Driving thru the Pine Barrens in May 1975 in my '75 Subaru
- Thread starter Pan
- Start date
My review of John McPhee's book The Pine Barrens which i wrote on Amazon in 1999, and they used to have it right up on top for a long time, but then they disappeared it, but this is it. It was first the NY Times article on the Barrens from, I think, 1969 (I once posted the copy of it on here someplace), and this great book, that induced me to first go down there. I'd never heard of the place before.
It was just a year or 2 later, 2000 or so, that i got stuck in the Barrens for a few days, in a low slung rented car bogged down in sand - don't ask! I just came across the tow truck receipt. Amazingly i got one to go in there - a very remote part - and tow me out of the sand trap...the tow truck got busted up on the way in too.
1999: I live out west now. I just returned to the east for a visit. I drove down to the NJ Pine Barrens and I camped out one night in the Plains (the dwarf forest), no doubt in violation of millions of New Jersey rules and regulations. The benign peacefulness of the place, the smell of the pines, the sound of the wind, all swept over me. I used to live in Manhattan. I'd often make the 2 1/2 or 3 hour drive to hike and canoe and camp in the Barrens. I love that magical forest, the dark bogs, the open plains, the pure rivers, the endless sandy roads. John McPhee's book truly captures the atmosphere of this very special place in the world.
It was just a year or 2 later, 2000 or so, that i got stuck in the Barrens for a few days, in a low slung rented car bogged down in sand - don't ask! I just came across the tow truck receipt. Amazingly i got one to go in there - a very remote part - and tow me out of the sand trap...the tow truck got busted up on the way in too.
1999: I live out west now. I just returned to the east for a visit. I drove down to the NJ Pine Barrens and I camped out one night in the Plains (the dwarf forest), no doubt in violation of millions of New Jersey rules and regulations. The benign peacefulness of the place, the smell of the pines, the sound of the wind, all swept over me. I used to live in Manhattan. I'd often make the 2 1/2 or 3 hour drive to hike and canoe and camp in the Barrens. I love that magical forest, the dark bogs, the open plains, the pure rivers, the endless sandy roads. John McPhee's book truly captures the atmosphere of this very special place in the world.
Here is the 1969 NY Times article I mentioned above. Don't know if this link will work...
[edited by moderator to remove copyrighted material]
[edited by moderator to remove copyrighted material]
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@Pan - sorry, I had to remove that article due to copyright restrictions. We discussed this when you posted the same article a few years ago and I deleted it. Unfortunately, NJPB cannot allow the posting of copyrighted material. A number of years ago, Ben was threatened with a lawsuit when a forum member posted an article, and in that case, the newspaper had been out of business for many years. However, somebody still owned the copyright and they had lawyers. In the end, Ben didn't get sued but incurred significant legal expenses. Ever since, we just don't allow the posting of full newspaper articles.
If anyone is interested in seeing that article, they can contact you via private conversation.
If anyone is interested in seeing that article, they can contact you via private conversation.
Sorry, Boyd. I don't remember any problem before, maybe because I come on here so infrequently.
Pan I was eleven in 75.That makes you really old
I am very young in geological terms.
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More of my vehicles in the NJPB -
Toyota, 1990
Nissan, 1993
Sea Eagle Explorer inflatable kayak, 1990
Green VW, 1975
White VW (same as above), 1971
Dates are when the photo was taken
Toyota, 1990
Nissan, 1993
Sea Eagle Explorer inflatable kayak, 1990
Green VW, 1975
White VW (same as above), 1971
Dates are when the photo was taken
Attachments
Here you go. Actually I did not recall the details myself, Ben said it was OK in that case, but not to do it again. Anyway, if somebody wants to read the article, you will find it at the link below.
"Wild and windswept plains that only the Jersey 'Pineys' know"
I read this almost fifty years ago, October 1969, and I was intrigued, and then i drove my VW down from Manhattan to see it for myself.
forums.njpinebarrens.com
Here you go. Actually I did not recall the details myself, Ben said it was OK in that case, but not to do it again. Anyway, if somebody wants to read the article, you will find it at the link below.
"Wild and windswept plains that only the Jersey 'Pineys' know"
I read this almost fifty years ago, October 1969, and I was intrigued, and then i drove my VW down from Manhattan to see it for myself.
Oops - and I'm repeating myself too!
That 1969 article starts off about the Plains part of the Barrens and includes a photo - and that's me there in my avatar standing in the Plains. But the last times i was down there - 2012 was the last - the Plains - the dwarf forest - was much higher than it used to be. I used to tower over the forest like Paul Bunyan!
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They were great on the narrow sand roads, small, good ground clearance and traction, and another great advantage they had over the big 4WD pickup truck i have now is that u could c what's in front of you. The big truck hood badly blocks the view, especially if u r going over an incline. The Beetle didn't even have a front hood, just a nice gas tank to cushion the impact in case u crashed into something!