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Great Ny/nj Loop Caches


briansnat

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Earlier this year I placed my Hiker Series of caches, which directed geocachers along an 8-10 mile hike with as many as 8 caches along the route. The idea was to enable goecachers to park their car, go on a nice hike, find a number of caches along the way and not have to move their car.

 

I initially thought perhaps 4-5 geocachers would do it in one shot and was very surprised at how popular the Hiker Series has become, being that it is a fairly long hike over varied and at times, rugged terrain. Avroair's Africa Loop has also proved very popular.

 

Of course there are some loop cache hikes out there that were not designed as such, but still allow the geocacher to park their car and spend an afternoon taking a nice hike while bagging a few caches without moving their car. One great one that comes to mind is the one in Norvin Green SF, where you can find Assiniwikam Mtn, The View, Wanaque Overlook, Buck Mountain Micro, Wyanokie High Point, A Mine Is a Terrible Thing , Chikahoki Falls and Buck Mountain Overlook in a good afternoon of hiking.

 

I also heard there is now a nice loop hike on Verona's Hilltop and of course there was the awesome loop hilke in the Hudson Highlands.

 

What other good loop cache hunts are out there? Perhaps its one you've done, or one you've been planning to do, or just one you've noticed on the map as a good possibility. Maybe the loop includes one, or several of the caches previously mentioned. I bet there are some excellent ones in Harriman SP and I'm sure a good loop can be pieced together in the Ramapos in northern NJ. The loop can be a mile or two, or 10, or more. Get out your maps and toss out some ideas!

Edited by briansnat
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I did mostly linear hikes rather than loops, but a nice one (and not much visited) is in Schunemunks:

start at Salisbury Mills train station: Smoke Cache - alien cache (I didn't download a waypoint for this one, but it seems to be by the way)- Kodo cache - Another Schunnemonk View - Long Path meets Jessup Trail - , here I turned back because of the heavy rain and did just My Favorite Hike on my way back, but you should be able to continue at least to Schunemunk's High Knob or

And Above Earl and then hit the right trail to get to Dark Hollow Cache.

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I have a bunch I did recently (since the beginning of this year) that I'll post tonight when I have some time.

 

They include loops in the Palisades, a few in Harriman and in Ramapo. I have track logs too to show the loops.

 

Great thread Brian as I hope some other folks throw out ones they've done that I can use to plan trips!!

 

David

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There is a cache loop in Baldpate mountain park in central NJ. Use zip code 08560. You can park your car in one spot and make a loop to find the 6 caches in the park (5 of which are relatively near each other.) They are Sphere's of the world, Feature Cache, Yeaaaa! I got cache!, Abandoned Cache, The "J" cache. Those five can be found in an approx. 3 mile loop with some varying terrain. A sixth cache can be found if you are up for a longer hike of a total of about 6 miles to find them all. It is The Big Egg. You can park on Pleasant Valley road where the trail ends at cordinates 40 degrees 19.95N, 074 degrees 52.24W. It is a small gravel lot. You can also park on the side of the road next to the lot if there is know room. All of these caches are in good condition after a recent maintenece check. You could spend all afternoon here finding these caches making a great day of caching. A 7th cache can be found just a short .2 miles away in a different parking area. It is called "Cache By the Lake". That cache should be in ok condition however the container is supposedly cracked. If you would like to replace the container when finding this one, feel free to, as I am low on containers because of my statewide race/hunt. This is a big park and could use a few more caches in those areas that don't have any caches to make this big loop better. For a map, email me at sub4dave@comcast.net. Happy Caching :o

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I have two other loop series planned:

 

South America Loop Series: Amazon, Tango, Andes, Samba, Coco, MonteVideo, Inca, Patagonia

 

Lost World Adventures multis: Mayan, Egyptian, Indus, Mesopotamia, Inca, Meso-American, Mongol

 

Just need time to place them.

 

Harriman has lots of potential loops:

 

1. North from hiker lot on Rte 106 Bald Mtn, Stahehe Highpoint (9-11)

2. South from hiker lot on Rte 106 Africa loop (7)

3. Seven Springs mountain loop - 3 very old Cache Ninja caches (6)

4. Lake & Mine series, including Hogencamp, Pine Swamp and Skannatati (5)

5. Bear Mountain - lots of caches up there, haven't gone there yet though (?)

6. Elk Pen lot off Ardem Valley Road - AT trail + Island pond caches (7)

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Let me know when you guys plan on hitting them or others and hopefully I will be able to make it.

