Columbia Road

[woodjin]

Columbia road, that starts in Nesco, is probably a pretty familar route for many of us as it winds through the edge Hammonton WMA toward route 30. However, once you cross route 30 columbia road continues, in dirt, all the way to the A/C Expressway along the eastern edge of Makepeace lake WMA.

The pinebarrens around the Expressway and south of it are still mysterious to me and my trips down that way always hold the promise of new discovery.
So last Sunday I decided to take the motorcycle down to the southern reaches of Columbia road and explore the woods in that area.

I wish i had looked at Ed's road closing thread before my trip because it would have saved me some time. The bridge out at Hampton Furnace caused me to take a more round about loop to Batsto. Then, having arrived at Batsto I saw that route 542 was out going west, which forced me all the way to greenbank...and of course I caught the draw bridge.

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After crossing route 30, Columbia road turns to dirt and leads to train tracks. A very, very lonely train crossing. On my return trip I caught the train at this crossing. Something I am not used to with the abandoned rail in the central pinebarrens.

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This old sand pit lies slightly back in the woods after the tracks. A pretty cool pit if you like that kind of thing. It appears to get regular use and I saw three adults packing up as I was arriving, and a father and two sons getting there about the same time I did.
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Heading south on Columbia after the pit brought me into some dark, wet woods. While most of the woods are extremely flooded right now, the well-worn "go-arounds" here tell a story of fairly constant mudholes.

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The woods are typical pinebarrens, pine-oak forest, with clay based soil giving way to sugar sand. Lots of beacon hill gravel.
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One thing that stood out was the garbage. Not so surprising this close to major highways, but the garbage seemed to stem more from local dumping than contractors.
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I'm not exactly sure what this was? For shinning shoes? I don't know, it looked old
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The roads end, yup, that is the A/C Expressway.
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My ride home was equally frustrating in closed roads leading out of Hammonton. Which forced me to do a little more pavement riding than I like. I would like to explore the area further, but time constraints getting there shortened my visit. Another day

For Guy, near Hammonton WMA, Green Acres property corners probably don't get you quite as worked up as others but I'd thought I'd take a pic.
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Jeff

 

[Pine Baron]

Jeff, Nice report and photos. Can see the sandpit on the satellite map, and it also looks like a residence at the end of the road just before the ACE. Did you see this? Looks like some paved roads near the end, too.

John-

 

[manumuskin]

jeff,

i am not familiar with the ne side of makepeace but the heart of the area south and east of the lake i am very familiar with.it is gorgeous country.awesome islands out the wazoo and medders created by wildfire maybe 40 years ago or second to none.it is well worth your time to explore this area.when i don't have time to hit the cor area up your way makepeace is an awesome half way house.it's on my typical barrens route over green bank bridge to everything of batsto.
ps
yes Guy does like his green acre monuments too,there is always the chance of a stone being in the vicinity
Al

 

[Spung-Man]

Thanks Woodjin,

Atlantic County has excellent Pinelands habitat to explore. You were on the “new” New Columbia Road. Nesco began as a Scottish settlement in 1707, home ground to those of the Campbell clan of Atlantic and Cumberland Counties. Although Boucher in Absegami Yesteryear stated that the Indian Cabin Inn (later New Columbia, and then Nesco) was licensed in 1779, I suspect a jug tavern was in operation before that date.

Today’s straightened Columbia Road was laid out some time after the American Revolution probably about the same time Farmer Hamilton built his bridge across the Great Egg Harbor in Mays Landing (next to the cotton mill). He’s the Township’s namesake, not the guy on the $10-bill. His farm was located at the cotton mill property.

http://maps.njpinebarrens.com/#lat=39.61005250529142&lng=-74.70170974731445&z=13&type=m&gpx=​

The new “Carmantown” (a.k.a. Skunktown; later Laureldale), probably the settlement’s third iteration, grew up along the new Columbia Road during the early nineteenth century.

http://maps.njpinebarrens.com/#lat=39.50986828048042&lng=-74.69647407531738&z=14&type=hist&gpx=​

