Here's a quick and easy night hunt for all you night owl cachers
out there. This hunt takes place on a small wooded area with in the
Assunpink WMA in Upper
Freehold.
The hours on all NJ WMA are Wildlife Management Areas are 5 a.m - 9
p.m.
Disclaimer information
This means the area is
closed from 9 p.m. until 5 a.m, got it!?
So get your cache hunting in before 9 p.m. or just before sunrise
in the non summer months. If you write in your log that you visited
the area and hunted the cache during the restricted hours your log
you will be asked to modify the log or it may be
deleted.
Also, keep in mind that
this being a Wild Life Management area, sport hunting does take
place here. While there shouldn't be hunting accuring while
you are here, and the actual area is not condusive to sport
hunting, please be aware that such activities maybe taking place
nearby.
The Cache Hunt
As for the actual geocache hunt, this one is pretty easy are night
hunts go, it shouldn't take you all of 10 minutes to complete. The
trick is that at each marker, the trail turns, and you will need to
determine which way and where the trail goes.
Beware, there are other markers out in the woods, you will be
following orange blazes, if you see a white blaze you may ignore
it.
Terrain and
Hazzards
The terrain is basically flat, but there is some uneven terrain so
watch your footing. Also, other then the entrance to the trail
(which is marked on either side by a reflective track) the entire
trail is a bushwhack. Beware of fallen tree, logs and plants
with sharp pointy things.
Parking
Parking is available along Roosevelt Road.
This is a dirt road that is kind of chewed up, but definitely
passable with a 2WD vehicle, just keep an eye out for compact-car
eating pot-holes along the way and you'll be fine.
The Ghost of Lake Assunpink
What fun would a night
hunt be without a local ghost story. Besides the creep old cemetery
found off of Rt 524, there are legends of a ghost roaming the woods
of Assunpink.
A fairly transparent man dressed as the captain of a fishing boat
is often seen in Assunpink Creek Fish and Wildlife Management Area
at the stroke of midnight shouting names of people. According to
the residents, this ghost is the undead spirit of a long departed
Hightstown local resident. Some times, the ghost is spotted before
sunrise pulling a dead body over the grass.
Good luck, have fun and
be safe.