 

I started hiking in college - then it fell by the wayside for a bit. Geocaching has definitely gotten me back into it, and I without a doubt enjoy a good hike with a few caches on the way more than driving around bagging a ton of caches.

 

I definitely need to hit the rest of the Hiker Series soon.

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I just noticed a brand new one. With Mxyzpltk's new Blueberry Hill and Middle a Somewhere caches, there is now a nice loop in Wildcat Ridge WMA when combined with my Hawk Watch cache.

 

According to Mxyzpltk's cache pages, he's planning a couple more caches along the route which will make it a 4-5 cache loop.

Thanks for the plug Brian. I was able to place a couple more caches in that area that are still waiting for approval (come on Brian log in as NJADMIN and approve them ^_^ ).

 

It could probably use another cache so people are not tempted to take short cuts, but this should be fine for now (a cache by the big rock off of the blue trail that Brian mentioned in his BlueBerry hill log might do the trick). If you do the loop as depicted by my tracks its a nice 4.5 - 5.0 mile hike.

 

9a9b3374-0214-4ab5-9545-2970b8605b97.jpg

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(come on Brian log in as NJADMIN and approve them).

 

If only I knew the password! Looks like a great loop in an area that is all to ignored by hikers. BTW, I noticed your new caches were already listed on the Wildcat Ridge WMAwebsite . I guess the person who admininsters that website is either a geocacher, or someone who sees the benefits of geocaching.

Edited by briansnat
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I just completed my loop series in Ramapo Valley Reservation. Here are the caches in suggested order.

 

Parking on Route 202 you start on the orange blazed Schuber trail and the first cache to bag is River Run. Continuing on the Schuber, you'll pass some neat ruins and a scenic waterfall and the next cache is Triple Tree (currently awaiting approval). Continuing on the Schuber trail as it turns south you can bag Warm Furry Kittens and post a DNF for Rocky Mtn Micro Challenge.

 

Returning to the Schuber Trail you can nab The Bird is the Word. Continuing south and reaching Bear Swamp Rd, turn left and soon you'll be at the Goat House cache. From here, you hop on he Yellow/Silver trail and you'll pass by Fluffy Pink Bunnies. After bagging this cache, get back on the Yellow/Silver trail and follow it north to the Schuber, or Silver Disc trails and back to your car.

 

Fluffy Pink Bunnies and Warm Furry Kittens are both a bit of a bushwack off the trail and the walk to Warm Furry Kittens can be pretty rugged, depending on your approach. This is rattlesnake country. They are very rare, but are around, so keep your eyes open.

 

Skigirl43 and I walked the loop in a little over 3 hours yesterday, without taking time to look for caches (with the exception of a detour to look for the Rocky Mtn Micro).

Edited by briansnat
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I woudln't call it great in the class of the Hiker series, but there are enough caches placed in Rifle Camp preserve that a nice loop can be made out of them. Not as strenuous as most, and about 3 miles total.

 

Harley's Hidden Cache

Rolands Rifle Cache

Sixth Sense - Reborn

"343"

 

There is also a final stage to a multi. :unsure:

No hide is above a 2 difficulty and the park affords a beautiful overlook view of New York City.

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Another great loop hike is now available. A week ago there was one cache in the area. Now there are 7 (1 awaiting approval). They are Long Pond Ironworks, Sterling Ridge, Day at the Beech, Find Briansnat's Ammo Can #12, My (very red) Ammo Can, Jennings Creek and Jennings Hollow.

 

Its an outstanding 8 mile loop hike and a new favorite of mine.

 

Sterling_Rdge_Topo.Jpg

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Another great loop hike is now available. A week ago there was one cache in the area. Now there are 7 (1 awaiting approval). They are Long Pond Ironworks, Sterling Ridge, Day at the Beech, Find Briansnat's Ammo Can #12, My (very red) Ammo Can, Jennings Creek and Jennings Hollow.

 

Its an outstanding 8 mile loop hike and a new favorite of mine.

