Getting back into it (Central NJ)

CarltonH

Member
Hey everyone!

Just getting back into the sport after about 15 years away. I grew up riding Chimney Rock near daily and moved away after college for a while. I'm back in the area now and recently decided to jump back into the sport.

I ride Six Mile Run regularly and live less than ten minutes away--recently though I've been trying to mix Chimney Rock into the after work riding. My goal for the weekends this summer is to try to ride a new spot once a week. So far I've tackled Allaire (fun but a chaotic trail network), Sourlands (local, but not the biggest fan of pure tech riding), and Hartshorne (my favorite so far). I'd love to hear your recommendations for spots within 60-90 minutes of Somerset. So far my Trailforks has Lewis Morris, Nassau Trails, Nockamixon, Walking Purchase, and Blue Mountain bike park wishlisted.

I'm still regaining my strength and skills but I'm looking forward to getting involved in some group rides in the area. Riding again has been fantastic, but I do miss riding with a group on the trails like back in the day.

Anyway, happy to join the community and look forward to meeting folks out on the trails.
 

MadisonDan

Well-Known Member
Team MTBNJ Halter's

CarltonH

Member
Welcome (back)!

Check out the Fun Monday rides at Chimney Rock www.mtbnj.com/cr

Cranks Around the Campfire is coming up https://www.mtbnj.com/forum/threads...-mountain-biking-festival-8-19-21-2022.46169/

and so is the NJ MTB Festival https://www.mtbnj.com/forum/threads/njmtb-fest-aka-jorba-jam-2022.54345/


also be sure to check the "what's happening" thread https://www.mtbnj.com/forum/forums/whats-going-on-this-weekend.172/
This is great! I'll be sure to check these out. I saw a couple of group ride threads for 6MR as well. Will definitely jump on some of those as my schedule allows.
 

Norm

Mayor McCheese
Team MTBNJ Halter's
Where did you go to college?

What town are you in?

Everything in north jersey is within 60-90.
 

CarltonH

Member
Where did you go to college?

What town are you in?

Everything in north jersey is within 60-90.
I'll have to explore North Jersey more. I'm not at all familiar with what's available up there so I've been biased toward the central Jersey areas. I'm in South Brunswick now.

I went to Rutgers! I'm actually back in Jersey while I work on my PhD at Princeton.
 

frug

Well-Known Member
Welcome! I'm relatively new here but ride pretty frequently at Six Mile and Chimney during the week - usually around 5pm-ish unless its going to be really hot then I aim for 6am. You're welcome to join any time. I live in Somerset and my in-laws are down in Princeton, so it sounds like we are in the same area.

Also usually branch out on weekends - Hartshorne and Port Jervis (a little further, ~105 mins away) are my favorites so far. Want to check out Allaire and maybe Trexler (eastern PA) this weekend.
 

grampaaah2

Active Member
I'll have to explore North Jersey more. I'm not at all familiar with what's available up there so I've been biased toward the central Jersey areas. I'm in South Brunswick now.

I went to Rutgers! I'm actually back in Jersey while I work on my PhD at Princeton.
Clayton is probably within 20-30 minutes of Princeton and is a lot of fun
 

CarltonH

Member
Welcome! I'm relatively new here but ride pretty frequently at Six Mile and Chimney during the week - usually around 5pm-ish unless its going to be really hot then I aim for 6am. You're welcome to join any time. I live in Somerset and my in-laws are down in Princeton, so it sounds like we are in the same area.

Also usually branch out on weekends - Hartshorne and Port Jervis (a little further, ~105 mins away) are my favorites so far. Want to check out Allaire and maybe Trexler (eastern PA) this weekend.

That's great! I usually bounce between the three 6MR lots depending on how long I want to ride. I'll have to reach out to you!
 

Oz Von Toco

Active Member
So of the places you mentioned on your wishlist

1) Lewis Morris - Good trail network, but further and worse than hartshorne imo. Also has patriots path right there if you want more mileage. Hilly but easy.
2) Nassau - Hidden gem. Very underrated imo. Flowy like 6 mile, but more rocks. There are two sides and one side is chaotic like allaire and the other is better imo. The place isn't that big so not hard to do it all. Near columbia path and high bridge "DH trails"
3) Nockamixon- I was only there once but I loved it as a beginner friendly trail. A little smaller than 6 mile run but arguably even better. Similar riding but different soil.

Haven't been to the others on your list.

Ringwood is known for super tech, but has some flowier trails as well. Port Jervis is amazing if you take the hike one day. Glen Park in PA is like an enduro course and also very good.
 

CarltonH

Member
So of the places you mentioned on your wishlist

1) Lewis Morris - Good trail network, but further and worse than hartshorne imo. Also has patriots path right there if you want more mileage. Hilly but easy.
2) Nassau - Hidden gem. Very underrated imo. Flowy like 6 mile, but more rocks. There are two sides and one side is chaotic like allaire and the other is better imo. The place isn't that big so not hard to do it all. Near columbia path and high bridge "DH trails"
3) Nockamixon- I was only there once but I loved it as a beginner friendly trail. A little smaller than 6 mile run but arguably even better. Similar riding but different soil.

