We’re going to spend a few days in Sussex & Morris Counties; staying at a nice but reasonable B&B.
I’ve got a fairly lengthy list of places but I’m wondering what I’m missing. We’ll being doing the Morris County stuff either on the way up or the way home. Not sure yet.
Anyone know which is more interesting, Waterloo Village or Lusscroft Farm? Any great places to eat? Even a really good diner works for us.
Museum of Early Trades & Crafts, 9 Main St, Madison, NJ 07940
Sterling Hill Mining Museum, 30 Plant St, Ogdensburg, NJ 07439
Franklin Mineral Museum Inc, 32 Evans St, Franklin, NJ 07416
Space Farms: Zoo & Museum, 218 County Road 519, Sussex, NJ 07461
High Point Monument, Montague, NJ 07827 (Should we climb the tower?)
Friar Mountain Model Railroad Museum, 240 Demarest Rd, Sparta Township, NJ 07871
Luna Parc, 22 Degroat Rd, Sandyston, NJ 07827 if they’re open which seems unlikely.
Waterloo Village Historic Site, Waterloo Rd, Stanhope, NJ 07874
Lusscroft Farm, 50 Neilson Rd, Wantage, NJ 07461
Eat & Drink options
Angry Erik Brewing, LLC, 2 Camre Dr, Newton, NJ 07860
Man Skirt Brewing, 144 Main St, Hackettstown, NJ 07840
Buck Hill Brewery & Restaurant, 45 NJ-94, Blairstown, NJ 07825
We went to Space Farms many years ago when the kids were still kids. This time it will just be my wife and I.
We’ve been to the Morris Museum several times. We always enjoy it.
Milford, PA is just across from uppermost Sussex County, and has a fair amount of touristy stuff going on all summer long. Worth it to drive up for the day. There are enough restaurants and interesting shops to keep you busy.
There’s Grey Towers there in Milford, which is a nice historic site with beautiful grounds and house to tour. There are also a variety of hiking trails, Dingmans Falls, Bushkill Falls and Raymondskill Falls, if you’re into that sort of thing.
I’ve done my part stumping for Milford, and will now listen to other ideas that maybe I can do this summer.
I did hike up to High Point with the Cub Scouts back in the day, it’s nice, but I was too tired to appreciate the monument, and the wind was so aggressive on that day we had to work to avoid being blown over.
Another two suggestions that aren’t quite in Sussex County but aren’t far - Warwick NY isn’t too far from Sussex; and is a nice little town to walk around in and shop. Many good dining options there. Similar to Milford but a bit smaller.
Skylands - the New Jersey Botanical Gardens - is fantastic if that kind if thing is up your alley. Does require some walking. It’s further from Sussex though.
The counties of my people (both sides of my family)!! Add Bergen County and you’d have the trifecta. I was actually just in Sussex County two weeks ago, and Morris County three months ago.
I was also going to recommend a trip to Warwick…at first.
When I’m up there I’m generally hanging out with family, so unfortunately I have no “things to do” suggestions (other than skiing, in season). But I can recommend Brother’s Pizza & Italian Restaurant in Wantage: super casual, with a bunch of different types of pizza (including some with pasta on it!) and other Italian stuff, and everything is very yummy.
Which county is your B&B in? Is it someplace you’ve stayed before? I’ve stayed at a couple in Sussex County, and if there’s another one around there (in either Sussex or Morris) that you recommend I’d love to know about it. I’ll be going to Sussex and Somerset counties in September for a family wedding, and I’m thinking about doing the Airbnb thing.
Not exactly a restaurant, but there is ice cream (they used to have deep fried hotdogs and really good waffle fries, but it seems they only do ice cream now):
George Washington slept everywhere:
Haven’t been here for a while, but it was often a favorite for something a bit nicer:
I was going to mention them, but forgot. We went there a lot when they first opened as my husband had a coworker living in Long Valley, and rounded up Guinea pigs.
One of their specialties, which has since fallen by the wayside, was a different Creme brûlée every day.
Our summer “vacation home” is near the Delaware Water Gap on the NJ side. So I can opine on some of the spots mentioned.
Buck Hill Brewery has pretty good eatin’s and drinkins. Just expect a bit of a long meal as the service tends to be slow.
Space Farms felt like Auschwitz for Animals. Worst…Zoo…Ever
Lakota Wolf Preserve is really cool
My wife and I really enjoy Walpack Inn. The only downside is that to get there it’s a terrifying drive up a poorly maintained mountain road in the dark of night.
Sparta has an interesting boardwalk area on Lake Mohawk
Mackey’s Ice Cream
Hot Dog Johnny’s
Our family did the Delaware River Excursions train ride out of Phillipsburg PA a week or so ago. Man that sucked. Big time. Ostensibly you take a “historic train ride” along the Delaware River. Then the kids can get out and dig for pretend gems at a mine exhibit or some shit. The mine part was cancelled due to thunderstorms so it was mostly sitting in a bunch of crappy old passenger cars with no AC in 100 degree heat being towed by an old ALCO diesel locomotive for what seemed like hours. Like if I wanted to sit on a train and look at nothing for an hour I could have hopped an NJ Transit train back to New York.
Admittedly, you’re not driving as fast as at Indy or Daytona (or Poconos) raceways but it’s not that bad of a ride; don’t worry about swerving into the other lane to avoid the potholes; there’s hardly anyone up there. Speaking of Poconos Raceway, you can drive a stock car there, not cheap but fun.
Ironically Space Farms is the centerpiece of this trip. We were there over 10 years ago and had to rush through it more than we liked because of the kids. Besides the animals, there is the series of barn museums.
I’m passing on Lakota Wolf Preserve, though with some regrets.
I’ll pass on Walpack Inn, I can live without such a ride and Angry Erik Brewing is the only eatery I’m planning on so far.
I was at High Point Memorial Day weekend, the first day the tower was opened. I would highly recommend the hike from the Lake Marcia area up to the summit, but I see you’ve already ruled that out (but for anyone else who is reading this, it’s a really pleasant jaunt through the woods, and even though there isn’t all that much elevation added you do feel like you’ve accomplished something when you reach the top).
When I got to the summit I did go up the tower, all 290 or so steps. It was worth it to me just to say I’d done it, but to be honest it’s not all that impressive: the windows are thick and small and the view from up there isn’t any more interesting or expansive than it is from the tower’s base. Also, this wasn’t an issue in late May, and might not be in September, but they warn you about heat being trapped in the stairwell; I can imagine it could be very uncomfortable in there this time of year.
Anyway, if you decide to visit the park (which is free of charge this summer) going up wouldn’t cost you much time, so you could make your decision on the spot.
And it always feels like a different route, depending on which road is blocked by a landslide or fallen tree.
Also “hardly anyone” is worse than “no one”. Like do I want to actually meet the sort of person I might encounter wandering through bear-infested woods in the early evening?
I was actually just in Sussex County two weeks ago, and Morris County three months ago.