 

 

Looks like a nice hike...may have to check it out this weekend. I'll definitely bring your map though because I think mine is sorely out of date :drama:

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Another great loop hike is now available. A week ago there was one cache in the area. Now there are 7 (1 awaiting approval). They are Long Pond Ironworks, Sterling Ridge, Day at the Beech, Find Briansnat's Ammo Can #12, My (very red) Ammo Can, Jennings Creek and Jennings Hollow.

 

Its an outstanding 8 mile loop hike and a new favorite of mine.

 

 

Looks like a nice hike...may have to check it out this weekend. I'll definitely bring your map though because I think mine is sorely out of date :D

 

Older maps should be fine. They just are missing the Hasenclever Trail which isn't part of the loop anyways.

I also have a narrative here.

Edited by briansnat
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Plan on doing this NNJ loop tomorrow. Looks like we can get 13 or 14 in a relatively short route. Anyone know how heavy the hunting is in this area? Looks like a swampy area too.....how about ground conditions?

 

 

I don't think hunting is a big issue right now. Its winter bow season and bow hunters need to be real close to their target, so mistaking you for a deer is unlikely. That and there really aren't a lot of bowhunters out there.

 

Some of the swampy areas are very swampy. Others are just wet seasonally. Waterproof hiking boots should do the trick.

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I just did Brian's Loop, now let me plug another Hudson Highland Loop, this one involving seven caches, in Black Rock Forest

Ben's Bridge of Misery

The Rapture

Shake Rattle and Roll

No More Nights in the Alley Cache

The Safe House

The Eagle's Cliff

Hudson Vista

 

http://img.geocaching.com/cache/c6902819-c...5bd2c8c89e9.jpg

 

This is about ten miles, if you do all the caches.

 

Jonboy...are their maps for that area? Is that on the West Hudson Trails map?

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The Black Rock Forest trails are on the West Hudson Map Set. To reach the main parking lot, turn right off of northbound 9W at Mountain Road (just downhill from the pullover at Stormking). Immediately after you get on this road, make a sharp right into a narrow tunnel which goes under 9W. Follow this road to a junction, go straight 1/4 of a mile to a parking lot on the right. When leaving, make a left at the afore mentioned junction and drive up to the southbound ramp for 9W.

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Three weekends in a row with three great caching hikes. I started with poohstickz East Mountain series in Hubbard Perkins. Last weekend I did the new caches along the Sterling Ridge and today I found jonboy's new ones in Black Rock Forest. I usually spend more time driving than I do caching. It was refreshing to park the car and hike all morning picking up caches along the way. I hope this is the beginning of a trend. Thanks to all who placed these caches out there.

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There is a nice loop around Split Rock Reservoir now. An outstanding 10+ mile hike.

 

Start with the first stage of Rock Structures. Then on to Project X: Little Green Men, SplitRock Splendor, By Boot or By Boat: Splitrock, Splitrock West, By Boot or by Boat: Four Birds, By Boot or By Boat: Mud Pond, Indian Rocks, By Boot or By Boat:Box of Clams, Splitrock Overlook, It's Not Just a Cache, Its an Adventure, then finally the last stage of Rock Structures.

 

That's 12 great caches in one loop hike.

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This thread hasn't been visited in awhile, so here is a new loop that offers some terrific views:

 

This hike involves Schunemunk Mountain. Some of you may remember several caches up there that have since been archived, but now (in addition to some REALLY, REALLY old ones), we have a collection of new ones to be found.

 

Start with Unfinished Jewell II (GCEF67) (which is also the parking area), and move on to My Favorite Hike (GC2B06) (which, by the way, was published in Dec 2001!). From here, continue on the Dark Hollow Trail (Black/White) to Take A Break (GC16TBR) (which you will probably need anyway). Follow the Dark Hollow further on to the new Gigantor (GC18KGP) (which might very well be the largest cache container at such an altitude as you have ever seen). Turn left (south) on the Yellow Jessup Trail to my own seldom visited Megaliths (GC12HOF). From here, the weak at heart can opt to turn back and go home, but those who really want a hike and several more awsome views (as well as anothe cache placed in November of 2001) can continue on to Above Earl (GC26CC) -- which hasn't been visited since Oct of 2005.

 

One may finish the day with six smilies . . . and maybe more if you look locally for some easier caches nearby.

