FOR THE BIRDS
Having
some time to kill before my work day started on July 3rd and not
wanting to endure the shore traffic and the crowds there, I opted to drive
instead to the meadowlands area and lounge for a bit in the sun with my beach
chair and a couple of bottles of water. This way I could get some sun and still
be close to my job that day in Secaucus. I had heard of the New Jersey Sports
Exposition Authority’s string of parks surrounding the Meadowlands and decided
to go DeKorte Park in Lyndhurst. Just a few miles across the waterways of the Meadowlands
DeKorte is just a few miles from work as the crow flies but worlds away from
everything. This was quite the new adventure for me, for I have lived in the
Meadowlands area for a large part of my life (so far) and I would never
consider it as a leisure destination.
ONLY IN NEW JERSEY
I had
lived in Harrison for 25+ years, on the southern edge of the Meadowlands, where
the Passaic rounds in a patella shaped curve to meet the Hackensack to form
Newark Bay. The edge of my hometown literally ended with the Meadowlands and
although it was a risky playground for foolhardy boys it was our park. The
Meadowlands is an incredible ecosystem, so very close to the throbbing
metropolis of New York City, but during the time of my youth the land was
considered worthless and unappreciated. For decades it was the dumping ground
for industry and households, sometimes illegally and the Hackensack and Passaic
Rivers were considered some of the most polluted in the United States. Huge landfill
mountains grew out of the waters. As a teenager I would get a couple of weeks
working for the town’s DPW during the summer and every day we would take a
truck of tossed items to the landfills. A lot of my experiences there formed
the genesis of my first novel “Hi, How Are You?”
For
decades it was thought the proper way to combat mosquitos was to lace the water
with a layer of oil. Through our cavorting we found a small body of water we
called “Purple Lake” and we would try to launch makeshift rafts on it that
would invariably list and sink, soaking our feet and ankles with a foul stench.
Between this, the rats and the massive firecracker wars we waged, I’m surprised
I survived this time of my life.
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| WTC MEMORIAL |
NJSEA
The New
Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority runs the Meadowlands sports complex
where the New York Football Giants and NY Jets play as well as several parks
and boat launches along the Hackensack estuary. I have to admit I’d be
skittish, despite my earlier sojourns in this blighted water to get into a
kayak. Starting in the late 60’s with the New Jersey Meadowlands Commission and
now the NJSEA steps have been taken to clean and revitalize the area. Though
there has been some modest improvement there are still several superfund sites
ringing the area around Berry’s Creek which empties into the Hackensack near
Route 3. Perhaps the most notorious superfund site in the area involved the
Diamond Shamrock Corporation, makers of Agent Orange…but heck, that particular superfund site is in
Newark and not really in the Meadowlands, so what’s the worry?
The
NJSEA now operates six separate parks and boat launches in the Meadowlands
area and all are free entry. There is: the Richard W. DeKorte Park, Mill Creek
Point Park, Mill Creek Boat Marsh, Losen Slote Creek Park, Laurel Hill Park and
River Barge Park and Marina.
Yes, fair
readers you are reading this correctly! Team VFH is so cheap we are willing to
spend quality downtime at a superfund site. Don’t worry you’ll be forgiven if
you choose to avoid the area, but somehow I have survived all these years and a
few hours hiking around won’t kill you either, hopefully.
RICHARD W. DeKORTE PARK
Getting
to this park on the very teetering edge of Lyndhurst, one takes an ominous road
through typical meadowlands dumping areas. Valley Brook Road begins normally
enough but head east from Orient Way the road dives down into the Meadowlands
and soon tall grasses edge the road in what becomes a desolate area. Even the
name, Valley Brook, changes to Disposal Road. It all seems like a mistake, but
eventually the road turns and just after the NJ Transit railroad tracks there is
the entrance of DeKorte Park, oasis green.
Originally
slated to be another landfill site, DeKorte offers 3.5 miles of walking paths through
the wetlands and the trails are frequented by bird watchers as this is a major
flyover spot for migrating birds. There is an incredible view of the New York
City skyline and the NJ Turnpike in the distance revs by soundlessly. It’s
actually very quiet here and I set up my little beach chair and read my
book in the bright hot day. There is fishing in certain areas but only catch
and release as the water is still too polluted and I saw several people trying
their luck out on the jettys of the Saw Mill Creek Trail, once an access road
for the power lines overhead. If one is able to overlook the towering landfills
on the other side of Saw Mill Creek mudflats, now covered in vegetation and
looking strangely verdant, one could say this was pristine. There were a couple
of “birders” with their binoculars and long lensed cameras looking for
something interesting but this wasn’t migrating season and so beyond that I had
my little perch to myself. It seemed odd but it was quiet and pleasant and the
sun was fierce. After counting planes on their approach to nearby Newark
Airport I packed my bags and headed off to work. It was a surprisingly good way to kill some
time.
NOT JUST BIRDS
There
are several activities at the park, including free public viewing on Wednesday
evenings at the McDowell Observatory, the popular and well attended Butterfly day is July 27 is free and on Friday, July 14 there is a free concert by the North Jersey Concert Band performing contemporary, Big
Band and Broadway tunes... all of which are FREE. Consult the events schedule for
DeKorte Park for a current listing of events. Did I mention it’s free?
Thanks for reading!
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