hikes28

Hike #28
Tranquility to Washington 2/28/1
Only Mr. Shoe joined me this time.
Cathy dropped us off in Tranquility near an apartment complex that covers part of the right of way. While fiddling with my camara and it's dead batteries, a guy who introduced himself as the owner of the property pulled over and asked us what we were doing. When we told him we were hikers he gave us permission to cross his property.
Much of this hike was difficult due to the excess of snow, sometimes in drift spots up to a foot deep. This was the first Helbing Hike to be done in snow conditions.
In Great Meadows we strayed from the railbed to a nearby gas station and conveniance store to buy camera batteries and food.
When we returned to the railbed I climbed an old pole to retrieve an insulator, which I gave to Mr. Shoe.
Mr. Shoe was slowed down by the old bridges starting in Townsbury due to the slippery railroad ties. He wore tall rubber boots that also did not allow for good traction.
We stopped in Oxford and added on some distance by following part of the DL&W railroad where it originally existed from 1856 to 1862, on the hill west of route 31 and in front of the Shippen Manor.
Hike #29 3/15/1
Middle Valley to Washington
This hike is essentially the same as the Crestmoore hike with a couple miles stuck on the front of it.
Joining me again this time was my buddy Al Eisberg. It was again a long romp of fun and silliness.
The High Bridge Railroad right of way from Middle Valley to Crestmoore was only slightly battered compared to the well maintained trail in Hunterdon County. Highlights of this section were the abutments to a bridge that once crossed a dirt road, and the bridge over the South Branch of the Rariton River with a boarded plank top. Crestmoore's treefarm was also unusually easy to walk across.There, Al and I goofed off around some weird equipment out on the fields.
In Califon we stopped at Rambos for food and talked to Mr. Hoffman who was my nieghbor in Port Colden.
Entering Ken Lockwood gorge there was a more significant amount of snow on the ground. There was also a great deal of ice on the embankments. We talked to a guy there who was headed to High Bridge, as were we. He offered us a ride, but that would have defeated the purpose. We saw him later in High Bridge and he stopped saying "You boys shoud've rode in with me!".
On the west side of the gorge I was filling a little sick and had to go to the bathroom. I guess that's what I get for teasing Moo Moo.
Near the base of Lake Solitude we saw the first flowers of spring.
In High Bridge we stopped at the Pizza place for lunch and the guy gave us band aids for my cuts.
Following the Jersey Central to Hampton was rather easy. We did'nt get any insulators, though.
In Hampton we switched to the DL&W railbed which was easier to follow this time than it's ever been.
Most of the weeds were dead .

We were able to follow the railbed as far as where someone had fenced it off. There we found a path that led down to New Hampton in a backyard. We walked along River Road to Dutch Hill Road. Along the way an attractive young girlebegan walking from her house. As she passed us, Al kept looking back, and to his surprize she kept looking back as well! I looked back once myself and saw her looking at us. Al told me never to let a girl get away like that again.
We were able to access the railbed from Dutch Hill Road (consequently, right in front of Sandy Boehm's house) and follow it all the way to changewater where the lack of leaves on the trees allowed for an excellent view of the trestle site.
We followed the roads as usual toward Washington. Along the way we got attacked by a groundhog while trying to get closeup pictures .
After fleeing from the ravenous groundhog we had a nice pizza dinnerat family's.
Hike #30
Portland to Washington 3/25/1
Four years after the first Helbing Hike I was joined by Conrad, Ron,
Samia, Tea Biscuit, and for the first time, my good friend, Jeremiah Apgar who I'd known since I was only eight or nine. Jer, who is a varitable fountain on information on all forms of local history, was a joy to have along, as not many of my other hiking companions share such a devotion to the area and it's background.
This was the first time we encountered a train at the beginning of the hike. It was moving onto the former Bangor and Portland Railroad westbound.
It was rather wet along the path due to an excess of rainfall the days before. Activities such as the Bush of Might were a muddy mess.
In the Manunka Chunk Tunnel we were met with unusually high waters that we were forced to walk through.The tunnel was also host to large mounds of ice in stalagmite formations on the floor.
In order to see, Jer lit his copy of the map on fire to use as a torch. He then floated it across the water to find stones to step on, of which there were none. We warmed our feet by standing above the water on the ice formation.
Beyond the tunnel we again strayed from the railbed to avoid getting more wet.
Further on, even at the sandpit, everything wentsmoothly. Tea Biscuit, Ron, and Samia all quit in Oxford, leaving Conrad, Jer, and I to finish alone.
In Washington, we walked around the site of the old train station, and Jer gave me a brick he found from it. The brick was part of the ticket booth section. Jer also showed us, to our surprize, that the old turntable still existed, partially under a thick layer of dirt.
Hike #31
Delaware to Phillipsburg 4/13/1
Tea Biscuit and his friend, Luke Davis joined me for this first try on the new hike. We started this hike at around 1 pm, the latest yet!
My grandmother dropped us off in
Delaware, NJ along the abandoned DL&W line. After getting nourishment at Smiddy's, we headed toward Manunka Chunk junction.
To our surprize, the dirt driveway built over the railbed at the Bush of

might had been completely dug up. There were pipes laying in the long ditch dug in the center of the road.
We still made Luke ascend to the Bush of Might, but we knew that this could cause a problem if the driveway was to see heavy use.
After taking Luke in to see the cave in in Manunka Chunk tunnel, we headed down the Bel Del track. The view was fabulous because the leaves were not yet on the trees.
Getting around Hoffman LaRoche was a bit tougher because we followed the river and the water was high.
Instead of moving off toward the Hercules powder plant we decided to find an alternative route that would take us more directly to the tracks. We found one rather easily, leading us through a row of cedar trees to the railroad's gate into the Roche place.
There was a switch track there with a derail sign, much like the one Shayne got on Hike #1, so Tea Biscuit unscrewed it and brought it home.
Luke took a while to get across the Belvidere bridge across the Pequest River. After that we stopped at Skoogy's.
When we started following the tracks
again, we saw a train in Belvidere for the first time.
The walk down the old Bel Del line was pretty due to the closeness to the Delaware River, but it was monotonous. Except or the famous standing rock in Foul Rift, it dragged on.
When we got as far as Brainards, there was a train coming from the Bangor and Portland Railroad to the Junction. We watched it move up the old Bel Del track, then went on our way. At this time a big dog, looking like a Rottwieler, came over to us. We got a bit shook up, but it ended up being friendly. It followed us for a bit. By now Luke was running out of breath a lot and we were slowing down significantly.
We'd though it would'nt take long to get to Phillipsburg from Brainards, but we were not even out of Harmony Township by the time it got dark. In Pohatcong Twp. the road, which provides more light, moved close to the railroad, so we opted to follow it instead. The was a rather scary area due to the fact that there was a murder there only a week prior. A dead girl was found burned. Entering Phillipsburg a police officer pulled over. He was good enough to drive us to my house (on Summit Avenue) rather than have us walk up the merciless hill. It was now after 10:00
pm! The latest ending to a Helbing Hike as well.