Lakota Wolf Preserve & Water Gap Hike - 4/10/04

[Rob S]

For anyone that is interested, I am planning a visit to the Lakota Wolf Preserve in Columbia, NJ. The date, weather permitting, is April 10, 2004. Although the Preserve is open year round, the "Wolf Watch" is not scheduled if the weather is bad. So we'll have to make a final determination the night before.

The price for adults is $15 and $7 for children under 12. The morning "Wolf Watch" begins at 10:30AM, so I would like to be there by 10:00AM. Here is a link to the website:

http://www.lakotawolf.com/index.htm

Directions can be found on their site. If you are interested, please send me an email or PM. We can all meet there, or anyone arriving from Interstate 80 can meet me at the scenic overlook that is located about 1 or 2 miles before Exit 4.

Also, if anyone is interested in a hike afterwards, the beautiful Delaware Water Gap is just a few miles away. Although the trails there are often crowded on the weekends, the climb up Mount Tammany is a great hike with plenty of views from the top. There are other awesome hikes in the area as well including the Appalachian Trail to Sunfish Pond, the CopperMine Trail to Racoon Ridge, and Van Campens Glen.

Thanks,
Rob

[email protected]

 

[Jay H]

Lakota Wolf Preserve

Hey Rob, I'll see what I'm doing then, I believe I have a hike scheduled on Good Friday (I'm off) but I think I am free on Easter. My family is celebrating easter a week early so I may actually be free.

I've hiked up Mt. Tammany a couple times already from the AT parking lot, you can actually hear the wolfs from up on the ridge (blue trail) that heads towards Sunfish Pond. It's kind of spooky but cool at the same time....

Jay

 

[Tuco]

That sounds interesting- I will keep it in mind and let you know. Need to see my sons little league schedule first...

I've done Tammany over 1/2 dozen times and the Sunfish Pond hike so if I can make it I'd definintely join on a hike.

Eric

 

[Rob S]

Just an update .......

As of right now we have 4 VFTTers who are definitely coming, 2 VFTTers who are possible, and 2 people that I work with. Please don't hesitate to bring your kids, husband/wife, fiance, in-laws, neighbor, pastor, mailman, or even your plumber! Just be aware that pets are not allowed (Chihuahuas make the wolves hungry )

If you are driving more than an hour, please leave yourself enough time to avoid being late. I will get there between 9:30 and 9:45AM (look for a silver Mitsubishi Montero). If you could, drop me an email or PM if you are coming so I can be sure when everyone is there.

Also, I wanted to mention for all of you that live too far away, if you ever visit NJ and want to go to the Wolf Preserve, please let me know when you'll be here and I'll be happy to take you then. Would be my pleasure.

Rob

 

[Tuco]

Going to have to back out for this day.

Ball game in the am.

Hope y'all enjoy..

 

[funkyfreddy]

It looks like I'll be there if the weather and my old car cooperates. I was also wondering if anyone might be interested in camping out on Sat. if the weather's good. Just a thought - post, PM,or E-mail me if you're interested. I'm looking forward to finally meeting some of the NJ VFTT crew!

By the way, I finished the book by Barry Lopez "Of Wolves and Men". Quite an interesting read. I guess after this trip some of us will probably want to head up north eventually to see and hear wolves in the wild. Thanks, Fred

 

[Jay H]

That's great Fred, I'd like to meet you too, as far as camping out, I know I can't because Friday I have all-day plans and saturday after the wolf thing, I have to go to my sister's for easter. But the AT is not far from there so you could hike out to the shelters along the AT there...

Hope to see you there Fred.

BTW, how are you doing after your recent break-in. I felt really bad after reading your post on the Devil's Path thread. I hope you find peace somehow in all of this, have you decided to remain in NYC, you said you were looking at other places to set up your recording studio somewhere, right?

Jay

 

[funkyfreddy]

Hi Jay, Thanks for asking - I'm doing OK, trying to get everything back together again like Humpty Dumpty, just kidding, ha,ha,ha.

I am going to leave NYC eventually but won't run away immediately. Places I wouldn't mind living are northwest NJ, upstate NY, northwest CT, western Mass, Vermont, NH, and Maine. As you can see I have a lot of options, all depends on work. I'd also like to be able to bike commute like you do since living in NYC has allowed me to not have to drive much, which I like for many reasons.

I'll tell you more about the breakin when I see you Sat. Looking forward to meeting you, Rob, and Snowshoe. Thanks, Fred

 

[Jay H]

It was fun to meet all of you, including Shawn and Susan (Are they on VFTT? If so, I never got their usernames) and for a fun time at the Wolf Preserve.... Next time I go to Mt. Tammany, I'll have to time it again, when the wolves are ahowling!

