Coming

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May 21 - 28

Memorial Day

General Robert McAllister’s grave at Belvidere Cemetery

There are somewhere around 1,200 historical markers in New Jersey, 500 of them in the Northwest Skylands region. Many are monuments to war veterans from all eras, among them 58,000 New Jersey men who served in the Civil War. With reenlistments, the state would eventually receive credit for more than 80,000 terms of service. The legacies of General Robert McAllister, Charles Hopkins, Daniel Bailey, Henry Ryerson and other heroic figures from the Civil War are told by monuments, museums, and living history groups. Seek out their stories of triumph and tragedy.

This Memorial Day Weekend, take advantage of a calendar bursting with intriguing things for you and your family to enjoy. Or choose among dozens of natural attractions or outdoor activities suggested on our website.

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Art In The Park

Enjoy fine craft demonstrations and hands-on activities for both adults and children at Peters Valley.

Get your summer creative schedule in order with a visit to Art in the Park Day this Saturday, May 24 (rain or shine) at Peters Valley School of Craft. Visitors will be treated to artist demonstrations of the various crafts that are taught there such as: Blacksmithing, Ceramics, Fibers, Fine Metals, Printmaking, Weaving and Woodworking. There will be hands-on activities for both adults and children!Enjoy Fine Craft Demonstrations. And don't miss the Peters Valley Exhibition & Retail Galleries featuring fine craft for sale by over 200 artisans. The outdoor event is free and open to the public. (Sorry, no dogs allowed.) 19 Kuhn Rd, Layton NJ, in the beautiful Delaware Water Gap NRA.

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Visit The Wild Woods This Summer!

The Flatbrook-Roy

Got the secret desire to be an explorer? Envy Indiana Jones? Ever yearn for the excitement of bushwhacking through uncharted lands? Adventure is yours, right here in New Jersey. Discover over 305,000 acres of little known forests, meadows, streams, and lakes collectively called Wildlife Management Areas - all public property, all owned by the people of New Jersey. This land is your land!

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Count the Ways!

Landscape artist St. Clair Sullivan climbs the Red Dot trail to the top of Mt. Tammany every morning that weather permits.

Warren County offers a wide range of recreational opportunities for all kinds of people. Outdoor lovers enjoy rigorous hikes, abundant wildlife and superb scenery. For those who favor history, the river valleys become avenues marked by eight thousand years of human endeavor from the initial Lenni Lenape habitation, through the days of Colonial settlement, to the heady times of the Morris Canal and the great railroads. Others come to savor classic architecture and country hospitality in the small villages. All agree that Warren County’s rural nature is the key to its allure. Here are fifty ways to see Warren!

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Waterfall Hunting

Buttermilk Falls in the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area is bursting at the seams!

There are waterfalls scattered throughout the Skylands region, but nowhere so plentiful than in the Kittatinny Mountains, where streams find their way down steep slopes to the Delaware River. Within the Kittatinny range, which parallels a forty-mile stretch of the river in Warren and Sussex Counties, several waterfalls are only a short walk away from parking areas. Now's the time!

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May 14 - 21

Land Grab

Game camera captures image of a late night fox and skunk land dispute.

Your backyard can be more than just an area you need to mow on Saturdays. Even on a small lot in a congested suburban area, you can grow enough food to put away dozens of quarts of delicious homegrown produce for consumption throughout the year. And it is fascinating to take note of the wide variety of wildlife with which you share your domain. You may even want to invite more!
When you're done planning, take advantage of a calendar budding with intriguing things for you and your family to enjoy. Or check our Day Trip Map for good ideas for a Sunday drive! For the more aerobically inclined can choose among dozens of natural attractions or outdoor activities suggested on our website.

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How does your garden grow?

Shawna Bengivenni admires her organically grown garden in Wantage.

Local gardeners generally consider mid-May the frost-free line for our region -- the target time for getting vulnerable plants in the garden. Everyone can grow their own veggies in garden plots, raised beds, deck planters or any small space. Here are some great tips on how to grow your best garden in Mary Jasch's best (and easiest) veggie garden primer.

