Allaire State Park facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Allaire State Park |
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Pine Creek Railroad at Allaire State Park
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| Location | Howell and Wall Township, New Jersey, United States |
| Created | 1940 |
| Operated by | New Jersey Division of Parks and Forestry |
| Open | All year |
Allaire State Park is a cool place to visit in Howell and Wall Township, in Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States. It's close to Farmingdale. The New Jersey Division of Parks and Forestry takes care of this park, and it's part of the New Jersey Coastal Heritage Trail Route.
The park is super well-known for its old 19th-century ironworks. This historic area is called Allaire Village. The park is named after James P. Allaire, who started the ironworks there. You can also ride a fun tourist train called the Pine Creek Railroad inside the park!
Allaire State Park is in a flat, low-lying area of New Jersey called the coastal plain. The soil here has a lot of iron and is a bit acidic.
You can have picnics in the park! There are charcoal grills, tables, playgrounds, and restrooms. The Manasquan River flows through the park. Sometimes, you can rent canoes from private companies nearby. If you want to fish in the Manasquan River here, you'll need a fishing license. Just so you know, the park charges a small fee to enter on summer weekends.
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Allaire Village: A Step Back in Time
The most special part of Allaire State Park is Allaire Village. It was first called Howell Works way back in the early 1800s. This was a busy industrial town that made pig iron and cast iron. They got the iron from special "bog iron" found in the ground nearby.
Many of the old buildings have been fixed up and look just like they did long ago. You can see a general store, a blacksmith shop, a carpenter's shop, and even the manager's and foreman's houses. There's also a church. One of the old worker's homes has been rebuilt and now has a Visitor Center and Museum that you can explore for free!
A special non-profit group runs the historic village. It's separate from the park. They ask for a small fee to go inside the buildings.
Pine Creek Railroad: All Aboard!
The Pine Creek Railroad is a fun train ride run by people who love trains. These train fans are part of the New Jersey Museum of Transportation, which is a non-profit group. They moved their trains to Allaire State Park in 1962.
Now, you can ride their trains on weekends! They have a half-mile loop of track that goes through the park. The train tracks themselves came from an old rug company in Freehold, NJ. The county sold the tracks to the museum for just $1.00!
Just like Allaire Village, the Pine Creek Railroad is a private group that operates inside the park.
Nature Interpretive Center
The Nature Interpretive Center is open on weekends during the summer. It's a great place to learn about the nature in the park!
Campground: Stay Awhile!
Allaire State Park has a family campground. It has flush toilets, showers, and a place for trailers to empty their waste during certain seasons. The campground is open all year round. Prices usually range from $20 a night for a regular tent site to $30 for a yurt and $40 for a shelter.
There are 45 spots for tents and trailers, each with picnic tables. You need your own camping gear for these. Plus, there are four yurts (which are round tents on a wooden deck) and six cabin-like shelters you can rent. There's also a separate group campground on the south side of the park with six big sites.
Trails: Explore the Park!
Allaire State Park has several trails for hiking and exploring:
- The Pink Trail: This is an easy hiking trail that's about 0.5 miles (0.80 km) long.
- The White Trail: Another easy hiking trail, this one is about 1.5 miles (2.4 km) long.
- The Blue Trail: This easy hiking trail stretches for about 4.5 miles (7.2 km).
- The Orange Trail: This is a moderate trail, about 6.5 miles (10.5 km) long, and you can use it for different activities.
- The Black Trail: This is a moderate and a bit harder route that branches off the Orange Trail.
- Edgar Felix Bikeway: This isn't an official park trail, but it ends right near the Pine Creek Railroad parking lot. This bikeway is about 5.4 miles (8.7 km) long and goes all the way to Manasquan. The Edgar Felix is a "rail-trail," meaning it was built on an old railroad line. It's considered an easy ride.
The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection decides how difficult these trails are and how long they are. Important Note: You can't ride bicycles on the trails inside the main developed part of the park. But you can get to Allaire's mountain biking trails by riding the Edgar Felix Bikeway to Hospital Road on the eastern edge of the park.