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Lets take a closer look at brianb's list. These are some lonely caches.

 

Unfinished Jewel II 58 finds in 5 years and its a drive up!!

My Favorite Hike 36 finds in 6 years

Take a Break 5 finds in 3 months

Megaliths 7 finds in 9 months

Above Earl 18 finds in 6 years

 

I hope the new Gigantor cache fares better, but I doubt it. It seems like geocaching is evolving into a numbers game where any cache more than a quarter mile from the car is ignored. There was a time when most caches were placed where there was a view, or some other interesting feature. More and more I'm seeing caches placed in areas where the only reason for placing a cache is that there isn't one there already.

 

Thanks to cornfarell and brianb for trying to bring geocaching to a higher level.

 

I would also like to promote my Major Welch series on Bear Mountain. Besides the 5 caches in the series there are 3 or 4 more you can get in the same day. But be forewarned, its about a 5 mile hike with over 1100 feet of elevation gain. Its in a NY State Park so they will only be there for 2 years.

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There is a pretty good newish loop in Ramapo Mt State Forest, using the new Indian Rock and Wanaque Ridge Trails. I'm not sure how many caches are on the loop, but it's quite a few.

A quick glance at the GC cache maps has 11, maybe 12 caches along that loop. One is currently disabled.

http://www.geocaching.com/seek/gmnearest.a...;lng=-74.279433

Click the topo option to follow Brian's map easier.

 

About how long of a hike is that?

Edited by Team Perrito Blanco
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A few weeks ago, my cousin did another BrianSnat hike, found 11 caches along the way, and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. I believe that there are a few newer ones out there along this loop, so you'll have to check that out.

 

Here is my bread crumb map with the caches:

 

5dbad5c9-7875-46b1-b3a6-f8ef158365e2.jpg

 

And the profile (which, by all accounts, isn't that bad):

 

d25b4603-d378-44c2-8a3e-001eda147f37.jpg

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From here, the weak at heart can opt to turn back and go home, but those who really want a hike and several more awsome views (as well as anothe cache placed in November of 2001) can continue on to Above Earl (GC26CC) -- which hasn't been visited since Oct of 2005.

 

It looks like a nice hike maybe good for the autumn.

 

Is Above Earl still there?

Edited by Straatmaker 5
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No. And Above Earl has been archived, but there are some new ones up there: Schunemunk Scamper and Pudding Stone -- both of which offer some spectacular views. If you really want a long hike, add Knob to the hike . . . and you are probably looking at 12 - 14 miles.

 

This is best done by making a one way trip, dropping one car off at N 41° 21.811 W 074° 06.310 and starting the hike at N 41° 24.440 W 074° 04.892.

 

I took my 8-year-old on this and we had a fine time.

 

aa4b484f-f229-4a5a-a9aa-7a6e622428e5.jpg

Edited by brian b
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It looks like a nice hike maybe good for the autumn.

 

Is Above Earl still there?

 

Unless Brian has removed it, I believe Is Above Earl is still there. Its in a seldom visited spot. The CO moved from the area and archived all his caches but left them there. TPTB do not allow anyone to adopt an archived cache so Brian has picked up a few and resurrected them. tadpole379 and I picked up the two he left in Harriman Park and I hope to rehide these soon.

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A few weeks ago, my cousin did another BrianSnat hike, found 11 caches along the way, and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. I believe that there are a few newer ones out there along this loop, so you'll have to check that out.

 

Here is my bread crumb map with the caches:

 

5dbad5c9-7875-46b1-b3a6-f8ef158365e2.jpg

 

The trails are now complete as of last Friday. There is now a blazed trail to the Surreal Estate and Overlook Rock caches (sorry to all of you who had to bushwack to them) and you can make a nice loop hike using the map below. There are 11 caches over a 6.5 mile hike if you just stick with the lollypop loop indicated in solid red, or wander a short distance from it. A few more if you wander around the woods roads.

 

ac224901-e47b-4648-8982-8a61b8cb3688.jpg

Edited by briansnat
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A few weeks ago, my cousin did another BrianSnat hike, found 11 caches along the way, and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. I believe that there are a few newer ones out there along this loop, so you'll have to check that out.

