This weekend's trek brought us to the pristine area of Pyramid Mountain in the Kinnelon/Boonton, New Jersey area. Marveled by scenic overlooks, glacier erratics, (and plenty of new smells for the pups), we all truly enjoyed this hike. Although it was rainy and cloudy for most of our journey throughout the trails, the sun did peek through towards the end of our hike to allow a few good shots off one of the overlooks (see above). The rain left Pyramid Mountain completely vacant of visitors until the very end of our hike when we saw a fellow few hikers on the trails. It was quiet and peaceful...especially at the scenic overlooks and sitting along side the Taylortown Reservoir. This area truly has the markings of untouched nature. We highly recommend this trek for avid hikers as parts of the trail were tricky due to rocky elevation climbs.
A Little Bit of History
Highlights from
Skylands Visitor's site, a detailed history of the entire of Pyramid Mountain and the surrounding areas*:
- Designated in 1987 as the Pyramid Mountain Natural Historic Area, nearly
1,500 acres of wooded terrain dotted with brooks, swamps, glacial
deposits, rock outcroppings glens and vistas.
- The area attracted hunters, adventurous hikers, and youthful trespassers not only with its
collection of massive boulders, but also with natural beauty, seclusion,
and a hint of magic. To the north, hikers could climb to an impressive
landmark of mysterious though disputed origins: Tripod Rock,
one of the state’s largest erratics, a mega-boulder balancing atop much
smaller rocks on Pyramid Mountain. (While some believe early Indian
inhabitants assembled it as a solstice oriented worship site, others
simply credit a powerful glacier).
- Two disturbances affected Pyramid Mountain, one being the Ice Age which led to the famous Tripod Rock, weighing close to 160 tons, plus its companions, Whale Head and Bear
Rock, the largest of the three. The second was in 1920's, a man-made disturbance during the Electrification, where high towers were strung with electrical lines piercing the northwest corner
(the ambitious national effort resulted in roughly 70% of households
having electricity by the 1930s).
- In the 1980's, Lucy Meyer, along with the help from her husband Karl, both ardent hikers, organized a
grassroots campaign that rallied support to preserve the Pyramid
Mountain area. Founding The Committee To Preserve Pyramid Mountain,
Meyer ultimately succeeded in putting the property in public hands by
knitting together municipal, county and state resources to purchase it.
Honored with a Pride In America award by President Ronald Reagan for her
efforts, Meyer was also memorialized with Lucy’s Overlook, a scenic
lookout at an 841 foot elevation, south of Tripod Rock, with a long view
of the mountains she loved. (And, us fellow hikers, are certainly glad she fought).
*
Note: there is more history of this area that can be found on the
Skylands Visitor's site, we have just highlighted parts to the trail that we trekked.
Parking: See Google Maps Location below.
Trail Map: Pyramid Mountain Trail Maps
 |
| Our hike is highlighted above... |
The Hike
The trek is moderate to difficult (at times in rocky areas as show below). See highlighted map to follow the hike we took. The trails were very well marked and it seemed to be that there were freshly painted trail markers on the trees.
From the parking area we walked around the closed gate (to the right of the baseball field) and back towards the batting cages (see pictures below) to pick up the trail head (Green Trail). We followed the Green Trail to the Orange Trail along the Taylortown Reservoir. We took a sharp turn at the end of the Orange Trail and headed on to the Yellow Trail to the Blue Trail. We took a short walk on the Red Stripe (RS) Trail to the Whale Head Rock. We backtracked our steps and came out to the White Trail and back on to the Green Trail towards the parking lot.
Check out our adventures below!
 |
| Boonton Ave Field Parking |
 |
| Tripod Rock |
 |
Some creatures along the way...
 |
 |
| On our way back to the car! |
