HENRY HUDSON TRAIL
Monmouth County, NJ
9 miles

Directions:

Garden State Parkway, exit 117

Parking Areas:

Near the intersection of Gerard Avenue/Clark Street and Lloyd Road

Broadway at the border of Aberdeen and Hazelt.

Off Spruce Street in Union Beach.

In McMahon Park, off Atlantic Avenue in North Middletown.

At the Bayshore Development Office, 945 State Highway 35 westbound near Avenue D.

At the Atlantic Highlands/Middletown Border.

History:

The Henry Hudson Trail occupies the former Central Railroad of New Jersey right-of-way between Aberdeen and Atlantic Highlands. It's an historic remnant from the late 19th and early 20th centuries when maritime industries such as oystering, clamming, fishing, and boat building, and the ceramics industry, were active in Monmouth County's bayshore region.

1849 -- charter granted for a railway line from Freehold to Keyport, but opposition to the plan killed the idea.

1860s  -- a new charter issued and track construction began for the Monmouth County Agricultural Railroad (MCARR).

1875  -- MCARR opens.    Other lines in the area built about the same time, one for the Central Railroad of New Jersey (CNJ) and a Bayshore Branch. 

1966  -- Bayshore Branch of the CNJRR ends it passenger service. 

1976 -- Conrail takes over from CNJRR.

1984  -- Conrail ends freight traffic.

1984-85  -- Freeholders of Monmouth County purchases the 9 mile right-of-way from Conrail. Property later turned over to Monmouth County Park Service.

1995  -- trail dedicated.

(Source: Della Penna 1999:chapter 10)

Despite the objections of several Bayside Drive residents, the Atlantic Highlands council approved an application to the county Open Space Trust Fund for a grant of $250,000 to fund construction of that portion of the Henry Hudson Trail along the waterfront from the Municipal Harbor to Popamora County Park at the Highlands border. (Asbury Park Press, 12/12/03;by James A. Broderick; http://www.app.com/app/story/0,21625,868206,00.html)

Trail:

The elevated railbed and bridge crossings provide open vies of stream corridors, tidal wetlands and, in some places, the Raritan Bay. The paved trail is 8 feet wide and suitable for us by foot traffic, bicycles, and horses. No motorized use is permitted.

The trail starts at the intersection of Gerard Avenue/Clark Street and Lloyd Road/Broadway at the border of the towns of Aberdeen and Hazelt.

Cross Loppatcong Creek
over Route 35
Beers Street
Main Street Park
Stone Road
Poole Avenue
Scholer Park
Parking area Off Spruce Street in Union Beach.
Rose Lane
north off Natco Lake
West Keansburg
near Collins Field
Main Street
Atlantic Avenue
Parking in McMahon Park, off Atlantic Avenue in North Middletown.
Thompson Avenue
Wilson Avenue
Church Street
near Earle Naval Weapons Station
North Leonard Avenue
Kuneh Park
At the Bayshore Development Office, 945 State Highway 35 westbound near Avenue D at the Atlantic Highlands/Middletown Border.