Haven't been to the others on your list.

Ringwood is known for super tech, but has some flowier trails as well. Port Jervis is amazing if you take the hike one day. Glen Park in PA is like an enduro course and also very good.

Thanks for the tips! I think I'm going to check out Nassau this weekend and take a route through both sides.

I've seen lots of talk about Port Jervis so I think that's on my list for when I can take an entire day away to bike. Walking Purchase, PA is also another enduro-type area that I have on my list so its good to know Glen Park is another option about 90 mins away.
 

frug

Well-Known Member
Thanks for the tips! I think I'm going to check out Nassau this weekend and take a route through both sides.

I've seen lots of talk about Port Jervis so I think that's on my list for when I can take an entire day away to bike. Walking Purchase, PA is also another enduro-type area that I have on my list so its good to know Glen Park is another option about 90 mins away.
Glen Park and Walking Purchase are both on my hit list, too. Eastern PA looks to have some good riding.
 

CarltonH

Member
Glen Park and Walking Purchase are both on my hit list, too. Eastern PA looks to have some good riding.
For sure! I'm going to check out one of them this weekend and will report back how it goes.

My wife got jealous of my active calories burned counts and picked up a Trek Marlin to ride around with me on the tamer stuff a couple of times a week. We did a short 5 mile loop through White and part of Red between Jacques and Rt 27 at Six Mile Run yesterday afternoon--that was a bit of a scorcher.
 

frug

Well-Known Member
For sure! I'm going to check out one of them this weekend and will report back how it goes.

My wife got jealous of my active calories burned counts and picked up a Trek Marlin to ride around with me on the tamer stuff a couple of times a week. We did a short 5 mile loop through White and part of Red between Jacques and Rt 27 at Six Mile Run yesterday afternoon--that was a bit of a scorcher.
Nice, thanks! I am going to try to hit Allaire (haven't been yet), but also want to hit one of the PA parks - Glen/WP/or Trexler.

I can't get my wife on a mountain bike. But she will often come to the trails with me to hike or run. Six Mile is probably a great place for her to learn. Tame enough not to discourage with a few added features to try as her comfort level increases. Plus you can put down a lot of miles in a short time and get a good workout.
 

clarkenstein

JORBA Board Member/Chapter Leader
JORBA.ORG
Nice, thanks! I am going to try to hit Allaire (haven't been yet), but also want to hit one of the PA parks - Glen/WP/or Trexler.

I can't get my wife on a mountain bike. But she will often come to the trails with me to hike or run. Six Mile is probably a great place for her to learn. Tame enough not to discourage with a few added features to try as her comfort level increases. Plus you can put down a lot of miles in a short time and get a good workout.

Take her to Jacques Lane and just stay there and ride around all the trails right off the lot. Great spot to try it out for a first time.
 

CarltonH

Member
Nice, thanks! I am going to try to hit Allaire (haven't been yet), but also want to hit one of the PA parks - Glen/WP/or Trexler.

I can't get my wife on a mountain bike. But she will often come to the trails with me to hike or run. Six Mile is probably a great place for her to learn. Tame enough not to discourage with a few added features to try as her comfort level increases. Plus you can put down a lot of miles in a short time and get a good workout.
Hit up Walking Purchase today. I was a bit disappointed with how technical and ascent-heavy it was. The route I used from Trailforks only featured one of the enduro stages. That one stage was fantastic and you can tell they work really hard on those segments.

I believe my mistake was my approach to the trip. After reading some more most people recommend a shuttle approach where you use the gravel paths and roadway to get back to the top of the enduro stages. The route I used involved climbing several of the stages and that frankly sucked. So if you do go, park in the upper lot, not the lower, and be strategic about which trails you ride and where you start them.

Nassau Trails for me tomorrow.
 

frug

Well-Known Member
Hit up Walking Purchase today. I was a bit disappointed with how technical and ascent-heavy it was. The route I used from Trailforks only featured one of the enduro stages. That one stage was fantastic and you can tell they work really hard on those segments.

I believe my mistake was my approach to the trip. After reading some more most people recommend a shuttle approach where you use the gravel paths and roadway to get back to the top of the enduro stages. The route I used involved climbing several of the stages and that frankly sucked. So if you do go, park in the upper lot, not the lower, and be strategic about which trails you ride and where you start them.

Nassau Trails for me tomorrow.
Appreciate the heads up! I'll stick to climbing on the fire roads to the top of the trails when I go there. Had a similar experience today at Allaire. Its so big with so many intersections that I found it hard to navigate even with Trailforks. There is probably a solid route to follow to find some flow, but I wasn't finding it. I definitely prefer Hartshorne - similar terrain (and a little further north) but the trails feel a lot faster and fun.

Nassau is fun. The section south of Nassau Road is a little slow and twisty, but the other trails are faster. The High Bridge flow trails are good too if you like jumps and berms. I'm going to try to make it to Trexler tomorrow.
 
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