Northeast - hardest climbs in new jersey. list yours....

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bravo106
07-29-08, 07:01 PM
One street down is a road (toward Warrenville), goes up the same hill. I think it is worse, as in they closed it when it snowed.

Vosseller?


Ken Roberts
07-29-08, 10:04 PM
Just when you think there couldn't be another seriously steep New Jersey climb . . .
Vosseler Rd north of Bound Brook.
A quick calculation suggests it is indeed steeper than Warrenville Rd (but not as long). I'll have to try it soon.

I got to try Middle Valley Rd north from 513 near Califon and Long Valley.
A worthy steep hill (but not as steep as I had calculated). I continued climbing higher on Zellers Rd, which provided another steep section. The asphalt of Middle Valley Rd had coarse stone, which made it more work to climb, but I didn't notice much gravel. (Zellers Rd had finer-stone smoother asphalt).

Rode there from Califon (after sampling the 512 and Main St climbs) by taking Frog Hollow (pleasant) and then Beacon Hill (because JunkYardBike had mentioned it). And I turned around and climbed up Beacon Hill, another steep climb for the list (thanks for the suggestion).

After climbing part of Middle Valley and most of Zellers, I still needed to get back to Califon, so I descended Zellers and finished climbing to the top of Middle Valley, started down the other side, and it was packed dirt, and then up on packed dirt -- almost a mile on dirt -- and then a couple of asphalt roads back to Califon.

Ken

45suited
07-30-08, 08:26 PM
Just an FYI...Vosseller Ave is very narrow with no shoulder and typically has a fair amount of traffic. I ride that area all time and would only recommend doing it very early.


G. Ike
07-31-08, 06:36 PM
Another vote for Roxburg Hill Road into Fiddler's Elbow Road near Belvidere.

Ken Roberts
08-06-08, 01:35 PM
Breakneck is at least as tough as Fiddlers Elbow, I think.
I found another climbing section at the top of Breakneck, which adds another 100 vertical feet to its total rise.
Then I found a very different (very steep) climb right next to it: Hidden Valley.

After some warmups on other climbs merely "steep", I took another shot at Breakneck (up north in Vernon valley) - [map (http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&msa=0&msid=115487569681665383360.0004500780f0c26f41b8a&ll=41.191315,-74.483185&spn=0.067818,0.117416&z=13)]. As I hoped, it didn't seem as overwhelming as my first time on it a few weeks ago. Not as hot either. To my great surprise, I made it all the way to the top pedaling without any standing.
(As I did already on Fiddlers once. It's not that I'm a fast rider or any sort of racer -- I've just gotten very strong at keeping the pedals turning at a slow cadence like 40 rpm.)Then at the top I tried turning Right on Tahama Rd, soon another Right on Abricada Rd, and more steep climbing (on somewhat eroded pavement) -- finally I stopped at a dirt road intersection with Accomac Rd. Then I explored some more pleasant roads and pretty lakes up on the Highland Lakes plateau. And I climbed Breakneck again, this time as a personal time trial, and I did lots of standing for that.

I thought I was done, then I got the idea of checking out the Hidden Valley ski resort, which is partway up on Breakneck Rd. And I found roads that go way around the west and south side of the ski trails -- first Curtis Dr almost to its end, then left on Hidden Valley Dr. Interesting variety of scenes and climbs -- including four very steep sections (like 15% or more). The start of the first one is plenty intimidating (less than a quarter mile off Breakneck Rd if you just want to look).

Hidden Valley goes higher than Breakneck, and if you start on different roads way down on the floor of the valley, from north of Vernon at the low point on Vernon Cross rd (rt 644), it's about 1050 vertical feet of climbing to the top -- which I believe makes ...

Hidden Valley the longest climb in New Jersey which has an average steepness grade over 7%.

Ken

ak08820
05-22-12, 06:20 AM
I went to Easton from Edison last year and on the way, I had to get down and walk my bike for a 1/4 mile or so on the Jugtown mountain (I believe) on Rte 173. The reason could be that I was riding an old Fuji Supreme 12 speed bike with 52/44 front rings and did not have low enough gears.

noglider
05-22-12, 10:15 AM
You just revived an old thread (oldy but goodie).

I haven't been defeated by any hill in NJ yet, though I haven't climbed the toughest that Ken listed, at least not yet.

cranky velocist
05-25-12, 05:24 PM
Some of the hill's I'd be on right now if the sky hadn't decided to spit on my an hour ago:

Old Georgetown Rd & Coppermine Rd out in Franklin.

Cherry Hill Rd & Great Rd in/out of Princeton

Long Hill, Zion, Lindenburg, Rileyville/CR 607 are some good hills up in the Sourlands.

Cool thread.

neilfein
05-26-12, 09:50 AM
My personal steepest (or hardest) climbs in NJ:

Route 518/ Brunswick Pike, leaving Lambertville, NJ (http://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/page/?o=1&page_id=66475&v=48) - Steep, steep, steep - getting away from the river in all the towns in this area (Frenchtown, Stockton) is pretty much equally bad, but this one seems to be the worst of them.

Route 23 through High Point in Wantage, NJ (http://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/page/?o=1&page_id=100864&v=1w) - although my memory may be colored by the ice, the cold, and the late hour I was there.

And special mention for the Watching Mountains, which create many, many steep climbs.