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Hide and Seek

This spring, head for the woods on a special type of hunt. You won't find explicit directions, but if you log any appreciable trail time in the spring, you'll eventually come across a vernal pool. These distinctive wetlands are seasonal surprises, maybe something that you've never noticed before. The pools play hide and seek with woods walkers and the critters that inhabit them.

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Passeriforme Passion

From late April through May our diversity of habitat brings dozens of types of warblers and vireos, scarlet tanagers, northern orioles, indigo buntings, thrushes and brown thrashers into our forests.

As the season progresses, the forests come alive above the leaf line with a growing chorus of migratory songbirds. Passeriformes, the largest bird order, includes over 5,000 species—mostly small perching birds, many of them songbirds, having evolved complex muscles to control their sound-producing organ called a syrinx, different from our vocal chords. The more you listen, the more you hear passerine calls in all their incredible beauty and complexity. The mix of ridges, valleys, and wetlands in our region creates a perfect stage for this seasonal symphony—best enjoyed from any trail, roadside, or even your window.

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North of the tension line

Photo by Dan Balogh

Drive up Route 23 North, and after passing countless big box stores, fast food chains and traffic lights, the landscape suddenly turns all green. And steep. This is wild West Milford, home to over 100 miles of marked hiking trails and more 1,000-foot summits than anyplace else in the Jersey Highlands. Bag some peaks!

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May 7 - 14

Every Day is Mother's Day!

Mother Mink! Illustration: Emily Rose Peeples

Don't forget to play the Mother's Day card this weekend. Express your affection with exuberance! The New Jersey Skylands can supply the perfect spot to remind your mom how much you care. Take advantage of a calendar budding with intriguing things for you and your family to enjoy. Here's your essential guide to the adventures ahead.

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Say it with flowers!

The formal garden at the Cross Estate, part of Morristown National Historical Park. Photos by Mary Jasch

You can bring your mom flowers, or take her to them! Northwestern New Jersey is blessed with extraordinary public gardens where visitors can experience every spring-blooming plant that will grow in the region. Saturday May 10 is National Public Gardens Day! Or take her wildflower hunting. It's the Greatest Show In Earth!

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Hacklebarney Heaven

Take mom to Hacklebarney State Park, 892 acres of glacial valley, with gorges carved by the Black River and two tributaries that feed it, the Rinehart and Trout Brooks. Explore the trails leading through these Robin Hood woods. Stand on outcrops jutting over the river and gaze in awe at the grass, moss and seedlings living in the rocks brought here long ago. Walk on...

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Karamac Candy

You’re likely to be watched as you saunter down this old railbed.

A former railbed just north of the Delaware Water Gap provides a short but satisfying taste of days past in a beautiful setting. This short route is also perfect for those who are not inclined to hike longer, more difficult trails. A perfect spring warm up!

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Paddling Moms

Take mom on a self-propelled cruise! Quick and tricky or quiet and easy; canoe, kayak, raft or tube; the floating experience in Northwest New Jersey comes in many flavors. A vast river bottomland that collects water from the surrounding mountains in a network of creeks and wetlands in Sussex County's Vernon Township make for a classic canoeing adventure on Wawayanda and Pochuck Creeks.

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April 23 - 30

Boundless Imagination

Thirty-five years ago Ricky Boscarino bought a hunting cabin in the Sandyston woods and has been modifying it with a passion ever since, his home and studio, Luna Parc.

An artist's eye reminds us that the world is filled with infinite possibility. If only we could appreciate those simple gifts found just outside our door, we might be more willing to set aside our prejudices, less inclined to dredge up old grievances, make war.
Here's your essential guide to the adventures ahead. Keep our calendar close! It's filled with events that will help navigate this most gratifying of seasons. Take it to the limit!

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Funky Town

Steampunk has remade a name for itself in the funky Warren County Borough of Washington with the annual Steampunk Music and Art Fair which takes place this Saturday, April 26 (10am - 5pm). This is a free-to-attend event! No tickets are required to come enjoy a full day of live music, artisan vendors, street performers, retro-futuristic costumes and general steampunk shenanigans. Live music will be provided by This Way to the Egress, Dust Bowl Faeries, Durty Rotten Parrots, A Halo Called Fred. Routes 31 & 57 in Warren County. Click or call 908/689-4800.

