LONG VALLEY, NJ — With the warm weather starting to return, the Washington Township Trails Committee is giving residents the chance to explore a "hidden gem" of a local hiking route.
On Saturday, the committee will host a walk of the Maureen Ogden Preserve, a 236-acre stretch of land filled with trails and areas to explore.
The hike will take place from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. Participants are asked to gather at the preserve's parking lot at 384 Fairview Avenue.
The excursion will explore the preserve's Blue Trail loop. Guests are asked to wear comfortable and sturdy footwear.
Following the hike, there will be time in the parking lot for rest, refreshments, and conversation.
Maureen Ogden Preserve
The 236-acre preserve in Long Valley, formerly known as the Drakestown Preserve, was been renamed for Maureen Ogden, recognizing her 50 years of public service and environmental activism.
The Maureen Ogden Preserve is located off Drakestown Road and Fairview Avenue in Washington Township. The property sits high on the Schooley’s Mountain Ridge, a flat-topped forested ridge that runs through the township, and is open to the public for passive recreation such as hiking and nature observation.
Ogden's conservation and public service work includes serving as a state Assemblywoman for 14 years. Her work also includes serving as the first chair of the Garden State Preservation Trust, a trustee of New Jersey Conservation Foundation since 2006, commissioner of the Palisades Interstate Park Commission, member of the Legacy Council of NJ Highlands Coalition, and chair of the Conservation Committee of New Jersey Garden Clubs.
The preserve was acquired in 2010 from the family of the late Jack Borgenicht, described by the NJ Conservation Foundation as a businessman, philanthropist, and mountain climber with a passion for amassing open space and farmland in the Long Valley area.
Most of the Maureen Ogden Preserve consists of mature forest lands crossed by meandering streams that feed the South Branch of the Raritan River. According to the NJ Conservation Foundation, the land provides vital habitat for interior forest species, including scarlet tanagers, red-eyed vireos, and red-shouldered hawks.
The South Branch supplies drinking water to 1.5 million New Jersey residents. Keeping the preserve in its natural state helps protect that water resource, according to the NJ Conservation Foundation.
New Jersey Conservation Foundation co-owns the preserve with the New Jersey Water Supply Authority. The preserve's location and forested character make it part of a larger conservation effort tied to habitat protection, watershed health and public access to open space in the Long Valley area.
The renaming adds Ogden's name to a property already tied to conservation history in Washington Township. It also highlights the role preserved land on Schooley’s Mountain Ridge plays in protecting wildlife habitat and drinking water while remaining available for low-impact public use.
Click here to learn more about the preserve.
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