Tag: Califon NJ

Jersey Dirt from Natirar Park, Nov 2 (Routes & Missing Links)

UPDATE: THIS RIDE IS OVER, BUT WE’LL BE POSTING MORE RIDES SOON. You can find a brief ride summary and some photos on Steve’s Strava activity:
https://www.strava.com/activities/12806981854

This area of NJ has some of the nicest gravel riding in our region: Dirt roads through woods, forests, and along peaceful streams; Ridges and hills with beautiful pastoral views; Quaint small towns with General Stores. You’ll probably find at least one cooler in the woods with local maple syrup and an on-your-honor jar for depositing money.

See Strava to RSVP and find more details about the ride and pace groups: https://www.strava.com/clubs/513005/group_events/1825379

Strava is currently stripping external links from their pages. We have posted the missing links below.

QUESTIONS? You can email Steve at track.smart@gmail.com, but first see the RSVP link on Strava and GrNY’s tips and guidelines page, which contain a lot of useful information.

ROUTE LINKS:

Long (60 mi, >6000 ft): https://ridewithgps.com/routes/47048264
Medium (54 mi, >4900 ft): https://ridewithgps.com/routes/47048304
Short (40 mi, >3600 ft): https://ridewithgps.com/routes/47048336

START LOCATION: Natirar Park. Take the Peapack Rd entrance and go to the first parking area: https://goo.gl/maps/Naqdh1oga6mN5FRS8. Check the RWGPS routes for clarification.

END OF RIDE HANGOUT: Picnic in Natirar Park. We’ll bring some cold drinks and snacks.

DISCLAIMER: This is totally informal. You ride at your own risk and are responsible for your own safety. You are expected to be self-sufficient. We cannot guarantee the condition or safety of roads and trails. Nor can we control the behavior of other riders. This is not a supported event. We expect everyone to be an experienced cyclist who can repair a flat, carry appropriate food and hydration, and navigate independently if they lose the group.

(Photo: Courtesy of Ken)

NEW Jersey Dirt – Featuring Fresh Dirt Routes from David S.

Awesome day on the bike in NJ. Our thanks to David S. for cooking up some great new routes for us! And a second thanks, for being our personal guide (for the Long Distance group) with interesting facts, real-time hazard warnings, local history, and making sure we got up-close and personal with the Buffalo in Readington! All three pace groups (short/medium/long) arrived back at Burnt Mills Park at about the same time (just a few minutes apart). Everyone rode hard, enjoyed the excellent scenery, and most people stayed after the ride for cold drinks and homemade baked goods courtesy of Kathy. Thanks everyone for making it a fun day!

ROUTES:
– Long: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/47183096
– Medium:https://ridewithgps.com/routes/47183729
– Short: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/47183731

Steve’s Strava Post: https://www.strava.com/activities/12241042261

Steve leading out the long distance group.

Some views from our route.

Up close and personal with the buffalo of Readington.

New Year’s Gravel Ride in NJ

On Monday January 2, 2023 a half-dozen GrNY riders headed to Gladstone, NJ for a New Year’s Eve (observed) gravel ride.  It was an unseasonably warm January day.  The weather forecasters predicted that the foggy morning would be followed by sunshine, though the sun never quite materialized during our ride.  Still, we appreciated the relative warmth for this time of year!

Our group travelled at a sociable pace (with occasional harder efforts on the hills) for our approximately 54 mile ride with ~4500 ft of climbing.  Everyone was in good spirits and happy to be outside after a busy, and cold, holiday season.  Overall, this was a fun and relaxed ride over quiet dirt roads, past farm fields, forests, and some beautiful locations, including Teetertown Ravine and the Lockewood Gorge.  The gray, cloudy light in the photos doesn’t do these locations justice.

In terms of logistics, car drivers started in the picturesque Natirar Park, while train riders hopped off at Far Hills Station, just 2 miles away.

ROUTE LINK: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/36696613

OUR ACTUAL RIDE: https://www.strava.com/activities/8327653872

NOTES:

– Watch out for the crazy sharp *hairpin turn* on a steep downhill before the 26 mile mark! Take it slow! I added some custom cues to the route in Ride with GPS.

– The Lockewood Gorge part of the ride is beautiful, but… some sections are more hike-a-bike than rideable in recent times. Those sections are short.

– This route skips around the Columbia Trail multi-use path and uses scenic rural roads instead.  The trail is often muddy in the winter and for a few days after rainfall.  The dirt roads in the region fare much better after rain.  The trail also gets pretty busy on nicer days, with kids, dog walkers, and even groups of horseback riders.

Views of the rugged, but beautiful Teetertown Ravine Preserve.
Views of the rugged, but beautiful Teetertown Ravine Preserve.
Farms and forests along our route.
There were many farms and forests along our route.

Natirar Park to Lockwood Gorge (NJ Gravel)

This was an idyllic ride through forests, farms, and scenic ridges, along many miles of rivers and streams. We stopped for apple cider donuts and other delights at mile 14 at Hacklebarney Farms Cider Mill. We arrived before they officially opened (at a rather late 10am), but they came out to greet us and opened up for us anyway. Great folks! Most of our riders completed the challenging loop that goes through the Teetertown Ravine Nature Preserve (miles 21 to 28), which included a satisfying climb followed by a somewhat technical dirt/gravel descent. I say technical because of the large gulleys and washouts across many sections of road, presumably due to recent storms. We regrouped for lunch in Califon, then continued along the Raritan River Rd within the Lockewood Gorge. It was beautiful back there. Just use a bit of caution on the rocky sections and potentially walk them. They are quite short. After the gorge, our ride continued along more beautiful, wooded stream sides. At mile 40, Kathy and I stopped to purchase a quart of maple syrup right from the source (as evidenced by the blue tubing in the woods). It was an on-your-honor, drop in your money, sort of operation. At mile 47, we stopped for cold drinks and snacks at the Oldwick Market/General Store. The last quarter of the ride included hills with great views across farm and forest. Our overall distance was 54 miles with somewhere around 4500 feet of climbing recorded across our various devices.

ROUTE: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/36696613

Important Safety Notes:

Miles 33-36 (Lockwood Gorge): There are short stretches with large rocks that you may want to walk rather than ride.

Mile 21: There is a 6 mile loop that starts here. Half is paved and half is a steep, minimally maintained dirt road/trail through Teetertown preserve. You need to choose your own adventure:

  1. In the route that I posted (“counter-clockwise”), you end up going down a steep dirt section that currently has washed out gullies, so you’ll need to be careful to avoid gaining too much speed and wiping out. In this direction, the most beautiful part of the loop (Teetertown Preserve) disappears fast because it is all downhill.
  2. In my old version (“clockwise” around the loop) you have to claw your way up the dirt section, but you get more time to take in the scenery of Teetertown Preserve as you climb. HOWEVER, you also have to make sure you slow down before a very sketchy hairpin turn (paved) on the descent. That hairpin turn is why I reversed the loop for this group ride. I’m not really sure that I made the right choice. So choose your direction and your hazard accordingly! Watch out for the hairpin turn before you reach mile 26 if you choose the clockwise direction. Watch out for the sketchy dirt descent if you choose the counter-clockwise direction.
  3. Horses: The ride ventures onto the Columbia Trail for short stretches. There are a lot of horseback riders who use the trail. Stop and ask the riders before passing. You don’t want to spook a horse (for your safety and that of the rider).

-Steve