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Palisades River Ramble LbNA #11898 (ARCHIVED)

Owner:Adoptable
Plant date:Apr 19, 2006
Location:
City:Ft. Lee, Englewood Cliffs, Alpine
County:Bergen
State:New Jersey
Boxes:3
Found by: Cahillys of Dumont (2)
Last found:Dec 26, 2004
Status:FF
Last edited:Apr 19, 2006
SADLY, ALL THREE OF THESE BOXES HAVE GONE MISSING AGAIN. THEY WILL NOT BE REPLACED.

Palisades River Ramble (3 boxes) All three are in place and ready for action. If you manage to get all three in one day without the use of a car, email me for a bonus stamp!

Background: I’ve seen wild turkeys, foxes and kits, cranes, hawks, groundhogs, and other creatures of forest and river along this route. What will you find? This is a wonderful cycling or hiking route.

If you’re traveling ... By car: Go to the intersection of Main Street and River Road, Ft Lee, NJ 07024 (you can get directions from MapQuest.com). This intersection is about halfway down a fairly steep hill. A turnoff road leads east and north to three marinas. (Don’t go to Edgewater!) This road is sometimes called River Road, but on maps it’s labeled Henry Hudson Drive. Before the turnoff are a few parking places; you can park your car at this point and hike or cycle to the boxes. Or, you can park at any of the marinas and hike or cycle from there. Note: from Memorial Day to Labor Day, the marinas charge a parking fee.

By bicycle or foot: Download trail maps at www.njpalisades.org. You will need the maps for the Ft. Lee and Alpine areas. Note: Roundtrip by bicycle from the western end of the GWB to the Alpine letterbox is approximately 20 miles, to Englewood is approximately 6 miles, and to Ross Dock is approximately 2 miles. There are many hills, but only a few are steep.

Ross Dock Area: Start this search facing the west side of the park building at the bottom of the hill. Follow the access road south, towards the launching area just under the GWB. You'll see a sign that says no cycling and no fires; if you're cycling, you can walk your bike the short distance past this sign to the box. On the west side of this road you'll see some rough steps descending from the Palisades. Several steps up this trail is a tree marked "Carpenter's Trail". Head up the steps to this tree. About 6 feet south of it (further up the hill), under a small tree leaning northwards and some short shrubs, you'll find the box. There was no evidence of poison ivy when I placed it, but come with gloves just in case. You'll be able to sit on the steps to stamp in. And be sure to cover the box carefully with leaves when you put it back. Along the shore trail, it's just a little over two miles to the next letterbox, at the Englewood Boat Basin.

Englewood Boat Basin: Start your search in the northernmost parking lot for the Englewood marina. Note the water fowl; you might see a heron. At high tide, the river just brushes the top of the parking lot’s retaining wall. Kayakers sometimes launch from here, to paddle north. Continue to the north end of this parking lot and on past the closed park building. Where the paved path jogs right, onto a concrete jetty, look left. You’ll see the ruins of a former bath house (popular in the early part of this century, when people actually swam in the Hudson River!). Enter the ruins by either stairway and stand under the arch. Turn and look at the view east, towards Spuyten Duyvil, the Henry Hudson Bridge and Inwood Park in Manhattan. On your right hand side is the southern side of the arch; at its base is a large crevace, packed with sticks and leaves--inside this is the letterbox. You can sit under the arch to stamp in; be sure to cover the box with leaves and twigs when you replace it.

Alpine Boat Basin: Go through the Alpine marina parking lot to the paved path. You’ll see Kearney House on your left (open on summer weekends, and worth a visit). Continue past the last park building and the two-storied structure, and follow the rough trail that skirts the shore, to the final picnic table. At this point, the trail is blocked by a wall of boulders that runs from cliff to shore. Sit on the first boulder from the cliff, with your back against the cliff wall. (Across the river is Yonkers.) If the picnic grounds are packed with people, use your best stealthy manner at this point: while still seated, reach your left hand down to the corner where the retaining wall meets the cliff. You'll see a book-size, pinkish stone, covered by a few leaves. Just under this is the box. Be sure to cover with the stone and leaves when you put it back.

And don't forget: if you get all three in one day (scout's honor!), email me for a bonus stamp.