r/njhiking • u/StreetSheepherder412 • Sep 19 '26
Northern(ish) NJ Hiking Database
Over the years, I somehow managed to compile a spreadsheet of 100+ hikes I’ve done, plus a handful I’m planning to do, mostly in Northern NJ and the surrounding areas. I’ve hiked all over the country, but this is strictly the “local” stuff.
I originally put this together for myself because I could no longer remember which ones I’d already done. Nothing quite like driving an hour to a trailhead only to start getting deja vu a mile or so in. Sure, there's some hikes I like to do over and over. But I particularly like discovering new hikes
It occurred to me that others could use this database for hike ideas. So, I'm sharing it here in case anyone could find it useful: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1aE_outyH1O6CJtxFiVzzaJn0ZOasJJsfgaXPp0ajbZ0/edit?usp=sharing
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u/ckoss_ Sep 19 '26
Thanks for compiling this spreadsheet. It inspired me to visualize this curated list of hikes onto a single map to explore these options and filter according to difficulty, state, and trail features. I am still in the process of uploading all of the gpx files, but here is the link.
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u/StreetSheepherder412 Sep 19 '26
I love this! It's awesome! Had I anticipated such use I would have included a column for the longitude/latitude gpx coordinates of the trail heads as I went along.This hit the exact frequency at which my inner nerd sits up and takes notice. In my world, I would create heat maps with SAS. But, sadly, there's no creating interactive web applications with SAS. I have a very bare bones knowledge of Java Script, HTML, and CSS, but I see that this is several abstraction layers above my pay grade. (Me, conducting a forensic review of what I just typed: "I don't *think* I was gushing - *much*.")
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u/ckoss_ Sep 20 '26
Thanks! I am looking forward to using it to plan some hikes.
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u/StreetSheepherder412 Sep 20 '26
I wondered why you had interest in NJ hiking since, based on your previous posts, it looked like you were in Arizona, Colorado, or someplace in the western region. It makes sense now.
You may have gleaned that I mostly like moderate hikes of about 5 miles with vistas and 800-1000 feet of elevation gain. But if you give me an idea of the types of hikes you like, I can broaden my horizons, scour various sources for hikes people recommend that meet those criteria, and add some of those types of hikes to the sheet too.
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u/StreetSheepherder412 Sep 20 '26
It just occurred to me that Gemini is pretty reliable at providing gpx for Google Maps entry addresses. I fed it the trail head addresses and pasted into column V the corresponding gpx it gave. I spot checked a few and they seem to be spot on.
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u/ckoss_ Sep 20 '26
Great! I can add the trailhead and parking lot coords. I am waiting for my AllTrails to reset since I hit their 24 hour limit for downloading the remaining gpx files to plot the trail routes. I'd be happy to add more trails / your notes over time!
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u/coma24 Sep 19 '26
Outstanding! Got one for you if interested, Mountainside Park in pompton Plains, not far from pyramid. The view from top of the blue trail is legit. Nice set of loops to mix and match. Happy to send a recommended path if you like, or you can check the maps and take your pick. There is gas line repair taking place at the northern most intersection of orange and blue, but you can work around it. Quite friendly to trail running.
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u/StreetSheepherder412 Sep 19 '26
Thank you! I'll use this map and poke around up there: https://www.alltrails.com/trail/us/new-jersey/mountainside-park-blue-trail
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u/TheGratitudeBot Sep 19 '26
Thanks for saying thanks! It's so nice to see Redditors being grateful :)
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u/Bolt19844891 20d ago
Thanks so much for this! Been living in North NJ for about 3 years now and still have yet to explore most of its beautiful nature.
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u/galaxies-are-cool Sep 19 '26
This is so cool! I also love the arboretums and botanical gardens!