 

Here is my bread crumb map with the caches:

 

5dbad5c9-7875-46b1-b3a6-f8ef158365e2.jpg

 

The trails are now complete as of last Friday. There is now a blazed trail to the Surreal Estate and Overlook Rock caches (sorry to all of you who had to bushwack to them) and you can make a nice loop hike using the map below. There are 11 caches over a 6.5 mile hike if you just stick with the lollypop loop indicated in solid red, or wander a short distance from it. A few more if you wander around the woods roads.

 

ac224901-e47b-4648-8982-8a61b8cb3688.jpg

 

Great new series! Must do. Nice new, BRAND NEW, trails. Cut out of the woods by BrianSnat!

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Here is another hike, under 7 miles, that will reward with around 14 caches or so:

 

7a3810a3-0fa9-4b40-b154-f1d93074a3e2.jpg

 

(this image has been edited to remove two of the caches, as that is part of the mystery involved!)

 

The mystery caches involve H2O's All For One and One For All -- Hotel Treville cache. Other caches are a short distance from the counter-clockwise path around the lake.

 

We couldn't find BrianSnat's stage one of The Rotten Ramble, but that might also add another on your journey.

 

Total miles we walked: 6.8

Elevational change: very little, with the exception of Billy E. 9/11/01, which was a small uphill, rewarded with an awsome viewpoint, and a great cache.

Edited by brian b
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I enjoyed this loop today:

 

Great way to explore Storm King and you can pickup a benchmark too:

 

Butter Hill South (Traditional Cache) New York

A Perfect Storm (Traditional Cache) New York

By The Way (Traditional Cache) New York

Perfect Storm is one of the best cache locations on the Hudson. Not meaning to take anything from Yaa Kee or any of the other classics on the river but this one just absolutely takes your breath away.

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Macatac1961, Reisfield, Weathernowcast, and I tackled this beast in about 7 hours and 13 miles of walking. There are six caches on the mountain, and if one opts to forgo the multi, 5 caches can be found. If one wishes to finish the multi (we didn't, but that is another story for another time), then 4 caches can be found.

 

This is an awsome area with views that are unparalled.

 

Tongue French Connection, Tongue French Upper, Tip of the Tongue, Northwest Bay Cache, and Tongue French Lower (not in the order of finding them). The multi is Tongue Wagger, and while we didn't finish this one, picking up the first three stages and then bushwacking down from stage four will get you the French Connection caches.

 

d6331054-928a-437f-be39-815f50ca17ac.jpg

 

This is one helluva hike!

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:laughing:--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(brian b @ Sep 30 2008, 05:01 PM) 3658788[/snapback]</div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->

This is one helluva hike!

Talk about a hike... it's a three-hour trip just to get there! :laughing:

 

Also, to keep this post from having nothing to contribute to the thread, I did the aforementioned "All For One" loop at Ramapo Lake today, and it was quite a nice walk. Then again, I got to skip all the big climbs because I'd already done them, so YMMV.

Edited by MountainRacer
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<_<-->

QUOTE(brian b @ Sep 30 2008, 05:01 PM) 3658788[/snapback]

Macatac1961, Reisfield, Weathernowcast, and I tackled this beast in about 7 hours and 13 miles of walking. There are six caches on the mountain, and if one opts to forgo the multi, 5 caches can be found. If one wishes to finish the multi (we didn't, but that is another story for another time), then 4 caches can be found.

 

This is an awsome area with views that are unparalled.

 

Tongue French Connection, Tongue French Upper, Tip of the Tongue, Northwest Bay Cache, and Tongue French Lower (not in the order of finding them). The multi is Tongue Wagger, and while we didn't finish this one, picking up the first three stages and then bushwacking down from stage four will get you the French Connection caches.

 

d6331054-928a-437f-be39-815f50ca17ac.jpg

 

This is one helluva hike!

 

This looks like a nice backpacking trip. Is overnighting allowed here?

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This looks like a nice backpacking trip. Is overnighting allowed here?

There is a sign at the trailhead that says 'No Camping' but there is a lean-to shelter up at Fifth Peak. According to the cache page and Rusty O Junk's log, it's okay to overnight. That was our original plan but there is no water (supposedly) after you start up the hill. You will have to haul two days worth. We decided to try it in one day but half of us still ran out of water so bring more than you'd think you will need.

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