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Treasures of the Swamp

The Great Swamp’s flooded forest floor in Spring. (George Aronson)

In 1959, galvanized community activists fought a proposed jetport that threatened the Great Swamp watershed. They raised enough money and support to donate thousands of acres to the U.S. Department of the Interior, and the Great Swamp Wildlife Refuge was born.
This weekend (April 26-27) the Great Swamp Watershed Association coordinates a self-paced scavenger hunt, solving clues at six different Great Swamp locations. Each site visited earns raffle tickets for amazing prizes. The hunt concludes with a bonfire, s’mores, and the eagerly awaited raffle. Begin your exploration at any of the participating locations: Helen C. Fenske Visitor Center (Harding Twp.), GSWA Headquarters (Harding Twp.), Outdoor Education Center (Chatham), Scherman Hoffman Wildlife Sanctuary (Bernardsville), 
Environmental Education Center (Basking Ridge), or the The Raptor Trust (Millington).
Join the hunt!

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One Track Mind

The Rockaway River begins its descent at Boonton Falls where the fall line generated water power and attracted industry through what is now Grace Lord Park. Follow the Boonton Greenway Trail through the park and along pathways and town streets, stopping at historic locations. Photo: Brian Kutner

A progression of relentless efforts to commemorate New Jersey’s abundant transportation heritage have found renewed focus at Boonton’s Grace Lord Park, where the mighty splendor of the Rockaway River gorge traces a forgotten industrial past.

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In Your Element

Explore the wilds of Cranberry Lake!

My kayak has become my favorite mode for reaching wildness, taking me places otherwise inaccessible. I can paddle into spots that are only a few inches deep and explore those hard-to-get-to sections of a river or hidden cove on a lake. The nose of my kayak leads to experiences that are unique and special to me. It is my vessel to adventure and discovery.

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Obadiah La Tourette

The building looms over the bustling Route 24, once called Chester Pike, just east of Long Valley center. At once, upon seeing it, you know that the mill holds a thousand stories and probably a thousand more secrets in its ancient timbers.

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April 17 - 24

This is not our fate!

Along the Watchtower: The fragility of Earth, conveyed by the Blue Marble images taken by the Apollo 17 crew on the way to the Moon in 1972, is apparently only a figment of "climate change religion."

Calling this spring a “season of renewal”, while the jokers and thieves in the White House eviscerate long-standing environmental protections, feels a bit like throwing a garden party at a coal mine. Earth Day has been abolished by executive order! Too much confusion? Get some relief from the miracles of your natural world. The hour is getting late!

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Dig Your Earth

In the 1940s, when transportation shortages due to the war made it hard to move fruits and vegetables to market, twenty million Victory Gardens were planted in backyards, front yards, empty lots and rooftops. Now we're faced with uncertain prices and food quality. That $1.79 you'll pay for a pound of zucchini in the grocery store will buy enough seed to grow a whole summer's supply for your family. And if you find yourself with too much, maybe you can trade with your neighbor for some cucumbers.

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Seeds of Passion

In the Ramapo Mountains of Ringwood lies one of New Jersey’s most exquisite gems, the New Jersey State Botanical Garden. Its ninety-six cultivated acres are a secret to many — for others, a joyous discovery waiting to happen. Celebrate Earth Day Weekend (April 18-20) with a visit, where you’ll find the beauty of nature and a soothing respite from this busy world, plus many special programs. Click or call 973/962-9534. 2 Morris Rd., Ringwood

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The Greatest Show in Earth

Silver-dollar sized flowers of Mayapple hide below the foliage in the Musconetcong Gorge. (Rachel Mackow)

Enjoying flowers does not require knowing the first thing about them. The attraction of a flower is natural; seductive to people, much as to butterflies and bees, by a magical combination of hue, symmetry and fragrance. Wooded trails such as those at Musconetcong Gorge Reservation promise a great show of native wildflower displays.

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A Tribute to Primal Growth

Hutcheson Memorial Forest, a 65-acre tract of old growth forest in Franklin Township, Somerset County, is a conundrum in time and purpose. It lays in limbo between a no-management policy mandated to preserve the forest's character, and influences brought by suburbia that force change. The forest is one of only three patches of virgin woods remaining in New Jersey, and one of the last uncut, unburned White Oak--American Beech forests in the country. It is listed in the National Park Service Registry of Natural landmarks. Check here for public tours and events.