That was definitely one of those unexpected hiking moments that one cannot describe! If we didn't know the wolf preservce was nearby, I'd think that would freak me out enough, especially if it was at night...

Jay

 

[shadowcat]

How was it?

For those of you who made it to the wolf preserve, how was it? did you actually get to see any of the wolves, how close, etc. etc? did you feel it was worth the trip?
Would love to hear all the details.
thanks!

 

[funkyfreddy]

Lots of fun!

I had a great time yesterday and it was good to meet everyone. I hate to say this Jay but you and Shawn(snowshoe) missed part of the fun because after the Wolf Preserve Rob (i12climbup), Sean, Sue and I climbed Mt. Tammany then took the fire road over the ridge to right above where the preserve is. We had tried to get to get the wolves to howl a few times earlier from the ridge but didn't get a response. Then when we stood right above them on the ridge the 4 of us howled as a chorus and the wolves answered us from below! It was one of those memorable hiking experiences, hearing the wolf packs echo through the valley below us!

Sean and Sue also took us to 2 geo caches and gave me a lesson on GPS and geocaching. All in all it was quite a day between seeing the wolves and bobcats,meeting all of you, having Shawn(snowshoe) point out all of those great/weird NJ places to hike, having a good hike in the Water Gap, etc. Most of these places are less than 2 hours away from me so now a whole new realm of exploration has just opened up for me.

I'll keep in touch with all of you about future hikes and outings. I have a lot of trips in mind.....
1. NJ AT section hikes
2. bushwacks to find plane wrecks, ruins, etc.
3. overnights and campouts in either NJ or the Catskills
4. peakbagging/redlining trails in the Catskills

A big thanks goes to Rob for organizing the trip. Hope to see everyone again soon. Thanks, Fred

 

[Jay H]

Re: How was it?

For those of you who made it to the wolf preserve, how was it? did you actually get to see any of the wolves, how close, etc. etc? did you feel it was worth the trip?
Would love to hear all the details.
thanks!

You walk about 1/2 mile out to the range (or you can actually take the tart cart.. yes, it's a small yellow bus.) and you come up to two fences, an outer and an inner fence (which is why photography is not as good as it could be, you can poke a small P&S lens throught he outer fence, but no way to poke it through the inner one.). You have a guide (Jim for us) that is a good guide, knows his stuff, enjoys his job and is good. He'll give you the tour on the wolves and answer questions as well as feed the wolves dog treats to get them closer and try to howl. Then you'll go to the bobcats and red fox which is done by a different lady but equally good.

Overall, I think it would make a good half day event, great for the kids, the kids that were there (there were some boy scouts there) all seemed to enjoy it, especially since they could relate to domesticated dogs and wolves. I would say if you're a hiker, you would enjoy it and Worthington State Forest which is nearby too. It is worth a day trip to go, IMO, especially when you can go hiking or kayaking on the delaware afterwards so it's not like an only destination. The Paulinskill RT goes by not far from there and there's even the Lackawanna Viaduct (Weird NJ you can explore that is nearby for biking.

If you were not a hiker or animal/wolf lover, well, then it's probably not a destination but I would really recommend it for the kids or any animal lover who may not get the chance to see wolves out in the true wilderness. And better yet, do what Fred and the gang, did, do Mt. Tammany and go out on the ridge and see if you can get the wolves to howl!!!

Jay

 

[snowshoe]

The Wolf preserve was great. Rob thanks for setting it up. It is nice to actually meat the people you talk to on this board. VFTT is not only great for info but also a great way to make friends and hiking partners.

Fred let me know when you head up my way for some hiking. I can take you to some great areas in the Kittainny's. Also if you need info on Sussex county let me know. It is a great place to live.

Like Jay said the wolf preserve is great because you can hit the preserve in the morning and then go hiking in the afternoon. Does not get any better than that.

Rob and Fred keep in touch. Maybe we can get a hike in together soon.
Shawn

 

[Rob S]

First, I would like to thank everyone who came to the Wolf Preserve last Saturday - Shawn (Snowshoe), Desiree, Jay H, Fred (FunkyFreddy), Sean Mayer, and Sue Mayer. It was great to finally meet other VFTTers who seem like old friends after years of conversing on these forums. It's funny how well you can get to know someone online before actually meeting them. And I have to say that everyone was a pleasure, and I'm looking forward to many more future hikes, get-togethers, etc.

Second, I would like thank the Lakota Wolf Preserve and our guide, Jim, who made our day even that much better. It was thrilling to watch the wolves, the bobcats, and the fox in such a beautiful setting. It was obvious that Jim, who was very knowledgeable, truly enjoyed his job.

Last, but not least, I want to thank Darren and VFTT for making this possible. If not for this website, we would not have nearly as much knowledge and information on our favorite pastime. And, if not for this website, I would not have met the awesome people that I now call "friends".

Rob