Ramapo Lake And Cannon Ball Trail Loop Hike

Ramapo Lake And Cannon Ball hike is rather easy and feels more like a walk in the park rather than a hike to me. There are a couple of good views and interesting things to see like ruins, towers, views, lakes and so on. This is good for beginners since the hike is not that strenuous. There are plenty of places to rest or take a break. You can also cut or add more trails depending on your needs. The cannon ball trail is kind of confusing though. You may get lost there so bring a map and GPS if possible.

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Ramapo Lake And Cannon Ball Trail Loop Important Information

Trail Map: Trail Map 1, Trail Map 2
Suggested Phone GPS Apps: Alltrails.com, Avenza Maps, Google Maps

Difficulty: Easy To Moderate
Distance: 7 Miles
Elevation Gained: 1000 ft
Portable Toilet At Parking: Yes

Trail Breakdown
Blue Trail
White Trail
Road To Cannonball Trail
Cannonball Trail
Road At Side Of Lake
Yellow Trail
Blue Trail To Parking Lot

https://www.mapmyhike.com/workout/702386331

Note: The information is just an approximation. I went to this trail a few times and I combined different pics from those times to create the story.

Parking

41.032821, -74.251880

 

Start Of The Hike

The hiking trail invited excitement into my heart, stirred the imagination of my mind, and brought lots of happiness to my soul. I knew that the hiking trail was easy, but I also knew that I love to hike even the easiest of trails. Humanity may attack me with their words, strike me with their angry eyes, scream hatefulness into my ears, but in here, where when I am one with nature, I can only find peace. Whenever I find myself hiking, I often drop all of my hatred as I can only find love within me with the help of the embrace of all the trees that surrounded.

 

Blue Trail

The bright morning sun that always greeted us could not be found as the forest was dim, cold, and a little bit eerie. We dived deep into the forest with a multitude of green trees enveloping us, and a running stream on our left could be heard. The cold air surrounded us, cooling our bodies and allowing us to replenish our energies while walking. I could sense eagerness and excitement from my group members despite the dim lit and gloomy atmosphere. Some of them wore a nice smile while talking to each other. The type of smile that you give to your friends, a sure sign of comfort and amiability.

 

Ramapo Lake

We reached an intersection with a concrete bridge to our left, and a footpath to our right. We went to the bridge to take a few pictures of the lake then went to the right or to the footpath.

The melancholy lake underneath the sad and cloudy sky, with rippled waves that touched the corners of my boot, stretched itself over the landscape. The cold yet gentle breeze touched my skin as fear crept into my mind. The weather could turn for the worst and we may end up hiking in the rain with drenched clothes, wet backpacks and that uncomfortable feeling of being soaked in rain water. Yet, I looked at my group members, they all seemed to be in a good mood as they take pictures of the lake and selfies with each other.

 

Blue Trail To Castle Point Trail

The gravel filled road was wide and long, with bicycle tire marks etched on the brown soil. Tall and beautiful trees grew on the side of the footpath, with a few houses on the right. The houses looked strong and well kept with beautiful front yards that seemed very clean. Black mailboxes with red plastic flags erected at the side of the footpath with various names and numbers written on their sides. A nice neighborhood could be found in the park, and I assumed we all wondered what it would feel like to live in such a quiet and lonesome place.

 

Castle Point Trail White

The sign for the Castle Point trail was big and wide as it easily grabbed our attention. It was a good sign and a great way to deter hikers from getting lost.

 

Castle Point Trail White

The rocky footpath moved upwards and it was steeper than I had imagined. Rocks of different sizes scattered themselves all over the trail, making the footpath harder to climb. I had no problems traversing the path but I saw a few of my group members falling behind. Their steps were slow and sluggish while breathing heavily. The ascent was making their bodies work harder and yet they all looked fine. Slow and steady, I waited for them as they all tried their best to get to the top.

 

Castle Point Trail View

The cold winds of the mountain, blew in fiercely from the darkened skies. Frosty and chilling, powerful and unapologetic, wave after wave of monstrosity pushed themselves onto our bodies while the green trees of the forest bowed their heads in fear. The viewpoint was somewhat blocked but it did not matter, my group members were very tired that resting on the viewpoint felt heavenly to them.

