Repeat after us: Hiking is fun. Now try these local hikes.
With so much to explore in Ocean City and beyond, don’t let the cold keep you indoors this fall and winter
You take a deep breath, filling your lungs with crisp autumn air. Sunlight dapples the dirt path in front of you, and as you look skyward, the rays add an almost ethereal glow to the golden canopy of leaves above. The whistles and trills of birds create a melodious backdrop, their symphony punctuated only by the crunch of leaves under your boot as you continue hiking further into South Jersey’s wild and wonderful wilderness.
“The thing about hiking is it’s not as hard as people think it is,” Mike McCormick, creator of the South Jersey Trails blog and co-author of AMC’s Best Day Hikes in New Jersey (2nd Edition), said. “Hiking is just putting one foot in front of the other.”
While this may be true, the South Jersey native has also made it his mission to catalog all of the official trails meandering their way through Ocean City, Upper Township and beyond in the Garden State’s southern counties. His South Jersey Trails blog (find it at southjerseytrails.org) found its footing in 2013, back when Mike figured it would take about six months to detail all of the trails across South Jersey. What could there be – 30, 40 trails?
“I now have 230 different trails reviewed,” Mike said with a laugh. “I still have 50 or 60 on my list. It turned into a much bigger project.”
The Scout leader and father of six (and yes, the kids are all hikers, too) didn’t expect many people to read the blog, looking at it as more of a way he could keep track of the trails.
“I kind of figured six people would ever read it – seven if my mom could figure out where it was on the internet. And that would be it,” he said.
Now, the blog has far surpassed 2 million views, the same-named Facebook page has 10 thousand followers, and the related South Jersey Trails Facebook group, where members can discuss and share their hikes, is 23.6 thousand members strong.
“It just kind of took off,” Mike said.
While Mike likes hiking year round, he admits there’s something special about hiking in the fall. And he was eager to share with Ocean City Magazine some of his favorite spots to take a hike on the island – or within a short car drive away.
Corson’s Inlet State Park, Ocean City
Most everyone in Ocean City has heard of Corson’s Inlet State Park, stepping off at the base of the bridge on Bay Avenue at the south end of the island. But did you know in addition to two different beach loops, there’s also a rail trail extending three-quarters of a mile over the marsh?
“My favorite part of that is they have part of the trail on the old railroad line. They have the elevated spot where the tracks were and you can walk down that. It puts you out into the marshier areas that you wouldn’t be able to get into necessarily without a boat,” Mike explained.
The gravel rail trail works for those pushing strollers, too. You can walk the rail trail to the beach trails – including the quarter-mile Yellow Trail and almost half-mile Red Trail, and the trail is open from sunrise to sunset.
Crooked Horn Creek Nature Trail, Ocean City
Even if you’re from Ocean City, you may not have heard of Crooked Horn Creek Nature Trail – but Mike says the trail just off Haven Avenue at 51st Street where it dead ends at the bay is easy to spot.
“It’s the railroad line that went out from the island toward the mainland. You’re just walking on where they built up through the salt marshes,” he said.
The trail is three-quarters of a mile one way, and as an out-and-back trail, hikers should plan on a 1.5-mile hike if they walk the whole path.
Cameron Wildlife Sanctuary, Upper Township
Just a short drive from the 34th Street bridge, Cape May County Park North, also known as Cameron Wildlife Sanctuary, is located in Palermo within Upper Township, off of Route 9. The park is open from 9am to 4pm.
“I love that one because it’s a series of little ponds. They have benches along the ponds including some swinging benches on chains,” Mike said. “You can sit and rock back and forth and watch the birds go by. It’s very pretty.”
Even though this trail is not very long – only about a mile – it’s worth the trip.
“There’s a lot to see and experience in that mile,” Mike remarked.
Cape May Point State Park, Cape May Point
A series of loops creates 3.2 miles of total trails (mostly boardwalk) at Cape May Point State Park. The park includes the Cape May Lighthouse – the third tallest in the Garden State – and is also attached to the South Cape May Meadows preserve. (Note: There is a fee to climb the lighthouse.)
“The nice thing is that Cape May has world-renowned birding. They have lots of birds that come through during the migration,” Mike said. “And as you’re on the trail you keep seeing the lighthouse at different angles, which is also really nice.”
Birch Grove Park, Northfield
This trail is a web of connecting loops dotted with tons of little lakes and ponds – the result of filling sand mining pits from a long ago business, according to Mike.
“There are dozens and dozens of little bridges that cross the water. You don’t walk very far without going over a bridge,” he said.
The network of trails can afford many miles of hiking, and the park is open from 9am to sunset. Mike also has what may be a favorite bridge at Birch Grove Park.
“Somebody built a covered foot bridge that people love to stop at,” he said.
Estell Manor County Park, Mays Landing
This 1,677-acre park has more than 27 miles worth of trails – in other words, plan to make a day of it. It’s all chock full of history, too, having been the former site of World War I munitions plant, Bethlehem Loading Company, where they built artillery shells for the war.
“The best part is a trail you can follow with different ruins along the way and signs that explain what they were,” Mike said. “It’s typical Pine Barrens, and then there’s a stone wall or a stone tower or a foundation from the factory.”
The signs include historic pictures so you can see what the ruin looked like when it was still standing, too.
‘Anything can be a hike’
There’s this idea Mike often hears that if it’s not five or 10 miles, it’s not “a real hike.” But Mike is adamant that you don’t have to do big miles or big mountains to be a hiker.
“Anything can be a hike. If you’re going outside and you’re out in nature and you’re enjoying what’s around you, that’s definitely a hike,” he said. “A mile nature trail can be lovely if that’s where you start.”
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