By: Richard Federman, RNJCC Strategic Advisor
Did you know that there’s a location in South Jersey where you can spot the Philadelphia skyline and the casinos of Atlantic City without doing more than swiveling your head? Are you aware that one of the state’s longest boardwalks – and certainly the most scenic – has nothing to do with a shore town?
I’ve been fortunate enough over the years to visit dozens and dozens of New Jersey’s natural gems, and to glean a good deal about the state’s fascinating history along the way. Much of this exploration has resulted from my association with a student organization at Rowan University, where I have taught for the past 17 years. Since 2013 I have served as faculty advisor for something called the GEO Club, and through this organization I have shared, along with students, alumni, and other instructors, in a journey of discovery that only a state with the rich history and diversity of natural environments that New Jersey possesses could provide.
We have searched for shards of glass along the sandy pathways of Estell Manor in Belleplain State Forest and handled bog iron from the 18th century pits at Batsto Village, both echoes of South Jersey’s manufacturing past. We’ve unearthed coal – or something similar to it – at Allamuchy Mountain State Park in the New Jersey Highlands, and scanned the water’s smooth surface at Round Valley Reservoir in hopes of glimpsing the famous ghost town submerged beneath.
My students and I have traversed many of New Jersey’s great hiking trails, including the Appalachian Trail (72 miles of which is in the state) and the 52-mile Batona Trail, New Jersey’s only fully-contained long distance hiking path. The memories will never leave you. Have you spent an afternoon lunching in the pavilion atop Sunrise Mountain, along Kittatinny Ridge north of the Delaware Water Gap, with 360 degrees views into three states? Traveled the nearly 2-mile Pochuck Boardwalk en route to the stiff (but rewarding) climb up the “stairway to heaven?” Navigated the trails of Ramapo Mountain State Forest to explore the ruins of Van Slyke Castle?
If you prefer travel by water to that by foot, New Jersey provides a host of opportunities. The Club has paddled the Salem River in the shadow of the Delaware Memorial Bridge, floated peacefully on the lily pad draped surface of Wilson Lake at Scotland Run Park as bald eagles circled overhead, and caught a ferry across the Delaware Bay to Lewes. Catch the sun just right and you may capture the reflection of the High Point Monument, marking the state’s maximum elevation, upon the serene waters of Lake Marcia in High Point State Park. Or, perhaps, grab a fishing rod and cast the surf of the wonderfully wild and pristine Island Beach State Park.
Whichever part of our state intrigues you, or that you can access, adventure awaits. Climb, as we have, to the top of Baldpate Mountain, then descend and cross the Delaware on foot to explore the museum documenting Washington’s more dramatic crossing some 250 years ago. Visit the daunting rock outcroppings of the Palisades and climb the Giant’s Stairs, in an area shaped by geologic violence that pre-dates the dinosaurs. Or wander the quiet, lonely sand roads of New Jersey’s Pine Barrens, keeping an eye out for colonial era ruins and, just maybe, a glimpse of the state’s most famous cryptid!
I’ve been fortunate to see all of this and more within New Jersey; even more so to witness the joy and wonder that my students experience as they explore our state’s wild side, past and present. I encourage you to seize the opportunity as well. Get out there and explore, connect, and enjoy.
Let’s get wild New Jersey!
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