Hartshorne Woods Park (pronounced: hurt-shern) is a county park located in Northern

Monmouth County, New Jersey Monmouth County () is a county located on the coast of central New Jersey. The county is part of the New York metropolitan area and is situated along the northern half of the Jersey Shore. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the county's population wa ...

, United States, in New Jersey's Bayshore Region. The park has of trails, several old military bunkers and a small beach with a fishing pier. It is roughly bordered to the north and west by Navesink Ave and Route 36. Its southern borders are Hartshorne Road and the

Navesink River The Navesink River is an estuary, approximately 8 mi (12 km) long in Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States. It is surrounded by the communities of Middletown, Red Bank, Fair Haven and Rumson. Known officially as the North Shr ...

. Its eastern border is the Upper Shrewsbury River. The Park is split into three sections from west to east: The Buttermilk Valley Section, the Monmouth Hills Section and the Rocky Point Section.

History

The park is named after Richard Hartshorne, who acquired the land from the Lenape for thirteen shillings after sailing to the

Highland Highlands or uplands are areas of high elevation such as a mountainous region, elevated mountainous plateau or high hills. Generally speaking, upland (or uplands) refers to ranges of hills, typically from up to while highland (or highlands) is ...

in 1670. Rocky Point, the easternmost section of the park, contains a World War Two-era Coast Artillery site known as Battery Lewis on the former

Highlands Military Reservation Highlands Air Force Station was a military installation in Middletown Township near the borough of Highlands, New Jersey. The station provided ground-controlled interception radar coverage as part of the Lashup Radar Network and the Semi-Autom ...

(also called Navesink Military Reservation). Later, the

Highlands Air Force Station Highlands Air Force Station was a military installation in Middletown Township near the borough of Highlands, New Jersey. The station provided ground-controlled interception radar coverage as part of the Lashup Radar Network and the Semi-Autom ...

, a long-range air defense radar installation and the

Highlands Army Air Defense Site The Highlands Army Air Defense Site (HAADS) was a United States Army air defence site in Middletown Township, New Jersey. The Army Air Defense Command Post (AADCP) at Highlands directed the Nike fire units in the New York Defense Area, replacing ...

(HAADS) were constructed here. The Air Force closed its installation in 1966. The Army continued to operate HAADS through 1974 to support Nike missile batteries throughout the region, including some which were later revealed by historians at nearby

Sandy Hook Sandy Hook is a barrier spit in Middletown Township, Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States. The barrier spit, approximately in length and varying from wide, is located at the north end of the Jersey Shore. It encloses the southern ...

recreation area to carry nuclear warheads. In January 2017 a retired US Navy

16"/50 caliber Mark 7 gun The 16"/50 caliber Mark 7 – United States Naval Gun is the main armament of the ''Iowa''-class battleships and was the planned main armament of the cancelled . Description Due to a lack of communication during design, the Bureau of Ordnance ...

, formerly a spare for the s, was placed on display in one of the gun positions of Battery Lewis.

Major trails

Classification: *Green Circles indicate: Easy Trails for walking. *Blue Squares indicate: Moderate Trails for hikers, equestrians and all-terrain bicycles. *Black Diamonds indicate: Challenging Trails for experienced hikers, equestrians and all-terrain bicyclists.

Buttermilk Valley

*Kings Hollow Trail- easy loop (0.7 mile) *Candlestick Trail- easy (1.5 miles) - Navesink Overlook *Laurel Ridge Trail- moderate loop (2.5 miles)

Monmouth Hills

*Cuesta Ridge Trail- moderate (1.6 miles) *Grand Tour Trail- challenging (3.1 miles)

Rocky Point

*Lewis Overlook- easy loop (0.2 mile) - There is a trail to the top of Battery Lewis with great views. *Battery Loop- moderate loop (1.3 miles) - Paved surface *Black Fish Cove- moderate (0.3 mile) - Steep trail to pier *Command Loop- moderate (0.4 mile) - Paved surface *Bunker Loop- moderate (0.3 mile) *Rocky Point Trail- challenging (4.1 miles)

Notes

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References

*Monmouth County Parks System, "Hartshorne Woods Park" n.p., 2005. *"Mountain Bike Trails in New Jersey: Shore Region: Hartshorne Woods Park". May 25, 2006

External links

Woods Park WebsiteMountain Biking in Hartshorne Woods
Parks in Monmouth County, New Jersey County parks in New Jersey