High Mountain–Erskine Lookout, 14 sights is a 7.3-mile out-and-back in Ramapo Valley County Reservation near Darlington, NJ. The route passes Scarlet Oak Pond, Vista, MacMillan Reservoir and 5 more before reaching Erskine Lookout at the turnaround, 3.6 miles in. It climbs 969 ft, with sections as steep as 21% grade, and is mostly dirt. It scores 59/100 on the Ambleway Wildness scale: backcountry feel.
Elevation
0 mi240 – 1,102 ft · steepest grade: 21%8.0 mi
Getting there
Trailhead: Unnamed 41.07729, -74.18699
Nearest town Darlington, NJ
Directions
AMBLEWAYwww.ambleway.com
High Mountain–Erskine Lookout, 14 sights
7.3 mi · ▲ 969 ft · 2 hr 55 min
Elevation 241–1,101 ft
Out & Back · Ramapo Valley County Reservation
Trailhead: 41.07729, -74.18699
Weather Sep 7: Overcast, high 76°F / low 57° · precip 0% · wind 5 mph · sunrise 6:30 AM · sunset 7:21 PM
Toilets at the trailhead · Parking lot at the trailhead
- Start at the trailhead, heading NW.
- 250 ftBear left onto Vista Spur Trail, heading W.
- 350 ftPass Scarlet Oak Pond.
- 250 ftPass Vista.
- 0.2 miContinue straight onto Pond/Vista Loop Trail, heading NW.
- 150 ftContinue straight onto Vista-Ridge Connector Trail, heading NW.
- 0.2 miBear left onto Ridge Loop Trail, heading SW.
- 0.1 miContinue straight onto Ridge/Vista Loop Trail, heading NW.
- 300 ftPass MacMillan Reservoir.
- 150 ftTurn left onto Ridge Loop Trail, heading NW.
- 0.1 miContinue straight onto Reservoir Loop, heading W.
- 50 ftContinue straight onto Ridge Loop Trail, heading W.
- 0.3 miPass Mill Race Ruins.
- 0.2 miContinue straight onto Rocky Mountain Connector, heading W.
- 0.7 miPass Bear Swamp Lake.
- 0.1 miBear left onto Mountain Road/Shore Trail, heading W.
- 0.4 miBear right onto Shore Trail, heading SW.
- 100 ftTurn left onto Cannonball Trail, heading S.
- 0.6 miPass Iaoapogh Lake.
- 50 ftPass Cannonball Lake.
- 0.2 miSharp right onto Green Trail, heading W.
- 0.2 miPass Erskine Lookout.
- 0.1 miReach High Mountain, then turn around and head back the way you came.
- 0.3 miSharp left onto Cannonball Trail, heading SE.
- 0.8 miTurn right onto Shore Trail, heading SE.
- 50 ftBear left onto Mountain Road/Shore Trail, heading S.
- 0.4 miBear right onto Rocky Mountain Connector, heading NE.
- 0.8 miContinue straight onto Ridge Loop Trail, heading SW.
- 0.4 miContinue straight onto Reservoir Loop, heading E.
- 50 ftContinue straight onto Ridge Loop Trail, heading E.
- 500 ftTurn right onto Ridge/Vista Loop Trail, heading E.
- 450 ftContinue straight onto Ridge Loop Trail, heading SE.
- 0.1 miBear right, heading SE.
- 0.2 miContinue straight onto Vista-Ridge Connector Trail, heading S.
- 200 ftContinue straight onto Pond/Vista Loop Trail, heading SE.
- 150 ftContinue straight onto Vista Spur Trail, heading SE.
- 0.3 miBear right, heading E.
- 50 ftArrive back at the trailhead.
Each distance is the walk from the previous step. Tap a step for a map of its junction.
Trail surface
69% dirt18% paved12% gravel1% unspecified
Weather
OvercastTemperature 76°F57°
Precip0%Wind5 mphUV6Humidity63%
Rained 0.2″ 4 days ago (0.4″ over the last week)
Hourly temperature
80°55°
Sunrise 6:30 AM12 AM3 AM9 AM12 PM3 PMSunset 7:21 PM
Tue
79°61°
Wed
85°61°
Thu
80°67°
30%
Fri
76°56°
22%
Sat
80°56°
Sun
84°59°
Good to know
- Toilets at the trailhead
- Parking lot at the trailhead
More from this trailhead
- MacMillan Brook Falls–Scarlet Oak Pond Loop, 5 sights 1.6 mi · ▲ 215 ft
- Ridge Overlook–Scarlet Oak Pond, 4 viewpoints 1.6 mi · ▲ 464 ft
- Cactus Ledge–Scarlet Oak Pond Loop, 8 sights 2.3 mi · ▲ 581 ft
- MacMillan Reservoir–Mill Race Ruins, 5 lakes 2.7 mi · ▲ 398 ft
- MacMillan Reservoir Overlook–MacMillan Reservoir, 6 sights 3.5 mi · ▲ 739 ft
- Monroe Ridge–Cactus Ledge Loop, 11 sights 3.9 mi · ▲ 633 ft
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