I don't think they did it for the hikers and bikers. I don't think Wawayanda did it either.
It was most likely the NJ Forestry guys keeping their trails good for themselves for when they need to get in there.
Either way, it's a plus for us!
you're probably right. i remember when the pipeline fiasco happened i came upon a utility truck stuck in that spot. guy said they were in the mud for an hour and had to wait for another truck to come and free them...
rode this new gravity trail yesterday. FUN! started from the end of buddha. definitely some spots which are unrideable to me, but then, most of the trails in the park were unrideable to me at one time or another...
the trail is kind of a mashup of splitrock, the start of mojo (around the lake) and the springy singletrack from hemlock & loaded. REALLY impressed with the rock work. someone spent a ridiculous amount of time building those rock ledges in the beginning. trail has some great flow and is one of the longer trails i remember. i got so twisted around i had no idea where it dumped me at the end. i felt so lost i had to whip out the phone and examine the satellite map. when i saw the sign for pines i felt just like charlton heston riding up to the statue of liberty on the beach. OOOOOH! now i know where i am!
incidentally, saw a massive timber rattlesnake on the climb up pines. this guy was massive. he was crossing the middle of the trail and i had to dismount once i spotted him maybe 6-7 feet away from him. he was not happy and let me know it. cooler heads prevailed after i backed off and let him go about his way. first time ever seeing a rattlesnake in the park. i was absolutely terrified, but a day later it was pretty damn cool. when he got off the trail and i passed him, i had no idea where he was. couldn't spot him for the life of me (excellent camo), which was at the very top of my mind in the thorny sections of pines and the top of tombstone, where you can't see a damn thing on either side of your wheels. good times...