New Signage Takes Guesswork Out of Your Trail Experience

Coming to a trailhead near you! Over 300 trailhead signage panels have been delivered to state parks in Northern New Jersey.

We’ve all been there before— slowing the car to a crawl on some backwoods road, craning our neck for the telltale 2x3-inch splash of color that indicates a trail crossing. Or standing puzzled on a roadside pull-off, trying to figure out if the short stretch of gravel is indeed the parking “P” indicated on our map. Or staring, bemused, at a beautiful kiosk stocked with little but cobwebs.

The Trail Conference is continuing to work with the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection on providing quality trailhead signage, and over 300 sign panels have already been delivered to nine different state parks across northern New Jersey. The current phase of the project is producing trail parking signs with blazes, making it easier to tell that you’re in the right place when looking for those sneaky “hidden” trailheads. Several state park superintendents have also provided lists of confusing trail intersections so that we can help ensure the fewest lost hikers possible.

Our ability to get so much done on this project is due in large part to volunteer involvement. When volunteer Glenn Gross saw a Trail Walker article about kiosk construction and offered to help, his background as a professional sign maker came up—and turned out to be a perfect fit. Now Glenn is using his tools and skills to churn out beautiful routed signs with professional text and logos, producing far more than we ever expected to be possible on our grant budget. Just one more way in which volunteer expertise allows us to go further and do more in our mission!

Keep an eye out for these new materials as they go up over the coming year, and if you spot them in the wild, be sure to snap a photo and tag us @nynjtc on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter for a chance to be featured on our feed.