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Homegrown Home

The straw bale house at Genesis Farm.

Natural building considers a structure’s impact on the local environment and culture, the global ecology, the needs and well-being of the inhabitants, and the quality of the building itself. The straw bale house at Genesis Farm in Frelinghuysen demonstrates the use of locally available, time-tested renewable materials to construct an energy efficient, aesthetically pleasing home. Have a look!

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April 9 - 16

Early Risers

A barn owl chick poses in a hay loft after being rehabilitated at the Mercer Wildlife Center and before being returned to the nest box. (Photo: MacKenzie Hall)

Multiplication is the order of the season, and--rain, snow, sleet, or hail--the show must go on! Look and listen for the signs of spring and making babies!! Let your senses soak up the season — its fleeting beauty, warmth, scents, and most of all the peace and rejuvenation in its experience. More...
Here's your essential guide to the adventures ahead. Keep our calendar close! It's filled with events that will help navigate this most gratifying of seasons. Up and at 'em!

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Find your fish!

Fishing isn't just a hobby; it's a beloved pastime in Northwest New Jersey. You'll find a wide range of fishing environments—from meandering rivers to serene lakes and babbling mountain streams. The fishing opportunities are equally diverse, featuring trout, both wild and stocked, as well as bass, walleye, carp, musky, shad, and more. Whether you prefer the art of fly fishing, the precision of casting, or just a lazy worm and bobber, there's something for every angler, and spring is the time to get started!

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A Stealth River

Opening day of fishing season on the Whippany at Speedwell Dam in Morristown

If ever there was a river that expresses New Jerseyans' attitude toward their state's natural resources, the Whippany River is it. The Whippany rises in privacy in Mendham Township, and ends in obscurity amid a maze of highways in the Meadows of East Hanover, Hanover, and Parsippany, at the confluence of the Passaic, Rockaway, and Whippany Rivers. On the way, it provides us with some pretty views and some good fishing, and slices right through our lives. Mostly we drive, walk, work and live near it, never knowing it's there.

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The Big House

Rutherfurd Hall

The Rutherfurd family holdings have occupied what is now Allamuchy and Green Townships (spanning Warren and Sussex Counties) since 1758, including the home built in 1902 by Winthrop Rutherfurd known by the family as the Big House, identified by the rest of us as Rutherfurd Hall. The eighteen-thousand square foot Tudor "country house", with thirty-eight rooms, elegant interior woodwork, fireplaces, ceilings and original furnishings is now on both NJ and National Registers of Historic Places. Opened to the public in April of 2012 as venue for public lectures, concerts, fairs and festivals, house tours, and private events, Rutherfurd Hall is a living archive of the family legacy. 1686 Route 517, Allamuchy.

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Shining Examples

The Essence of Fluorescence. A thirty-two-foot-long pageant of rocks at the Franklin Mineral Museum that includes many of the ninety-plus fluorescent minerals found here, comes alive under ultraviolet light.

Is it the bronze statue of the miner on the front lawn greeting the visitor or perhaps the full-size replica mine inside the building? Or could it be the lure of dinosaur footprints from New Jersey, the world's largest polished slabs of petrified wood, scorpions, dinosaur dung, and over 3,000 specimens of local minerals that brings a steady stream of visitors to the Franklin Mineral Museum each year. The Museum, a non-profit educational institution which opened in 1965, is located at 32 Evans Street in Franklin (Sussex County).

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Musket Memories

Among the battles and skirmishes to take place in New Jersey during the War of Independence, the Battle of Bound Brook was an early, though not crushing, defeat on the record of the Continental Army near what is recognized as the first Middlebrook Encampment.
This weekend (April 12-13), American and British soldiers again do battle in street and field in Bound Brook, recreating the events of 248 years ago. Colonial crafters, encampment, children's activities, special programs and tours and more round out the event, which is coordinated by the Friends of the Abraham Staats House. Please check the website for details and to confirm times.

17 Von Steuben Ln, South Bound Brook.

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