Stunning views at Worthington State Forest!…read more Beach careful while driving to the camp ground registration area. Slow down because the two-way traffic road narrows at some parts. Looking forward to visiting again!

Hello Yelp World! This is my first review, not for a restaurant, but for this spectacular hike up…read moreMount Tammany at Worthington State Forest. So I've picked up hiking the last few years because not only is it great exercise and you get to enjoy awesome views but it's free, unless you count the cost of getting there. My first attempt at hiking here was denied several weeks ago when I came on a Sunday at 10am, huge mistake! Because of the pandemic, only the Kittatinny Point Visitor Center lot is open, and by this time on a weekend the parking lot was packed to the gills. So do yourself a favor and either avoid coming here late, or not come at all on a weekend, otherwise the park ranger will turn you away if the lot is full. Today I got here at 9am. Score!!! Only a half-dozen cars were parked here on this Monday morning. Follow the signs to the beginning of the red dot trail, which is located on the west side of Route 80, to begin this challenging hike. There are other trails at Mount Tammany but the red-blue trail seems to most popular. Be warned, the trail is quite steep and will involve a lot of rock scrambles. I will admit my teenage son was flying up the mountain while I was taking it slow and gasping for air, haha! So if you haven't twisted an ankle or got bit by a rattlesnake or copperhead - yes, there is a signpost warning about the snakes, but I didn't see any - you will come upon two overlooks with beautiful views of Mt. Minsi and the Delaware Water Gap. The first viewpoint is about three-quarters of the way up the red trail and the other one is at the summit. You should definitely scramble down the rocks a bit if you're comfortable with it to get much better vistas. After taking in the views and catching your breath you will continue along the red dot trail which will connect you with the blue dot trail. Follow the blue trail to descend the mountain. While not as steep coming down, there are still lots of loose rocks that you need to be wary of. As you near the end of your hike on the blue dot trail, you are rewarded once again with a beautiful little waterfall. Hikers were wading in the stream here to cool off, but I took a pass. Once you've finished taking your pictures here, cross the bridge and continue on the white trail, which is actually part of the Appalachian Trail, and you will end up back at the beginning of the red dot trail where you began. You can now go back under the underpass to head back to your car at the visitor center.

"The Way You Think It Is May Not Be the Way It Is At All."…read more This is the beautiful quote that's written out on the park's map that represents what this place truly is. As it states, it is a sanctuary - a sacred place for meditation, quietness and reflection. There are about 90 stones throughout the sanctuary - sourced locally and placed between 1980 and 2005 - that are nearly 3.6 billion (!) years old. Wow. There is a pond area as well, filled with koi fish and other little creatures. Since we've had a long, harsh winter in the North East this year, not much had bloomed and the trees were still bare with lots of anticipating bursts of spring ahead. I did capture a few daffodils and flowers poking their way through some of the brush. The trails are easy, natural and inviting. We arrived fairly early in the AM on a Saturday, and snagged a parking spot. There is limited parking and by the time we were leaving, the spots were all full. I would think the earlier in the day one can come, the better it is all around. Upon leaving a realized there is also a little Resource Center and Gem Shop by the fountains, but we were on our way out and skipped exploring this. Plus I was on my way to (a very clean!) porter-potty (so thankful one was on site.) toilet paper & hand sanitizer, too! Just as an FYI Thoroughly enjoyed coming here and exploring this beautiful, simple space. I love that they're a sanctuary, a non-profit organization committed to preserving nature's beauty and diversity. My heart was happy. Thankful. Inspiring. Would love to possibly create a similar nature sanctuary in the city one day.

Megalith Park is a simple but unique experience to check out if you're (somewhat) in the area. Its…read morea very nice, well maintained park with plenty of Megaliths to admire and take pictures with. Its a relatively small and can be fully explored in 1-2 hours. But you could easily spend more time here on a nice day. Its a bit off the beaten path, but the curvy, mountainous roads make the drive there enjoyable. Its a great place for a date, family outing, or just some alone time. Great photo ops.

Great hidden gem in East stroudsburg nice overlook.You can sit and see Camleback…read more Give it a try

A nice trail to hike when in the area. The paths can be hard to see/follow when all the leaves are…read moreout. It is dog friendly and nice we were able to bring the dog along. It's a take in take out - meaning all trash you take in you take home with you. There's no garbage cans anywhere.