The original New Columbia was called the Kings Road, indicating pre-Revolution importance. This Indian-path route linked Nesco with Mays Landing via the maligned Lochs-of-the-Swamp. Here’s its junction with the Long-a-Coming (Cooper's ferry, Camden, to Job Somers' ferry, Morris Beach) at the Lochs-of-the-Swamp.

http://maps.njpinebarrens.com/#lat=39.50649099548267&lng=-74.7304630279541&z=14&type=nj1930&gpx=​

The Lochs-of-the-Swamp was a drift-sand badlands, which early travelers were eager to avoid. Kings Road also served the Sailor Boy Tavern (later Elwoood), one of the most enigmatic hostelries in the Pines. You can follow the trail’s course on the 1931 aerial photomosaics. The clearing less than a mile south of the marked intersection was the Steelman Plantation, where Mays Landing had its start in about 1706. There the Cohansey Trail (to Cohansey, now Greenwich) crossed the Long-a-Coming.

Cheers,
S-M

 

[Teegate]

Jeff,

As Al pretty much mentioned, I like to find them all. They eventually lead to something of more importance. Thanks for the report.

Guy

 

[glowordz]

Thanks for sharing your trip, Jeff. I've wondered what was in that area. That's some sandpit!

Glo

 

[Mts83]

Great pictures, Jeff! I live only a few miles from Columbia Rd south of the tracks. When I was little the schoolbus actually took us down a short dirt section where Columbia, Joseph, and Spruce meet- that house at the end where it meets the Expressway was one of the stops. Columbia continues on the other side of the ACE as a paved road in Laureldale, and eventually ends at Birch St (at one time it continued on a ways beyond that too). The pines of central Atlantic County are definitely another great, and many times overlooked area.

 

[woodjin]

Thanks everyone for the additional information about the area, very interesting. I will definitely explore the area more throughly. i agree that the pines south of the ACE are largely overlooked, though, obviously not by many of you here. In some respects, the lack of attention it generally recieves makes the area more attactive to me. Happy trails!!

jeff

 

[woodjin]

Guy, do you want me to provide the location of the green acres stone for you? It is right off the road.

 

[Boyd]

In some respects, the lack of attention it generally recieves makes the area more attactive to me. Happy trails!!

I agree, which is one reason I moved here. But you have to get used to the traffic on the major arteries leading to the shore during the summer months (especially weekends). I use backroads as much as I can, but still have to cross the major roads and that alone can sometimes take quite awhile. Happily, the season is over for another year.

For another interesting ride, follow Rt 50 South from Mays Landing, past the Atlantic County Park and turn right on Cumberland Ave just after passing Stephen Lake, then take an immediate left on First Ave here:

http://maps.njpinebarrens.com/#lat=39.387922991848846&lng=-74.75927330553532&z=21&type=m&gpx=

Just stay on First Ave. After about 4 miles it turns into a generally well kept sand road that should be accessible with any kind of vehicle. When you reach Rt 49 you need to zig-zag slightly with a right, then a left which puts on on Hunters Mill Rd:

http://maps.njpinebarrens.com/#lat=39.32423912381237&lng=-74.86257791519165&z=18&type=m&gpx=

You can follow that all the way to the Maurice River:

http://maps.njpinebarrens.com/#lat=39.2759248960428&lng=-74.97483976185322&z=21&type=m&gpx=

It's total of about 14 miles, of which 9 are unpaved and will give you some idea of the big open spaces down here just waiting to be explored. Much of it is owned by the sand companies however. For an even nicer trip, turn South on Joe Mason Rd here:

http://maps.njpinebarrens.com/#lat=39.29945441498061&lng=-74.9012292176485&z=21&type=m&gpx=

That will take you into the town of Belleplain, and you can explore the State Forest. As I mentioned in another thread, I'm trying to finish up my new Map of New Jersey (which has turned into a huge project) and hope to have it available for download in the next couple weeks finally. One of the things I've included is full coverage for all the trails in Belleplain State Forest. I also have full trail coverage for the Atlantic County Park (Belcoville) and that's also a very worthwhile trip, especially if you're interested in ruins buried out in the woods. I'm currently making a very detailed map of these as well, but will save that discussion for another thread.

