BACK BEACH FIELDS
Back Beach Road, Wanaque, Passaic County,  New Jersey

Directions:

From 287 North
Route 287 North -Take Exit 55.
At the end of the exit ramp, make a RIGHT at the light onto Ringwood Ave.
Follow Ringwood Ave. for approx. 1 mile and make a RIGHT on 4th Ave. There will be a Valero Gas Station and a Lakeland Bank at the corner of the turn
Follow 4th Ave. to the stop sign and turn left; .
Continue on that road for a few blocks until it bears right into  Back Beach Rd.
Follow into the park

History:

1885  --  the river crossing was first built by Laflin Rand Powder Works. 

1914  -- the river crossing rebuilt by DuPont.

1940  --  the river crossing rebuilt by DuPont.

1995  --  the river crossing rebuilt by Joe "Ace" Tachine.

Dedication Plaque reads: 

This piece of granite honors the Lenape Indians, the first settlers, and the Joe "Ace" Tachine Family for the beautiful hiking trails in the Ramapo Mountains. 

Facilities:

soccer, basketball, tennis, baseball, children's playground, picnic area, trails

Trails:

There are a number of trails here.  The Indian Rock Trail heads across the river crossing onto the other side of the Wanaque River.  From here you can connect to the Ramapo Mountain State Forest.

There is an informal trail that heads along the Back Beach park side of the river for a short ways.

There is the Dog Trail.  This is a very wide trail with evidence of ATV activity. 

5/23/2005.  On an overcast day, Ceferino Santana, dog Sonar and I visited the park.  We noticed that the woods is very large compared to the other urban/suburban parks we have visited.  We parked and then walked along the Indian Rock trail up to the narrow river crossing.  We turned around from here since we did not want to climb up to the Ramapo Mountain State Forest.  We walked along the informal path along the river until it went no farther.  We turned around.  We saw a dirt bike motorcyclist head up the the park and then turn around and head back.  We went back and  picked up the Dog Trail.  This is a wide trail.  We passed a trail heading off to the right, probably heading back to the park.  We walked until our time came to return home.  We turned around and walked back to the car.  Dr. Patrick L. Cooney. 

PLANT LIST:
Dr. Patrick L. Cooney
* = plant found in bloom on date of field trip, 5/23/05

Trees:
Acer rubrum (red maple)
Acer saccharum (sugar maple)
Ailanthus altissima (tree-of-heaven)
Betula lenta (black birch)
Betula nigra (river birch)
Betula populifolia (gray birch)
Carpinus caroliniana (musclewood)
Carya ovata (shagbark hickory)
Carya tomentosa (mockernut hickory)
Cornus florida (flowering dogwood)
Fagus grandifolia (American beech)
Fraxinus americana (white ash)
Juniperus virginiana (red cedar)
Liriodendron tulipifera (tulip tree)
Nyssa sylvatica (tupelo) 
Pinus strobus (white pine)
Platanus occidentalis (American sycamore) 
Populus alba (white poplar)
Populus tremuloides (quaking aspen)
Prunus serotina (black cherry)  *
Quercus bicolor (swamp white oak)
Quercus palustris (pin oak)
Quercus rubra (red oak)
Quercus velutina (black oak)
Sassafras albidum (sassafras) 
Tilia americana (American basswood)
Ulmus americana (American elm)

Shrubs:
Chimaphila maculata (striped wintergreen)
Clethra alnifolia (sweet pepper bush)
Euonymus alatus (winged euonymus)  *
Gaylussacia baccata (black huckleberry)
Ligustrum sp. (privet)
Lindera benzoin (spicebush)
Lonicera morrowii (Morrow's honeysuckle)  *waning
Rhus typhina (staghorn sumac)
Rosa multiflora (multiflora rose)
Rubus occidentalis (black raspberry)
Rubus sp. (blackberry)  *
Salix discolor (pussy willow)
Vaccinium stamineum (deerberry)  *
Viburnum acerifolium (maple-leaf viburnum)
Viburnum prunifolium (blackhaw viburnum)

Vines:
Celastrus orbiculatus (Asiatic bittersweet)
Dioscorea villosa (wild yam root)
Parthenocissus quinquefolia (Virginia creeper)
Smilax rotundifolia (round-leaved greenbrier)
Toxicodendron radicans (poison ivy)
Vitis sp. (grape)

Herbs:
Alliaria petiolata (garlic mustard) *
Arabis laevigata (smooth rockcress)
Aralia nudicaulis (wild sarsaparilla) 
Arisaema triphyllum (Jack in the pulpit)
Artemisia vulgaris (common mugwort)
Chelone glabra (white turtlehead)
Claytonia virginica (spring beauty)  *
Erythronium americanum (trout lily)
Galium circaezens (wild licorice)
Impatiens sp. (jewelweed)
Lysimachia quadrifolia (whorled loosestrife)
Maianthemum canadense (Canada mayflower)  *
Oenothera biennis (common evening primrose)
Plantago lanceolata (English plantain) 
Plantago major (common plantain)
Polygonatum biflorum (smooth true Solomon's seal)
Polygonum cuspidatum (Japanese knotweed)
Potentilla canadensis (dwarf cinquefoil)  *
Potentilla simp0lex (common cinquefoil)  *
Ranunculus abortivus (kidney-leaved crowfoot)
Smilacina racemosa (false Solomon's seal)
Taraxacum officinale (dandelion) *
Trifolium pratense (red clover)
Veronica officinalis (common speedwell)
Viola sp. (violet)  *

Sedges:
Carex pensylvanica (Pennsylvania sedge)

Grasses:
Dactylis glomerata (orchard grass)
Microstegium vimineum (Japanese stilt grass)
Panicum clandestinum (deer-tongue grass)
Poa annua (annual blue grass)
Poa pratensis (Kentucky bluegrass)

Ferns:
Dennstaedtia punctilobula (hay-scented fern)
Onoclea sensibilis (sensitive fern)
Osmunda cinnamomea (cinnamon fern)