Was a bit disappointed the bog wasn't accessible without advance registration with a guide and in…read moreseason. A field trip was coincidentally at the bog parking when we pulled up and he kindly explained. There was a port a potty there. The two trails on the property are open to the public but were easy to miss on the road. There is a picture of the trails at the bog parking, but not one online, so you should either snap a pic or download a trail guide app, both of which weren't ideal. So we picked the north woods trail, where there is a small pull off area for only a couple of cars max. There are allegedly 2 loops according to the map, but we only saw markers for one so not sure where they could have diverged. At one point the trail takes a hard turn, and after that there were no more markers. We used the app to make sure we hadn't gone off trail, but we were good, just not enough blazes. Wasn't too much to see in early spring, but it was quiet and flat-levelled, so it was pretty easy to do. Nothing too noteworthy on the path and it was only like a mile or so. It was fine. Would like to plan ahead and see when the bog is available if there is anything to see in there.

Do your research before you come here! You can only trek onto the boardwalk over the bog on…read moreWednesdays and certain Sundays, I think. Sadly, I was here on a Saturday. There are 2 trails off of Bog Road though. The lower one that walks by the bog was too damp/waterlogged to continue into but the one to the north was dry and very serene. The trails were a bit hard to find and the markers seemed to have disappeared halfway into the hike, so my friend and I had to turn back.

Park with parking for access to the bike way and it has a kids playground plus picnic tables,…read morebarbecue grills plus access to the creek. Not exactly peaceful though, as there are busy roads on both sides of it.

PROS: Great hiking trail for people that are moderate hikers. Clear trails, trail markers are easy…read moreto spot, and there's even a parking lot at the start of it CONS: when you get to the top there isn't that good of a view. You see the neighboring mountain but that's it. Normally you would want to see a body of water OVERALL: as long as you're looking for a moderate hike that isn't too scenic this would be good for you

Easy access to Delaware River - bring your tube. Cleanest bathrooms/showers. Great itinerary of…read moreactivities and events. A very engaged & friendly camping crowd. Crazy how there are lots of campers but still so quiet at night. Pool, kayak/canoe rental, camp store. Only drawback was the shower/bath house closest to our campsite was closed for cleaning from 7-8am every day (which is prime wake & potty time).

It's a very nice campground. Beautiful area. Staff is very friendly. IMO - They need to…read moreupgrade the electric. We prefer 50 amp. Also- THIS is IMPORTANT- DO NOT leave anything of value outside. It WILL be stollen. Evidently this campground has a reputation of theft. Wish I knew that before I stayed. I get it- the risk you take sorta thing. Will still camp here, we just won't leave anything of value out or over night. Sadly - No campers code of ethics here! Edit: I've been made aware that the campground takes theft very seriously. You should make them aware when something goes missing from your campsite. They log missing items & take steps in trying to find the culprits. Thank you Driftstone for addressing my concerns. Outstanding!

Beautiful Sunday afternoon at Swartswood State Park Plenty…read moreof different activities including a nice BBQ with some Friends of Bill. Very relaxing to sit at a picnic bench and just watch the fishermen and other boaters on the lake.

This state park holds a very special place in my heart, as most of my childhood summers were spent…read morehere. I still revisit it now, and it's like a beautiful time capsule for me. There are so many activities that you can do here: camping, fishing, ice fishing, picnicking, swimming, birding, boating, canoeing, biking, mountain biking, horseback riding, and my favorite, hiking. The four main trails are: Duck Pond Trail, Spring Lake Trail, Bear Claw Trail, and the Grist Mill Trail. Know Before You Go: There are entrance fees charged per vehicle.(Memorial Day weekend to Labor Day) Weekdays: $5.00 for NJ resident/ $10 (non-resident) Weekends: $10.00 for NJ resident/$20 (non-resident) There are plenty of secluded picnic tables and areas for grilling. And if you're like me and don't want to bother with grilling, food concessions are available during the summer months. Also, there are shower facilities by the main restrooms to rinse off after swimming in the lake. Go and enjoy this beautiful park that was New Jersey's first state park. I hope you love it as much as I do!