Stephanie Murphy-Lupo - Day Trips® from New Jersey: Getaway Ideas for the Local Traveler

blue hue is barely a clue

New Jersey brags about its wildlife, especially the mighty black bear. Yet not all black bears are black. The gray ones appear blue. Brown ones abound; the albino, not so much. And when you see a black bear all aglow in a warm shade of cinnamon, it mayor may notmean those honey buns are missing from your picnic basket.

Dryden Kuser Natural Area. 1480 Route 23, Sussex; www.njparksandforests.org. Named for New Jersey politician and conservationist Dryden Kuser (first husband of Brooke Astor), this 800-acre natural area is part of High Point State Park. It includes a rare, distinctive bog. You can hike a trail along a ridge surrounding the swamp, which has mature hemlocks, white pine, and a unique stand of mature Atlantic white cedar. At 1,500 feet above sea level, it is the highest-elevation swamp of its kind in the world. Pick up a self-guided trail booklet at the park office. Endangered species include the three-tooth cinquefoil and Coopers hawk.

Foster-Armstrong House. 320 River Rd. (Route 521), Montague; (973) 293-3106; www.montaguehistory.org. Julius Foster built the original structure with a Dutch gambrel roof circa 1790. Brother-in-law James B. Armstrong completed the addition in 1820. Every room has a fireplace. There are Victorian-era rooms, complete with a tea service, and furnishings of several periods. You can see the beehive oven and learn how it was used. In the military room you will see uniforms, newspaper accounts, and handwritten notes from soldiers who fought in the Civil War and both World Wars. On display is a rope bed, hand-loomed linens, weaving looms, and quilts. One special exhibit shows scale-model covered bridges. This house is on the National Register. You may tour on Sun in the summer between 1 and 4 p.m., or by appointment from Jan through Oct. The house is open on the second and fourth Wednesday of each month from 9:30 to 11 a.m.

Nelden-Roberts Stonehouse. 501 Route 206 North, Montague; (973) 293-3106; www.montaguehistory.org. This house dates to the early 1800s and was named for George Nelden, who settled here in 1820. The Roberts family owned the farm across the road. The house has been a home to many families and was a schoolhouse with a teachers apartment on the second floor. You will see original wide-plank wooden floors, the fireplace, and deep windows. The display here will show much about 19th-century Montague life. Note the herb garden.

Stokes State Forest. 1 Coursen Rd., Branchville; (973) 948-3820; www.njparksandforests.org. Two stars vie for ones attention here. Sunrise Mountain gives you heart-stopping, panoramic views of two valleys. And a 50-foot waterfall known as Tillmans Ravine takes you on a mental leap following the path of Tillmans Creek flowing through a gorge of giant hemlock trees, mountain laurels, and ferns. The ravines chilly air creates a microclimate that nurtures plants better suited to a more northern environment. At the falls, the creek bursts into an ebullient cascade over red rocksin one case, a 10-foot free fall. The falls are at the south end of Stokes State Forest, and you can walk there from the ravines parking lot. If you are up for a climb to the top of Sunrise Mountain, elevation 1,653 feet, a 12.5-mile section of the Appalachian Trail follows the Kittatinny Ridge through the forest. Plant life here includes mountain laurel, wild blueberry, pitch pine, and scrub oak. If you are not up to a mountain climb, you can drive to the pavilion at the summit. Besides the narrow, often rocky AT, the forest has more than 33 miles of marked trails, and many cross each other. Terrain varies from lowlands to rocky mountains. Stony Lake and Kittle Field have picnic areas. You may launch a small boat with an electric motor at Lake Ocquittunkbut check the park rules, and there is no boat ramp. Lifeguards are on duty in summer at Stony Lake. You will find changing areas, restrooms, and a first-aid station.