AUTO ACCESS TO THE LACKAWANNA NEW JERSEY CUTOFF

(1)I have driven rental cars three times all the way from Slateford Junction to within about one mile of Port Morris Junction, where a road
crosses the ROW at grade, with solid metal guardrails that you cannot
get through. (You turn around and get off in a field to the west.)

(2)However, 7-8 years ago, Gerard ("Jerry") Turco blocked the
ROW at Johnsonburg station with a chain; then also blocked the
ROW just west of the Greendell station with both a chain and
concrete signal-tower-base rubble. Are these blockages still
there? I managed to get around the chain, but was defeated by
the mess at Greendell. Again, an old construction access road
(1908-1911 vintage) got me off the Cutoff.

(3)FYI, you can access the ROW on level ground at Slateford Jct.
across someone's back yard (ask first!). Has PENNDOT ever
removed the solid fill that replaced the old, crumbling bridge into
Slateford with a new culvert, to restore a through ROW at the west
end of the Delaware River Bridge that merges into the "Old Road"
coming north from Portland, PA?

You can get through at Johnsonburg.

At Greendell the road bridge was removed about two years ago. The road now crosses the ROW at level grade. Last year the state built fences on both sides of the road. The fence blocking the station area has a gate, the other fence blocking the ROW westbound has no gate. Fear not, In the best tradition of NJ dirt bikers and 4 wheelers, new trails have been made around the side of both fences! Also the lock that was on the gate has been broken off so, You can just open the gate, drive through and close it behind you.
You took rental CARS down the ROW? I would think that they would have gotten scratched all to hell no? When is the last time you did this? The ROW has really gotten a lot worse in the last few years as far as brush and "whoop de doos" are concerned.

If I ever get the quad Im dying to get, I think the first thing I want to do is ride the whole Cut off from end to end, and then down the southern sec to AC - (well, maybe not in one shot - hahaha)

The Cutoff will work, easily. The Southern Secondary will require constant use of a chainsaw, at least in many sections, Pine trees both in the gauge and to the outsides. I couldn't get thru on a dual sport motorcycle a few years ago. Worth a try though, to at least see some of the ROW.

JT, you could use your feet! A healthy 10 mile walk would cover a nice portion of the ROW and do wonders for your cardio vascular!

JLo, one day Im gonna get one of those pedometers (sp) the mile counters that go on your shoes, and measure how far I walk a day wehn Im at work. Let see, each car is 85 feet long, times 8 or 10 cars on a train, times a total of about 6 trainlengths beginning to end, times 4 trains...........ugh. Then if you wanna add the 8 handbrakes I have to pump on.......

Nah, thats okay, ill stick with the bike thanks!!!!!

I just found some great photos of a Cadillac rental car that I drove
through the Roseville Tunnel, parked just outside the west portal.
All of my drives were about 7-9 years ago. And I didn't scratch-up
a single door!

Delighted to hear that private citizens have defeated the ridiculous
NJDOT fencing at Greendell. NJDOT are bureaucrats par excellence. Some years ago, acting on my own, I had persuaded a NY TIMES reporter to drive out to do a story on the Cutoff. Then New Jersey took the property from Gerard ("Jerry") Turco by condemnation. When I got the laundry-list of insurance policies and releases that NJDOT Legal required for someone to visit the Cutoff "officially", I told them off and
canceled the entire proposal. Sorry to hear about the demise of
that gorgeous concrete overpass, though, after 96 years or so.
Looks like a rebuilt Cutoff will have grade crossings, where the
original had none.

The view from atop the Pequest Fill is amazing! I encountered a few
deer up on top, 110 feet in the air, on my last rental-car visit.

Don,

You sure you are going to be alive to see the Cutoff restored??? Looks like 2020 the earliesT!!

Steve

The only place that I had been able to get to the ROW was at Paulines Kill Viaduct. But it was one hell of a steep climb from the Station rd. undernieth to the trackbad at the top. Found 10 bucks during my climb so it wasn't that bad.

The ROW also looks very accessable at Blairstown Station...

Hey, if it was green and had a picture of Alexander Hamilton on it, that was mine!

Yes, auto access is perfect at Blairstown Station. But you miss the
drive over both the Delaware River Viaduct and Paulinskill Viaduct.
Sure, you can go west from Blairstown and try to turn around...but
going across that Slateford guy's back yard remains the BEST way to
access the Cutoff on its western end for a one-way drive east.

Uh, wouldn't driving on the Cutoff be trespassing, and pretty blatant at that? To say nothing of driving across someone's back yard in Slateford- Lets try and be more responsible here.

JLo wrote:JT, you could use your feet! A healthy 10 mile walk would cover a nice portion of the ROW and do wonders for your cardio vascular!

Not in the summer it won't. I have the bites to prove it

I highly recommend fall/winter.

Just my two cents.

Jtgshu wrote:If I ever get the quad Im dying to get, I think the first thing I want to do is ride the whole Cut off from end to end, and then down the southern sec to AC - (well, maybe not in one shot - hahaha)

Be very careful. If you're caught; well, you know the rest.

sullivan1985 wrote:The only place that I had been able to get to the ROW was at Paulines Kill Viaduct. But it was one hell of a steep climb from the Station rd. undernieth to the trackbad at the top. Found 10 bucks during my climb so it wasn't that bad.

The ROW also looks very accessable at Blairstown Station...

I will be heading there this fall and will attempt the climb up. At least while I write this. I can also chicken out and just go from Blairstown.

Is there anyway to attmept this from the PA side?

How was it going back down?

Ken