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“go hiking more” is one of my current goals on 43 things and i’ve been doing a pretty good job of following through on it this year. most of my waking moments are spent in a sea of overstimuli and there’s something very appealing to me about going to a place where it’s actually quiet and i can get away from IM, 60fps videogames and my ipod trying to drown out server hum.

since january i’ve taken three hikes out of 50 hikes in new jersey (i did another from the book, mount tammany, twice last year). the first was with kevin & kristin at cattus island. very easy and relaxing walk, nice views of the marsh and bays. it’s probably be much better in the spring but it was worthwhile anyway and i’d like to go back once everything’s in bloom and the animals are back. we took the blue trail loop to the white trail that takes you up the beach, backtracked and then rejoined the blue trail back to the cooper environmental center, which was surprisingly a lot of fun.

last month beth & i checked out cheesequake state park. it was super muddy, which hindered our progress but there was a nice variety in elevation, vegetation and terrain. we took the yellow trail once around and then went on part of the red trail before looping back. the red trail goes a bit deeper into the park so it will be good to check out again on a drier, warmer day. one strange point of interest was a pile of fur or hair or something on top of a discarded section of deck:

if someone can explain this to me, i’d be super grateful!

monday i drove over to the carranza memorial, located in wharton state park. the pink trail, also known as the batona trail takes you from the memorial all the way to apple pie hill, where a 205 ft high fire tower is located that supposedly from which you can see both philadelphia and atlantic city on a clear day. i didn’t make it. it was desolate and completely eerie as i parked my car in an abandoned campground to make my way to the trail. the carranza memorial is three miles into the state forest and there was literally no one else around for miles. like i said, i enjoy the solitude and quiet of hiking alone but this was a bit ridiculous. i’ve read enough urban legends about the jersey devil and pineys to know better than to push my luck. i went about a mile down the trail before my paranoia got the best of me and took me back to my car.

since i was already out there, i stopped at the tabernacle town hall and picked up a map of the area. i found out that i was only minutes from route 72 and brendan t. byrne (formerly lebanon) state forest. 50 hikes had an 8+ mile route mapped out but i decided to go out on my own, using the red trail (3.3 miles) to pakim pond and then hopping on the bartona trail (3.5 miles) back to another fire tower, considerably smaller than the one on apple pie hill. the thing i liked was that there were actually cars in the parking lot. hey, i was just happy there was a parking lot!

the red trail is wide and pretty well paved in spots. while it occasionally breaks the spell of being close to nature, it also makes for very fast and easy moving. i was able to get to pakim pond in less than an hour, including breaks. the scenery and pine barren specific plant life was interesting but again, at this time of year very little is in bloom. taking the bartona trail back offered a bit more in terms of terrain as the path narrows considerably over wooden planks, slightly muddy ground and several up and down sections. around the three mile mark, you will cross over a paved road. at the next paved road (about a quarter mile later), you can make a right to get back to the parking lot. at nearly seven miles, it’s a bit strenuous but easy footing, relative solitude and the thick forest make it worthwhile.