This 5.7-mile easy-to-moderate hike follows the orange-blazed Wawayanda Lake Loop around Wawayanda Lake in Wawayanda State Park, located in Sussex County, New Jersey. There are good views over the lake in the second half of the hike, which should take about 3.5 hours. Dogs are permitted on leash. To avoid getting your feet wet at the three stream crossings on rocks, make sure to wear good hiking boots. There is an entrance fee from Memorial Day weekend to Labor Day, and the parking areas may fill up early on summer weekends. A map is available online at https://bit.ly/3bkazJG.
To reach the trailhead, take N.J. Route 4 West to Route 208 North, and follow Route 208 to its end. Continue ahead on I-287 South, and take Exit 57 (Skyline Drive). Bear right at the fork and take Skyline Drive to its northwestern end at Greenwood Lake Turnpike (County Route 511).
Turn right and proceed north on Greenwood Lake Turnpike. When you reach a fork at 8.4 miles, take the right fork to continue on Warwick Turnpike (still County Route 511). Proceed for another 4.6 miles to the entrance to Wawayanda State Park, on the left. Follow the entrance road for 2.2 miles to the beach parking area on Wawayanda Lake. GPS address: 885 Warwick Turnpike, Hewitt, NJ 07421.
The hike begins at the southwest corner of the parking area, where a signpost designates the start of the Pumphouse Trail (the former name for a portion of the Wawayanda Lake Loop). Follow the orange blazes across a grassy area, then bear right and continue uphill on a woods road.
Just before reaching Wawayanda Road, the Wawayanda Lake Loop turns left onto a narrower woods road, which climbs over a rise (with some minor ups and downs). Just past the crest of the rise, the blue-blazed Boulder Garden Trail begins on the left. Bear right to continue on the orange-blazed Wawayanda Lake Loop, which crosses a wet area on rocks and continues to climb on a rocky woods road. Soon, the trail begins to descend. It continues on a relatively level route, parallel to a swamp on the left.
About a mile from the start, the trail bears left, crosses a wide stream on rocks, and continues through mountain laurel thickets. Soon, it bears right and heads south, climbing gradually.
Half a mile from the stream crossing, you’ll descend briefly to a T-intersection with a woods road. The other end of the Boulder Garden Trail is on the left, but you should turn right to continue on the Wawayanda Lake Loop. You’re now following a smooth, relatively level woods road. Soon, you’ll pass through a forest of hemlock, mountain laurel and rhododendron. In places, the route narrows to a footpath as it proceeds through dense thickets of rhododendron.
About 2.5 miles from the start of the hike, you’ll reach another T-intersection. The orange/green-blazed Pumphouse Trail begins on the right (and immediately crosses a stream), but you should turn left to continue on the Wawayanda Lake Loop. The trail continues through another very attractive stand of hemlock, mountain laurel and rhododendron. In 0.2 mile, be alert for a sharp right turn, when the trail leaves the woods road it has been following and descends to cross a stream on rocks. To the left is a large rusted pipeline, which once carried water from Wawayanda Lake. (If the water is high, you might want to shimmy across the pipeline rather than crossing the stream on the rocks.) This is about the halfway point of the hike.
After crossing the stream, the trail crosses the pipeline and continues through a hemlock forest. Turn left at the next T-intersection (the green-blazed Timber Trail begins on the right) and follow the Wawayanda Lake Loop through a young stand of beech trees. In a short distance, you’ll reach a stream, which is crossed on rocks. Just beyond, there is a viewpoint over the lake to the left of the trail.
The trail now loops around on switchbacks, passing cascades in the stream, and heads northeast, with views of the lake through the trees on the left. After passing a cliff on the right and climbing a few short switchbacks, the trail bears left to reach a T-intersection. The yellow/orange-blazed Wawayanda Lake Connector begins on the right, but you should turn left to continue on the orange-blazed Wawayanda Lake Loop, which heads north on a footpath (rocky in places), parallel to the eastern shore of the lake.
In three-quarters of a mile, after passing through dense rhododendron thickets, the trail reaches a rock outcrop on the left, with panoramic views over the lake. After bending to the right and heading away from the lake, you’ll reach a junction with the blue-blazed Wingdam Trail. Turn left onto a woods road and follow the joint Wawayanda Lake Loop/Wingdam Trails. Soon, the trails emerge onto a grassy area and cross a wooden bridge over the outlet of Wawayanda Lake. This is the location of the lake’s wingdam (built by the Thomas Iron Works in the mid-1800s).
A short distance beyond, follow the Wawayanda Lake Loop as it turns left onto another woods road, leaving the Wingdam Trail. The trail now closely parallels the lakeshore and passes two more viewpoints over the lake from rock outcrops on the left. The trail climbs a little, then descends to the main dam of the lake. It crosses the dam, turns left, and follows a gravel road along the northern end of the lake to the boat launch parking area. Follow the road past this parking area and, after passing a restroom building on the right, continue uphill on a rougher gravel road that leads to the beach parking area, where the hike began.
This hiking article is provided by Daniel Chazin of the New York-New Jersey Trail Conference. The Trail Conference is a volunteer organization that builds and maintains over 2,000 miles of hiking trails and publishes a library of hiking maps and books. The Trail Conference’s office is at 600 Ramapo Valley Road (Route 202), Mahwah; (201) 512-9348; www.nynjtc.org. Daniel Chazin can be reached at [email protected].
