[Journal entry for December 3, 2011; Monroe Ridge, Ramapo Valley County Reservation, Mahwah NJ]. The park lands in northwestern New Jersey are very extensive, but until now I have not done much hiking in them, instead having concentrated on the New York section of the Hudson Highlands, and especially Harriman State Park. Today I take a short hike to watch the sunset.

I park in a large lot off of Route 202 in Mahwah, NJ, by Scarlet Oak Pond, which is on the east bank of the Ramapo River. The trail passes several ruins, including the stone foundation of the 1864 A.B. Darling Mansion. It crosses the Ramapo River by a sturdy footbridge. The Ramapo is a substantial river, wide and with substantial current. The trail then hugs the south shore of Scarlet Oak Pond, an anthropogenic pond created by an earth fill dam on its east side, paralleling the river. I sight a swan feeding out in the lake.

I then take the Ridge Trail (blazed in blue) up onto one Monroe Ridge, one of the many topographic highs in the area. The trail passes a valley containing a substantial waterfall. A side trail leads down to it, but I forego the opportunity, resolving to visit it at a time when the sun angle is higher and the falls are in sunlight. After a few minutes I reach a side trail that takes me to a broad overlook that looks out over the Newark Sedimentary Basin. Unfortunately, the pond and the river are mostly obscured by trees. I spend a few minutes there, and then continue along the trail, which gently rises as it follows Monroe Ridge.

I pass a six-to-ten foot high cliff that is unusual for the highlands in being north-facing. Structurally, it is a hog back created by a dip in the foliated gneiss, and is unrelated to the more common south-facing scarps that were created by glacial plucking. Several thick plates of rock have peeled off the edge. One pile creates a little boulder cave. Several glacial boulders are precariously perched on the edge of the scarp. A little further along the trail, I come across a wide rock ledge that would make a good picnicking spot. I then connect with a white-blazed trail and use it to loop back towards the overlook. I am watching the time closely, not wanting to miss the sunset. I arrive just as the sun dips behind a hill. I am in shadow, but the basin south of me is still lit up by the sun. Cirrus clouds are starting to glow yellow to orange. I sit on a rock ledge, waiting for the sunset. The shadows slowly lengthen and the clouds slowly deepen in color. On the skyline, way to my south, some of the tall buildings of the New York City are beginning to glow bright orange and they catch the rays of the setting sun. I watch them till they too are in shadow, and then head back to the car. Scarlet Oak Pond is very beautiful in the evening light. About two hours.