Schuylkill Trail

Heading out to the Schuykill Trail - John Bartram Trail. This will be my first time out on this rail-trail. I bought a Novara bike from REI. I was a little reticent about purchasing a store brand but was pleasantly surprised. It had everything I wanted, aluminum frame, hybrid, step thru, 3 sizes to choose from and was a really cute yellow! I am quite short and was excited to find a bike I liked in a size small. Will let you know how trail was, tah!

A Little NJ County Park

Ok, I am gonna add a lovely little NJ park. Boundary Creek Natural Resource Area. A big name for a tiny park meant for birdwatching and quiet reflection on the beauty of nature. It is so tidy and easy to get around. Wide flat trails, easy to access observation platforms, and even binoculars. Excellent park for any one, but especially handicapped or the elderly who have some trouble with more rustic trails and parks. I hope I explained that well, I mean no disrespect but I just recently recovered from an injury to my achilles tendon. The thing that upset me the most was the thought that I would not be able to visit my parks! This one was just what I needed.

Round Top Park

Hey, it may be a township park, but it is still a PA park! A special park on top of a mountain overlooking The Valley.

Nockamixon State Park

After visiting family in the Endless Mountains I wanted to visit a park close to home to enjoy the fall colors. The lake at Nockamixon is so large I figured after such a dry summer the trees there had the best chance for a nice color show. I was not dissappointed. I saw loons, a crane, ducks and a few turkey vultures. The day use side of this park is extensive, tons of parking, picnic tables and hiking/biking trails. The only thing this park did wrong was to put the awesome modern cabins on the opposite side of the lake, away from the day use area. This lake is big, so the trip around is a bit far. I got to enjoy a long weekend here a year or so ago.

Neshaminy State Park

I got myself a nice state park calendar for 2010. September was featuring Neshaminy SP. It ended up being a 20 car drive from my home. It has a really fun looking pool, with big sliding tubes and water sprinklers. I went to walk along the Delaware River with my daughters and our dogs. The paths were flat and easy. The river was accessible at many points on the River Walk. A very nice day was had by all!

View from my GPSP campsite. The site was level but the gravel they used made it difficult to hammer my tent stakes in.

Gifford Pinchot State Park

We spent the weekend at G. Pinchot S. P. This was our first time at this park, as we usually head for the Poconos for tent camping. The park was easy to find, with signs to keep you from getting lost. I almost always reserve a site, this time it was  lakeside. I highly recommend reserving a site, the good sites are usually all filled on the weekends. Check in was simple, they just asked if you had a reservation, if so, what site number, and if you needed directions to your site.

Batona Trail

...and this little doggie ended up in my backpack!

Batona Trail

This little doggie walked the whole way, ...

Apple Pie Hill

Fire tower on Apple Pie Hill. You can climb to the top but not in the building. That is my son way up there, I was not about to join him.

Batona Trail

Wetland flowers along the Batona Trail.

Batona Trail in the Pine Barrens

We hit the Batona Trail this weekend. Just a short jaunt. 1 kid, 2 teenagers and 2 tiny dogs and all we brought to eat were some Doritos, almonds and Propel. Forgot the dog treats but it turns out that tiny dogs will eat Doritos:) We started at the Carranza Memorial and went up to Apple Pie Hill. It was about 3 miles one way. The trail is pretty easy except when trekking through soft sand on the roads. It wound nicely next to some wetlands, but an almost total lack of wildlife.
We met up with lots of other people enjoying the Pine Barrens, campers, hikers and dirt bikers. Just about the nicest group of people I have met out in the woods, everybody said HI, even the dirt biking teenagers. Just remember if you do go use bug spray with DEET, we came home tick free but that is not always the case.

Early summer in NJ :)

We've been enjoying the parks in NJ lately. The weather has just been beautiful. Though the wet winter and sporadic heavy rains have been a boon for the mosquito population. Becca and I just biked the Pemberton Rail Trail. It is easily accessed right off Hanover Street. Free parking. It is next to a large Wawa. The trail is only about 3 miles long, to and back, but it has a fun little spur that adds a couple miles. Easy! A great starter trail, but if you are like us, we needed a bit more. So, we went to Smithville Park, which is just down route 38 from Pemberton. Smithville is also an easy ride, but can be crowded with a lot of foot traffic. Probably better to hike this one. Nice smooth trails, restrooms near the playground, docks to walk out on and a bridge path across the pond.

The most family friendly camping :)

If you are considering camping for the first time, there is no better park than Locust Lake State Park. Camping is available on both sides of the small lake, but the best side for tent camping is only open from Memorial Day to Labor Day. 

The staff is wonderful, always friendly and helpful. The camp store is open every day. Bathrooms are plentiful, heated, hot water, flush toilets and tended to daily. The beach is unguarded but the water is shallow. Best of all is the PAVED 1 mile trail around the lake..nice;)