A friend of mine recently posted a picture on Facebook of a hike he did at a local park that I’d never been to. So, naturally; I had to check it out for myself. For hike 16 I headed over to Mountain Lakes Park in Princeton, NJ.

Hike 16 stats:
Date: April 30, 2016
Weather: 55°F, partly cloudy
Trails Hiked: Stuart-Coventy View Trail (red), James Sayen Trail (green), Pettoranello-Brookside Trail (white)
Distance:  2.51 miles
Time: 1.05
Total Ascent: 124′
Highest Elevation: 172′
Highlights: Mountain Lakes Preserve, boardwalks, bridges

I parked in the large lot on Mountain Road and started on the red marked Stuart-Coventry View Trail with intentions of hiking the entire trail system in this park. Unfortunately, before reaching Devil’s Cave I started to not feel so great, and it was necessary to abandon the plan and turn back. I retraced my steps, then took the red trail along the border of the property, and followed the boardwalks back.  I did a quick loop around the pond by the parking lot to extend the hike a bit before calling it a day.I’m kind of bummed that I had to abort the mission, but am already planning my return route to conquer the rest of this park!