Rutgers Ecological Preserve [Kilmer Woods]
Directions
For the public this is parkland primarily for weekend hiking.
During normal university business hours (M-F 8am-5pm) parking is restricted to those with a valid RU parking pass. Public parking is available on weekends on Rutgers New Brunswick’s Livingston Campus in Lot 101 (GPS coordinates: 40.521375, -74.437568), the Scarlet Lot (GPS coordinates: 40.524270, -74.442356), as well as along Avenue E and Road 1. (See Web Map link on this site)
The EcoPreserve is a short walk from the Rutgers University bus stop at the Livingston Quads on Road 3.
Unrestricted public parking is also available at adjacent Johnson Park. A trailhead from Johnson Park is at corner of River Road and Cedar Lane.
Bus Directions
Rutgers University bus system: The EcoPreserve is a short walk from the Rutgers University bus stop at the Livingston Quads on Road 3.
Park Overview
Rutgers Ecological Preserve is a tract of woods and fields located on the Piscataway Campus of Rutgers University
Trail Overview
A compact 7.5-mile network of six blazed trails (ranging from 0.3 mile to 2.8 miles) spreads through mature beech, maple, oak forests and fields in various stages of succession back to forest. Use the Web Map link on this site to view a trail map that shows multiple opportunities for loop hikes.
Park Description
Rutgers Ecological Preserve (Kilmer Woods) is part of a 425-acre tract of undeveloped forest land located on the Piscataway Campus of Rutgers University. The area was once part of the U.S. Army's Camp Kilmer, which included barracks, a mess hall, a prisoner-of-war camp, and bunkers for ammunition. Today, all that remains of the camp are some paved areas in the middle of the tract and mounds of soil built to shield troops from the ammunition stores.
It contains "one of the finest old-growth forests of oak, ash, maple, and beech in central New Jersey," according to a Rutgers brochure. Old maps show that portions have been uncut dating back to at least the 1840s.
Rutgers "EcoPreserve" is used as an outdoor natural teaching area in university courses.
See also Helyar Park.