Established in the late 18th century, Vernon is a historic iron mining town in New Jersey’s Sussex County. It’s a popular tourist destination due to its ski resort and water park, and it offers easy access to a scenic stretch of the 3,540-kilometre-long Appalachian Trail.
Things to do in Vernon Township
In the winter months, you can hit the downhill trails of the Mountain Creek Resort, which offers everything from skiing and snowboarding to a snow tubing park. Once the snow melts, there are zip lines and an alpine coaster to enjoy, plus mountain biking trails. The Mountain Creek Water Park boasts a lazy river, a wave pool and family-friendly water slides.
In the summertime, you can cool off with a swim at Wawayanda Beach, which hugs the northern shore of Wawayanda Lake. A short hiking trail leads east to the ruins of an 1846-built iron furnace that was used to produce pig iron from local iron ore, charcoal and limestone. It once stood at the heart of an industrial village with mills for manufacturing grist and shingles.
Vernon is traversed by around 30 kilometres of the Appalachian Trail, a long-distance hike that extends all the way from Maine to Georgia. As it passes through the township, it takes in a suspension bridge, fields of wildflowers and a hardwood forest before ascending what is known as the “Stairway to Heaven”. This leads to Pinwheel Vista, which offers magnificent views across the surrounding valleys to the Catskills Mountains in the distance.
Getting around Vernon Township
Vernon is around an hour’s drive from Newark and Newark Liberty International Airport, which has flights to destinations across the globe. Renting a car is the most convenient way of getting to Vernon and the town centre is small enough to explore on foot.