Fiona, Secret and Lobo were ready to take on the trail. We’ve been pretty sedentary of late. This was a good chance to shake off the cobwebs of winter and embrace spring with gusto. This 1,200 acre park features the beautiful reservoir, which helps supply Monmouth County with fresh water, as well as woods and wetlands, and a five mile perimeter trail around it all.
For the most part, the trail was wide and fairly even. The majority of it was in shade. It really is an ideal placed to walk dogs. I love finding shady walks because our snow dogs overheat quite quickly when they are in the sun on a warm day. We walked at a moderate pace, completing the whole five mile circuit in about 2 to 2 1/2 hours. We stopped a few times to chat with folks who wanted to pet the dogs, of course!
We met many people and many dogs along our hike. Despite the many folks we met, the park never felt crowded. It is simply too large. I still can’t believe that we rounded a corner and saw in the distance a herd of what must be over a hundred deer. They were too far away for the dogs to go bonkers, but close enough that we could see them grazing. I have never experienced that in New Jersey in my life. I felt like an early settler for a minute, transported back in time to old Monmouth County of the seventeenth century.
© Copyright 2016, Woofus | Janet McGrane Bennett. All Rights Reserved