Highlands Trail Guide Introduction

10/19/20 Major HT reroute between Black Rock Forest and Schunemunk State Park:

Due to the closure of trails across Metro North RR at Schunemunk Mountain State Park and the resulting road walk which had grown to 4.6 miles to get to the new trail head, the Highlands Trail has been rerouted between Black Rock Forest and Schunemunk Mountain. This emergency (much shorter) road walk reroute was originally envisioned to be temporary. However, given the fact that there is the potential to eliminate most of the road walk in the new route by using protected land, this will most likely become the new, permanent HT route.

The Highlands Trail Guide is your resource for planning hikes on the Highlands Trail. Several maps are linked below, followed by detailed descriptions of individual trail segments. Hike reports, questions, comments, complaints, and suggestions are always welcome and appreciated; please contact the volunteer Highlands Trail Chair at [email protected].

Last Updated: 10/3/22

What's with all of those road walks?

The good news is that the better portion of the Highlands Trail road walks in NY & NJ can be eliminated with woods trails on public land. The bad news is that the current HT Chair (me) and the current HT Supervisors are all maxed out. The Hunterdon County sections alone take up most of our summer to maintain them just to keep them open and hike-able - and we sometimes fail at even that goal. So, we just don't have time to eliminate road walks - even the ones where a future woods trail has already been scouted. That's where YOU come in if you are interested. I would of course get you up to speed on what land is available and how to go about it. So, if you are interested in taking ownership of a road walk elimination project and improving the trail, please contact me.

Thanks

Glenn Oleksak

Highlands Trail Chair

[email protected]

This Highlands Trail Map below is interactive and zoomable, and was last updated in December 2021. Tap the 'Explore' button at the bottom to view the map, or click here to view a full-screen version for your desktop or mobile device. Please be sure to also refer to the individual detailed descriptions to ensure you have the latest updates

Individual section maps for the Highlands Trail through New Jersey, up-to-date as of December 2021, are linked below the interactive map. A digital Avenza Maps app map of the New Jersey section is also now available, so click here to learn more about this free app map.

Click the 'Explore' button to view the interactive map, or click here to view a full-screen version of this map.

A set of 10 individual section maps for the Highlands Trail through New Jersey has been created with support from the New Jersey Highlands Council. Click here to view a PDF of the 10 section maps. We will be working to add map links to the descriptions in this guide. A digital Avenza Maps app map of the New Jersey section is also now available, so click here to learn more about this free app map.

Highlands Trail Guide