County Road 616/Cedar Lake Road, Blairstown, NJ
Phone: (609) 984-1339
www.njnlt.org
New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection Natural Lands Trust
Exit via Camp Mohican Road and at the end turn Left onto Gaisler Road. Proceed 0.5 miles and turn Right onto Mohican Road. After 2.7 miles bear to the Left to stay on Mohican Road and after 0.5 miles turn Left at the stop sign onto Route 94 North. After 1.0 mile and one traffic light, turn Right onto CR 616 South/Cedar Lake Road and travel 0.8 miles to the preserve on the Left, across from the the first driveway on the Right. Parking is on the grass; look for the preserve signs. Map
Open daily from dawn to dusk. Parking is limited to just a few vehicles, and there is no established parking area; park on the grass off the road. The unmaintained trailhead is found at this location; look for preserve signs. During inclement weather parking may not be possible. The woods road on the property may become impassable in late summer because of invasive species overgrowth. Fall, winter, spring and early summer are the best times to visit. Hunting for deer by special permit is allowed; check the above website for regulations. Black bear is common. Ticks are a possibility; take appropriate precautions. Note that Cedar Lake is not open to the public.
There is a wide variety of wildflowers here in late April and May, including red trillium, Solomon’s seal, mayapple and pink lady’s slippers. During summer and early fall, look for goldenrods and asters. The soil is rich, and ferns and wildflowers can be seen scattered on the ground as well as among the rock outcroppings.
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| Spicebush Swallowtail | WR Kerling |
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| | The Limestone Ridge and Marsh Preserve overlooks beautiful Cedar Lake in Blairstown. It consists of deep forest with mixed hemlock, oak, maple, beech, black birch and ash, all of which shade the diverse understory of wildflowers, ferns and shrubs. . A noteworthy variety of bird species make their home here, as well as pass through during migration.
A walk down the woods road may reveal many Christmas ferns scattered in patches in the forest. Its name may derive from the evergreen leaves that still add color to the woods at Christmastime, and the leaves were once gathered to weave holiday wreaths, which greatly impacted their numbers. Fortunately, as the popularity of such wreaths declined, the numbers of ferns rebounded. The ringing call of Pileated Woodpecker and high-pitched tones of Brown Creeper, Golden-crowned Kinglet, Black-capped Chickadee and Tufted Titmouse add cheer to the wintry woodland.
Frogs and salamanders will migrate to wet areas on the property in early spring and may have to cross the woods road to reach breeding grounds. Look for long tailed, red, spotted, slimy, red eft and red backed salamanders along with spring peepers and bull, green, wood and tree frogs. The first warm winds in April and May bring a variety of migrant birds to the site. Some continue northward, while others stay to nest. Look and listen for deep wood species such as Black-throated Green Warbler, Scarlet Tanager, Wood and Hermit Thrushes and edge species such as Field Sparrow, Brown Thrasher and Gray Catbird.
Wildflowers are at their peak and a variety of butterflies can be seen nectaring and flitting from flower to flower; some possibilities include Great-spangled Fritillary, Monarch and Black, Eastern Tiger and Spicebush Swallowtails as well as Red-spotted Purple and various skippers and hairstreaks. .A variety of snakes may be found on the property; look for northern water snake, milk snake, black rat snake and black racer.
Migrating warblers, vireos and thrushes can be seen among the trees and shrubs. Look for migrating waterfowl from the ridge above Cedar Lake. Black bear foraging will increase with the impending cold weather; also be alert for coyote, red and gray foxes.
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