Wawayanda State Park Conditions
- Thread starter Mildly Wild
- Start date
it is particularly bad right now. once the weather breaks it will be better. But I go big on the Deet anyway.
Also, because of the mild winter and warm spring it is an unusually big tick season.
hope for a cold and dry winter to cull the insect population for next summer.
Also, because of the mild winter and warm spring it is an unusually big tick season.
hope for a cold and dry winter to cull the insect population for next summer.
Last edited:
Blk06CompIRL
Active Member
any condition updates for this location? i know everywhere is more or less shot for a ride sunday morning but figured i would ask for here as no trail conditions posted in a while.
Mildly Wild
Active Member
Condition update?
Thumbs up!
Rode Wawayanda today. 16 degrees at the start!! Banker Circle to Porcupine to Rockadendron to MoJo to Fishermans to Pickle to Rattlesnake to Pines to Thirsty Dog to Split Rock to Wall and back to Banker. Everything was frozen solid. No snow on the trails other than a couple of sections hidden from the sun, but those patches were solid. May post up pics a bit later.
Most of the water crossings were iced over, and you'd best walk these. Some small sections of trail had patches of ice, but you could easily spot them.
In terms of blowdowns, awesome job by Jeff and everyone else that chipped in. Only a couple that we came across:
1) A tangle of blowdowns near the very top of Rattlesnake. We rode the gas line for the last 100 yards.
2) One blowdown near the junction of the hill that leads to Buddha and the trail that leads to Thirsty Dog. Walk under (but it's tight)
3) One blowdown on Thirsty Dog. Walk under.
Rode Wawayanda today. 16 degrees at the start!! Banker Circle to Porcupine to Rockadendron to MoJo to Fishermans to Pickle to Rattlesnake to Pines to Thirsty Dog to Split Rock to Wall and back to Banker. Everything was frozen solid. No snow on the trails other than a couple of sections hidden from the sun, but those patches were solid. May post up pics a bit later.
Most of the water crossings were iced over, and you'd best walk these. Some small sections of trail had patches of ice, but you could easily spot them.
In terms of blowdowns, awesome job by Jeff and everyone else that chipped in. Only a couple that we came across:
1) A tangle of blowdowns near the very top of Rattlesnake. We rode the gas line for the last 100 yards.
2) One blowdown near the junction of the hill that leads to Buddha and the trail that leads to Thirsty Dog. Walk under (but it's tight)
3) One blowdown on Thirsty Dog. Walk under.
MannyL358
Well-Known Member
Welcome to the board Huffster! I was there yesterday and it's rideable .
huffster
Well-Known Member
Thanks! I felt like this board might be the reason why the New Jersey forum on MTBR gets so little action. Lots of localized knowledge here. Hopefully, I can contribute.
I rode today at Wawayanda. About 1" of snow on everything from the dustings over the past week. Nice and powdery. Slippery in some spots, but good riding.
huffster
Well-Known Member
I took a chance that enough snow had melted over the past couple weeks to get in a good ride. I did manage a decent ride, but considering the conditions at nearby places like Ringwood, Sterling Forest and Jungle Habitat, there is still a surprising amount of snow at Wawa. I got out early to take advantage of hard ground. For most of the ride there were light flurries. It was 28 degrees at the start.
There are some patches where dirt is showing, but there are more places where there are still a few inches of snow. The more traveled (hiked) trails like Banker, Sitting Bear, Double Pond, The Wall, Cherry Ridge, Mojo Swamp were packed down making for ridable conditions with some icy sections.
Trails like Cedar Swamp, which is much less traveled, involved a substantial amount of "hike-a-bike". Cedar Swamp was a bad choice altogether, but it was more of a curiousity thing since I had avoided it for over a year since the boardwalk was completely wrecked by Hurricane Irene. There are a couple big trees down too.
There was some limited evidence of a few other bikes - not many. There were no other cars at the parking near Cherry Ridge/Banker when I arrived. There was only 1 other car when I left.
Overall, you can get in a good ride. I was out of the woods by 10:00am and sections that were starting to get sun, were getting soft. So, ride early provided it gets cold overnight.
If I had my choice of equipment for these conditions, I would have a fat bike with studded tires...but I don't.
There are some patches where dirt is showing, but there are more places where there are still a few inches of snow. The more traveled (hiked) trails like Banker, Sitting Bear, Double Pond, The Wall, Cherry Ridge, Mojo Swamp were packed down making for ridable conditions with some icy sections.
Trails like Cedar Swamp, which is much less traveled, involved a substantial amount of "hike-a-bike". Cedar Swamp was a bad choice altogether, but it was more of a curiousity thing since I had avoided it for over a year since the boardwalk was completely wrecked by Hurricane Irene. There are a couple big trees down too.
There was some limited evidence of a few other bikes - not many. There were no other cars at the parking near Cherry Ridge/Banker when I arrived. There was only 1 other car when I left.
Overall, you can get in a good ride. I was out of the woods by 10:00am and sections that were starting to get sun, were getting soft. So, ride early provided it gets cold overnight.
If I had my choice of equipment for these conditions, I would have a fat bike with studded tires...but I don't.
Thin Diesel
Well-Known Member
That other car at Ferber was me. Your summary of conditions was accurate I'd say trails were 90%+ snow covered. Many trails I took we're not traveled and very tough even on my fat bike. Some trails were hard pack snow that was very rideable and very fun. I was looking for snow to ride on today and found more than I expected
Thin Diesel
Well-Known Member
Thin Diesel
Well-Known Member
VelocityBoy
"Sleeveless Joe"
Thin Diesel
Well-Known Member
I am having a blast on the fat bike. Fortunately this has been a good winter to have one. I've been able to ride stuff with it that would not be doable on a regular bike. Having a bike that does well in snow has me hoping for more of it. Normally I'd just be hoping for a mild winter. Now I can enjoy what the season brings and still get my riding in.
Thin Diesel
Well-Known Member
Yep. Lots of walking in that snow on thirsty dog