Port Republic Preserve (a KEEP Conservation Preserve) – Port Republic, NJ

Port Republic Preserve (a KEEP Conservation Preserve) – Port Republic, Atlantic County, NJ
AKA Chestnut Neck Conservation Trail (as listed on AllTrails)
Distance – 1.2  miles total
Type – loop
Difficulty:  7 of 10

Website – KEEPConservation.org
Open – Sunrise to Sunset.

Terrain – woods, meadow, and marsh
Surface – Mostly dirt

Trailheads – N 39° 32.345 W 074° 28.259

Directions – 616 Chestnut Neck Rd, Port Republic, NJ 08241 – this address is not exact, as it puts you just west of the trailhead.

Parking – Tiny spot to squeeze a car or two in.

Dog friendly? Pets prohibited
Stroller friendly? Not at all
Benches? A few

Facilities?: None

Rules –

Markings – Some painted on trees, others on posts:

Map –

Description –

This is my favorite kind of post – an entirely too long and detailed post for a trail that probably no one in their right mind is going to go hike.

To start – there’s some serious name controversy here.  NJ Audubon lists it as KEEP Conservation Preserve, which is true, but that’s the name of the group, not the preserve I think?  They also have a preserve in Arizona and one in New York, which is an interesting spread.  KEEP lists it as the Port Republic Preserve, so I’m going with that one.  AllTrails (*sigh* All Trails) lists it as the Chestnut Neck Conservation Trail.  If you too would like to come up with another name here and post it on a website somewhere, I’ll link to you too!

Next- you probably shouldn’t hike this.  The ticks and chiggers are clapping and screaming in delight that I’m even putting this on the Internet.  It’s a miracle if you don’t get 158 tick bites just reading this from the safety of your home.  You have been warned.

Also – you can’t get to this from the Chestnut Neck Battle Monument.

Chestnut Neck was a Revolutionary War battle on October 6, 1778 where the British attempted to head up the Mullica River.  Here, they attacked a fort and burned a bunch of privateer vessels.  They wanted to go further upriver to destroy the iron works at Batsto, but Casmir Pulaski’s arrival in the area changed their minds, and they headed back to sea.

Finally – thank goodness for Eagle Scout projects.  This trail was blazed as one, and while the trail needs some serious help, the blazing was spectacular and made this one manageable instead of impossible.

This was hike number three for the day after a morning saunter at Cameron Wildlife Refuge and then a hike at the Galloway Township Nature Preserve.  Anyway, here we go!

Right off the bat, looks like a nice, clear trail, although maybe a touch overgrown (even for early November).

This trail then suddenly disappears like Teller during a stage performance.

Well, bushwacking it was.  Thank goodness for the posts painted with trail blazes, which I waded to like a ship in the fog chasing lighthouses.

Finally, I emerged from the grass onto an actual trail.  The trail went through a patch of woods and I was delighted to not be in tall grass anymore (and vigorously used my lint roller to hopefully pick off any hitchhiking ticks).

I reached the southeast corner of the trail system, which goes right up against private property.  There’s a lovely little lake here.

The trail turns left.  The probably private property that is straight here has a nice looking dump area, but I stayed out of it.  I did find a much smaller one on the inside corner of the preserve.

This stretch was through a patch of pines that were in a bowl, maybe an old bog or pond?

Just when I was relaxing and enjoying myself *a cheer arises from the ticks and chiggers!*, the trail all of a sudden was filled with grass again… even though there really wasn’t any off the trail.  It would stay like this for some time.

But, before I had time to get too annoyed… a bald eagle!!!!!!!!  I will spare you the terrible, grainy phone photo that’s most tree leaves anyway.  But I was excited.

Just around that point, the land started to transition a bit as the trail hit the edge of the salt marsh.  I made a few side trips to try to catch views of Nacote Creek.

But then the trail just disappeared into a bunch of phragmites and thorns.  Hmm…

Some light bushwacking in an inland arc to keep my feet dry put me what was obviously the trail on the west side.

I followed it backward to see if I missed the connection somehow.

I then went to finish the loop.  The trail was much more clear and a straight shot down to just about the edge of a fence for the farm next door.

Then the trail blazes marked a turn… a turn onto what?  I could not figure out.

I went a little ways following whatever gaps I could and then, the three blazes that mark the end of a trail.  Hooray!  Except this was still the woods, not the parking lot.

Nothing to be done but wading back into the tall grass and making my way back to the car.

I went through a lot of sheets on the lint roller today, but luckily no ticks somehow!  Hooray!

Ratings:

What I liked –

I loved the adventure of this.  I loved the bald eagle.  I loved discovering little hidden things from before this was a preserve.  I loved the blazing (thank goodness for it).

What could be better –

This trail, with a lawn mower a few times a year, would be very nice.  And maybe filling the gaps in the trail at the two spots.

Overall rating – 5 of 10 for the adventure and the bald eagle!

Nearby: Close by are the Port Republic Trails including the Mill Pond Trail and the trails on the west side.  Seaview Trails and Galloway Nature Preserve are nearby. Forsythe is close.  So many places!