Mt. Minsi Loop
Directions to trailhead
From New Jersey, cross the Delaware River on the I-80 toll bridge. Stay to the right at the tollbooth and immediately take Exit 310. Follow signs for Route 611 south down a circular ramp. At the end of the ramp, turn right on Broad Street At the next light turn left onto Route 611 south. Continue a few blocks to the Deerhead Inn on the right. Turn right immediately after the inn onto Mountain Road. Take the next left into the Lake Lenape parking area.
Hike Description
This hike leads to the summit of Mt. Minsi on the white-blazed Appalachian Trail with an elevation gain of 1,060 feet in about two miles, passing a number of viewpoints along the way. After reaching the summit, with a panoramic south-facing view, you return to your car on the Mt. Minsi Fire Road. A special feature of the hike is that, for much of the way, the trail passes through dense thickets of rhododendron.
From the kiosk in the Lake Lenape parking lot, follow the white-blazed Appalachian Trail (A.T.), which heads south along an old paved road. After passing the lake on the right, the paving ends, and the A.T. begins to head uphill on a gravel road. In a third of a mile, the A.T. bears left at a fork, narrows to a footpath, and soon descends a little.
After passing some interesting flat rocks on the right, the trail crosses a stream on stepping stones. It continues through dense rhododendron thickets, crosses another stream on rocks, and comes out at a limited viewpoint overlooking the Delaware River and the Delaware Water Gap, with Mt. Tammany visible to the right. Unfortunately, you can hear and see the traffic on I-80 below.
Soon, the trail bears right, away from the river and the highway. After crossing another small stream on rocks, you’ll begin to hear the sound of rushing water on the left. The trail curves to the left, passes through dense rhododendron thickets, and crosses Eureka Creek (marked with a sign on a tree) on rocks. There is an attractive cascade on the right at the stream crossing, and this is a great place to take a break.
A short distance beyond, the A.T. bears right and climbs rock steps. Here, you should continue ahead on the footpath you’ve been following. Just ahead, you’ll reach a spectacular viewpoint over the Delaware River and Mt. Tammany. After taking in the view, retrace your steps along the footpath until you reach the rock steps (now on your left), then turn left and climb the steps.
The A.T. now begins a steady climb on switchbacks. After traversing an open area, the climb steepens as the trail ascends rock steps through dense rhododendron thickets. Finally, about 1.8 miles from start, the A.T. reaches a junction with the Mt. Minsi Fire Road. This will be your return route, but for now, continue along the A.T., which briefly joins the fire road, then turns right into the woods. A short distance beyond, the A.T. turns right onto the fire road and follows it through a “tunnel” of rhododendron, with the thick rhododendron branches forming a canopy over the trail.
After climbing over rocks, the trail reaches Minsi Lookout, from which Mt. Tammany (but not I-80 or the Delaware River) can be seen. The A.T. now descends a little, then climbs on a rocky footpath to reach the summit of Mt. Minsi (1,461 feet), marked by the concrete footings and stone steps of a former fire tower that once stood here. Continue ahead, passing on the left a fenced-in area for a communications tower and a small building. Just ahead, you’ll notice an unmarked footpath heading to the left. Turn left and follow this footpath to a panoramic south-facing viewpoint. You can’t see Mt. Tammany from here, but you can see down the Delaware River for quite a distance.
Three bridges over the river are visible from here. The most northerly bridge was built in 1910 as part of the Lackawanna Cut-Off – a stupendous engineering feat that cut 11 miles and many degrees of curvature from the Main Line of the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad. Unfortunately, the Cut-Off (including the Delaware River Viaduct) was abandoned in 1979. The next bridge to the south is a pedestrian bridge, built on the original stone abutments of a covered bridge that spanned the river from 1869 until it was washed away by a flood in 1955. The third bridge is the highway bridge between Columbia, New Jersey and Portland, Pennsylvania, built in 1953. Beyond the three bridges you can see, on the west side of the river, the former Portland Generating Station (which closed in 2015).
You’ll want to spend some time here, resting from the climb and taking in the view. When you’re ready to continue, turn right and retrace your steps along the A.T., but when the A.T. diverges from the Mt. Minsi Fire Road, continue ahead on the fire road. The fire road descends the mountain through thickets of rhododendron and mountain laurel, for the most part on more gentle grades than the A.T., which you followed going up the mountain. There are no views along the fire road, but it provides an alternate route for the descent. Towards the base of the descent, the A.T. merges with the fire road, and you should follow the A.T. back to the start of the hike.