Warning: include(settings.php) [function.include]: failed to open stream: No such file or directory in /home/sempert/public_html/nj1k/includes/functions.php on line 48

Warning: include() [function.include]: Failed opening 'settings.php' for inclusion (include_path='.:/usr/lib/php:/usr/local/lib/php') in /home/sempert/public_html/nj1k/includes/functions.php on line 48
NJ1K.org - A website dedicated to climbing New Jersey's thousand foot mountains

Hamburg Mountain High Point

  • Elevation: 1495 feet
  • : 41.1524, -74.5139
  • County: Sussex
  • Ownership: public
  • Owner: Hamburg Mountain Wildlife Management Area
  • Trail Map:
  • Topo Map: Acme Mapper
  • Nearest Higher Neighbor: Sunrise Mountain, 11.7 miles.
Other Members Who Have Climbed Hamburg Mountain High Point
Description: Hamburg Mountain High Point is the highest mountain in New Jersey outside of the Kittatinnies, the highest trailless peak in New Jersey, and the highest mountain in the crystalline New York/New Jersey Highlands. (Schunemunk is higher, but Schunemunk is a newer formation and is made of puddingstone).

The actual summit of the high point is a rock outcropping without any view, but east of the summit there are steep slabs of exposed bedrock that offer expansive and unobstructed views of the wilderness of the Pequannock Watershed.

As usual for these mountains, there are woods roads around the Hamburg Mountain High Point, but, surprisingly, they do not seem to get much use from ATV riders. The woods roads are quite overgrown with moss, grass, and underbrush and dissolve into the woods after a few hundred feet. There are no woods roads or ATV trails near the summit or at any of the likely launch points, making a hike up to this peak more of a true bushwhack than many other high peaks.

Despite the wilderness nature of the woods here, there are outposts of civilization. The crescent shaped lake north-northwest of the summit is the "Mountain Top Recreation Center" and has cabins, boating, and a swim beach. Privately-owned Lake Wildwood also has many houses on it.

Mountain Creek Ski Area (formerly Vernon Valley/Great Gorge) and Hidden Valley Ski Area are on the slopes of the Hamburg Mountains. In the early 2000s, Mountain Creek attempted to build 1600 condos and retail on the mountain top, but this plan was scrapped due to environmentalist opposition and the State stepping in with $7 million for a land purchase.

Summit Routes

Pictures Posted by Members
The Hamburg Mountains from the Vernon Valley. The actuall HMHP is not visible in this pic. -by- Jeff Bennett Between the climb via the second stream valley south of Mountain Creek. -by- Jeff Bennett The mountain stream descends via a very pretty hemlock ravine. -by- Jeff Bennett Woods roads flicker in an out of existence on both sides of the stream. The woods road is clogged with debris, indicating that even ATVers do not go here. -by- Jeff Bennett
These ruins are the approximate halfway point of the climb to the top of the plateau. The builder signed "1933" in the cement. -by- Jeff Bennett After hiking 1.5 miles through nearly trackless woods it came as a great surprise to find such a massive dam. -by- Jeff Bennett But behind the dam is a beautiful lake. This is called the "Mountain Top Recreation Area." -by- Jeff Bennett Another pic of the lake. -by- Jeff Bennett
Summit view, to the wilderness of the Pequannock Watershed. This swampy lake has no name, but it's near the Stockholm Road. -by- Jeff Bennett Summit view. -by- Jeff Bennett Summit view. -by- Jeff Bennett The actual summit is this rock outcropping. It has no view, go to the east to find the viewpoints. -by- Jeff Bennett
Large round erratic near summit -by- William Maurer (Hoosier) Summit cairn and my day pack. -by- Gregory Bubniak Cairn with Hat -by- Brom Vermeulen 1st Gate -by- Brom Vermeulen
-by- George Grzyb