 

[Chrisr]

Boyd, I take 50 on my way to my shore home in Ocean City and go right by Cumberland Ave. I may have to take a "side trip" one day on my way down or back home.

 

[manumuskin]

Boyd
Hey thats one of my backwoods routes to mays landing! Hunters mill is shown in the phtography forum where Whip and I walked up Tuckahoe creek starting at the sharp left bend just before hitting 49.we walked up0stream to the power line.Joe mason road still goes to belleplain but the sand company closed the part off that goes from hunters mill rd to weatherby rd years ago.Don't know what gives em the right to shut down a public road like that but they did it and no one stopped them.I used to use that route to get from belleplain to millville.I'ts been closed for more then 20 years now.Lotta big woods in that area.a few more blacktop roads running through it then the core barrens area but still every bit as big but with heavier hunting pressure though.
Al

 

[Teegate]

Guy, do you want me to provide the location of the green acres stone for you? It is right off the road.

Sure. I am always interested. They sometimes lead to other things.

Guy

 

[Boyd]

Hey thats one of my backwoods routes to mays landing!

Haha, it's one of my "back ways" also... in fact, I stopped and thought for a long while about whether I even wanted to share. But it should be on your "must see" list if you've never been in the area. Yeah, the sand companies have closed off a lot of roads around there. They have vast amounts of land. It would be nice if this all becomes part of Belleplain someday...

Here's a sneak peak of my new map showing the area (click to see full size). The bright green dashed lines are Belleplain trails. Notice that the longest is the "Seashore Line Trail" which is actually the old train tracks. The right of way is part of the State Forest, but the area around it in the North belongs to the sand companies (I know Al has mentioned this before as well). Am looking forward to exploring more of this when the weather gets a little cooler and the chiggers aren't so bad. Driving on Hunters Mill Rd, you can't even tell where the old tracks crossed anymore, it's so overgrown, and it appears it was intentionally blocked off to vehicles quite some time ago.

 

[Teegate]

Nice! I see a few locations that Al and I visited on the map.

 

[manumuskin]

Boyd
yes the state blocked that stretch of tracks off so that people illegally four wheeling could not park their trucks on the grade and four wheel on sand plant land and have a safe place to park.They are trying to limit the places people can park and drop bikes.Problem is darn near everyone in belleplain has dirt bikes of their own and they leave from their back yards and of course this makes them very hard to catch.
I have probably walked every trail on that map and a few that don't show.If you look at my pano linked to on my panorama thread entitled emerald city that was taken at a small vernal swamp that is on this map but doesn't show.There are several old bogs near it I plan to pano in the future.Also the tuckahoe makes a nice short canoe upstream from head of the river to 49 and back.haven't done it in awhile but it used to be fairly easy.If you have any questions about this area let me know.I lived in belleplain for three years and was constantly in the woods the whole time.Let me say two words.Chigger,briars.belleplain is full of both.Those woods will shred you if you let them especially when your close to the water table,they thin a bit on higher ground but not muich.
Al

 

[Boyd]

Chigger,briars.belleplain is full of both.Those woods will shred you if you let them

My own lowlands are the same - dense and thorny thicket on the slope down to the creek. A guest stepped on a dried vine and the thorn went through her shoe sole. She pulled it out, looked and said "I stepped on a piece of old barbed wire, but it's made out of wood!"

The chiggers are fierce here in the summer, but getting a little better now. I wonder if the hurricane/floods could have killed a lot of them? For some reason, the ticks are mostly gone every year when the hot weather comes in August though.

 

[manumuskin]

all insect beasts seem to get worse down here the closer you get to the bay,especially the flying ones.I live about five miles north of dividing creek (used to live there as well) and all we have are gnats and in wet years like this one skeeters because of all the kids toys in peoples yards collecting water but of course if you step off any dirt road chiggers and ticks are there.We have just recently acquired a small turkey tribe wandering right through town(if you can call this a town)The turkeys have hung around the edge of the lake for several years now in the game reserve but now they are wandering all the way through laurel lake but yet I understand there is still a stiff limit on turkeys in season.The tribe hasn't wandered into my yard yet.They better watch it,I like turkey
Al