Norvin Green State Forest is a large state forest in Passaic County made up of parts of Wanaque, Ringwood, Bloomingdale, and West Milford. The trail network features many rugged trails with some of the best views in New Jersey. The Wyanokie High Point in particular offers 360-degree views of the area and even New York City in the distance. For those not wanting to hike up mountains, the park also features a handful of easy-to-reach waterfalls, notably Otter Hole Falls and Chikahoki Falls. Norvin Green State Forest is perfect for hikers looking for a workout on some excellent trails.
Basic Information
Parking:
- Otter Hole (~10 spots): 582 Glenwild Ave, Bloomingdale, NJ 07403
- Otter Hole Overflow (~10 spots): 6276 Otterhole Rd, West Milford, NJ 07480
- Glenwild Ave Pulloff (~3 spots): Glenwild Ave, Bloomingdale, NJ, 07403
- New Weis Center (~30 spots) 150 Snake Den Rd, Ringwood, NJ 07456
- Crescent Ave (unlimited street parking): Crescent Dr, Ringwood, NJ 07456
Restrooms: No
Price: Free
Activities
Hiking
Norvin Green State Forest is primarily used for hiking and features about 50 miles of trails
Points of Interest
- Wyanokie High Point
- Otter Hole Falls
- Chikahoki Falls
- Stone Living Room
- Carris Hill
Alerts
- The Green Trail from the New Weis parking area is closed. You must now walk along Snake Den Road to reach the trailhead. This is a very low traffic road.
- The Wyanokie High Point is erroneously labeled on the official map. It is actually near the intersection with the Blue Trail and Teal/Red Trails.
- Only park in designated spots. West Milford Police do ticket cars parked along Otter Hole Road. Snake Den Road is also marked “No Parking” outside of the parking area
Torne Mountain and the Stone Living Room
At the southern end of the park is a small hourglass-shaped trail network accessed from the Otter Hole parking areas. Most people hike just the first loop in this hourglass which includes both Torne Mountain and the Stone Living Room. The Stone Living Room is atop Torne Mountain and is a circular bench and fire ring (no fires allowed) constructed by park visitors.
The trails in this area are steep and rocky. They are particularly popular because they feature quick hikes with excellent views.
Otter Hole
From the Otter Hole area, there are numerous trails of varying lengths to most areas in the park. Highlights here include two waterfalls in Otter Hole Falls and Chikahoki Falls. For those wanting something more challenging, the hike to the summit of Carris Hill is very difficult but features excellent views for nearly the entire climb.
Trails outside of the waterfalls and Carris Hill tend to be less popular but are still enjoyable, especially a short section where the Teal and Yellow Trails are co-blazed, which features an extremely steep climb with excellent views at the top.
New Weis Center
From the New Weis Center, hikers have access to most of the trails in the park. The highlight here is the Wyanokie High Point, which features panoramic views from the summit. A hike on the Pink Trail also features excellent views but is less crowded than the Wyanokie High Point. Other highlights include the Roomy Mine and the flooded Blue Mine.
As with most areas of Norvin Green State Forest, the trails here are rocky and challenging in places, especially those featuring overlooks.
Lake Sonoma and Manaticut Point
At the northern end of the park is a lightly trafficked trail network featuring Lake Sonoma and an overlook named Manaticut Point. These trails are enjoyable on their own, but compared to the other sites in the park are not too exciting. The trail network was recently improved offering more trails and access to Long Pond Ironworks and Jungle Habitat.
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