Must-See Landmarks to Visit While in New Jersey

New Jersey, often known as the Garden State, is a wonderful place to travel to. Aside from the media’s depiction of the Jersey Shore, the state has a large number of state parks, a lot of forestry, and various natural preserve locations spread throughout the state. There are picturesque and calm beaches, usually surrounded by charming coastal communities. The state boasts over 100 miles of coastline along the Atlantic Ocean, which allows for water activities for tourists. There’s even one of the nation’s highest waterfalls in New Jersey’s Great Falls, one of the state’s natural marvels.

There’s also Jersey City and Hoboken, both of which have beautiful and famous views of the Manhattan skyline in New York, which is right next door. Because the pair of New Jersey cities are brief commute via train to the state of New York, a vacation to New Jersey may draw you to another amazing East Coast state.

New Jersey also has a number of historic homes with ties dating back to the Revolutionary War, such as historical homes that have been transformed into museums. Some of these homes are even living museums, such as Howell Living History Farm, where visitors can take part in original ice cream lessons.

If history doesn’t interest you and you are just looking for excitement, well, New Jersey is also home to Six Flags Great Adventure, the world’s biggest amusement park. If you love roadside diners, you will be in for a treat, because New Jersey boasts the most diners of any state in the nation. One diner that you must pay a visit to is Summit Diner, the oldest in the state. There are activities for almost everyone, regardless of how you spend your time while visiting.

Whether taking in these sights while on vacation or just checking them out as a local, be careful because you don’t want to suffer slip and fall injuries in Jersey City and have to talk to a Ewing slip and fall lawyer. Legal problems are not something you want to deal with while traveling.

With that said, here’s some of the most notable places to visit in New Jersey while visiting the great state.

Lake Hopatcong

260 Lakeside Blvd., Landing, NJ 07850

Lake Hopatcong is the biggest freshwater lake in New Jersey, spanning nine miles long and around four square miles. However, it isn’t exactly natural. In the 1800s, two ponds were inundated and dammed to create the lake.

The lake was initially found by Lenape Indians almost 12,000 years ago. Hopatcong is not a precise translation, although it is related to the Lenape term for “stone water”.

Lake Hopatcong has been a popular New Jersey vacation spot since the installation of its rail service in the year 1882.

Although most of the lake’s waterfront is owned by homeowners, public access is still available, including Hopatcong State Park.

Palisades Cliffs

Alpine, NJ 07624

Palisade Cliffs stretches across the South East part of New York and the North East of New Jersey along the west bank of Hudson River.

It’s an amazing sight, as the basalt cliffs rise up to 540 feet above the ground. The cooled molten rock during the Triassic Period gave the cliffs their distinctive column-looking form.

Thanks to all of this, the Palisades are a favorite spot for activities like hiking or kayaking, for example.

Great Falls

72 McBride Ave, Paterson, NJ 07501

As mentioned, the Great Falls is one of the biggest waterfalls in the entire United States. A part of the Passaic River, the Great Falls is 77-feet tall and 260 feet across.

The sheer size of the waterfall is so big that there is two billion gallons of water on a daily average flowing. There’s also spectacular views from Overlook and Mary Ellen Kramer parks if you wish.

During the summer, the loud water crashing over the rocks is much less because of the absence of rainfall.

Tripod Rock

Kinnelon, NJ 07405

Tripod Rock is a massive rock perched on three smaller ones. It is an interesting natural feature to see in New Jersey.

How it was formed is a mystery, adding to its charm. Some people feel it’s just a natural occurrence, while others think it was deliberately put that way by an ancient civilization. Some scientists think the rocks may be part of path markings or maybe tied to astronomy because of their precise placement. 

Tripod Rock gets its name because it resembles a tripod.