A cross made out of wooden sticks while being attached to a string, dangled on top of us. It was creepy and eerie the way it moved with the powerful winds. Maybe someone died here, I thought to myself. In any case, we did not feel like staying at the viewpoint as the wooden cross felt weird and somewhat disturbing.

 

Castle Ruins Entrance

The sun shined through the fluttering clouds, illuminating parts of the mountain. The footpath was made out of brown soil and rocks with flowery plant life flourishing at the side. The flowers were violet and white, with a multitude of them hanging lowly near the ground but strangely they had no fragrance. In the distance, we saw ruins of an old structure as the bricks were distinct and very peculiar.

 

Castle Ruins

The decrepit walls of a long forgotten castle towered high above us. We went inside the ancient castle and browsed through its corridors. Inside the structure were rooms without roofs and missing walls whose only inhabitants were plants. A few of the plants have white flowers blooming onto them and most of them could be seen at the center of each room while some were thriving high above the broken walls.

I often joke around that this was my mansion and I would look at the stars at night from the terrace before going to sleep. I burned it to the ground just for fun.

 

View After Castle Ruins

The footpath was rather flat and even, very easy to walk on. The white flowers followed us for a few minutes as we passed along other structures like a swimming pool and other structures we couldn’t figure out as well. To the left of the footpath was a view that was not on the map. Unfortunately, the viewpoint was rather blocked and we could barely see anything so we chose to leave it behind.

 

Stone Tower

The tower stood tall like an enormous giant watching over everything. I entered its door and jumped on top of a stone platform. The barren corridors of the tower felt lonely as there was nothing inside of it. There were no stairs or anything interesting and only the deafening silence could be heard. A few metallic poles hanging from the ceiling but there was no way to get to the top nor a way to look at the windows that was higher than me. My group members looked at the gigantic tower in awe and probed through its insides and outsides before we all decided to leave.

 

White Trail After Tower

The descending footpath of the white trail was gentle on the knees and toes. It was wide and laden with grass, weeds and pebbles of various sizes. The scent of plant life rose from the ground and encircled each and everyone of us, tingling our nose or sense of smell. I heard laughter and muffled conversations from my group members as it was very clear that they were enjoying the hike so far.

 

White Trail After Tower

The turn was rather confusing as there were various paths that led to the right. I had to pay close attention to my GPS and map just to make sure we didn’t get lost or picked the wrong trail.

The white trail had a wooden sign protruding from the ground. The dirt footpath was narrow and took us deep into a forest. The dimly lit forest blocked out most of the sunlight as the footpath became more rocky. After a few minutes, the footpath became steeper as it wanted us to ascend to the top of a hill. Tired and hungry, my group members forced themselves gradually up the trail. Each step seemed painful as their energies were almost depleted or gone. With a smile, everyone climbed the hill with all of their might. I encouraged everyone to keep going but also told them to take each step slowly.

 

White Trail Top

At the top was a flat surface made out of stone where we sat and ate our lunches. I took out my foot long sandwich filled with ham, cheese, and vegetables of different varieties. The scent of fruit, sandwiches, meat and vegetables filled the air as my group members brought their own lunches. The sound of laughter echoed through out the once silent hill as we were all enjoying ourselves, joking around while eating at the viewpoint.

 

Road After White Trail

The road was long, stable and wide with a few cars coming and going. To our left were various houses with big front yards with multiple parked cars. The type of houses that seemed to belong to people with money. I paid attention to my GPS and map as the Cannon Ball trail was somewhat hidden. Fresh and renewed, we walked with gladness at the concrete road.

 

Red Cannon Ball Trail

Confusing and baffling, the Cannon Ball trail led us to many turns. The switchback trails were very unnecessary as the trail was very flat and even. Some of my group members took shortcuts, cutting through the trail, as the trail markers were practically leading us in circles.

A couple of cables with pink ribbons could be found at some point on the trail. Some of my group members descended and followed the pink ribbons and cables. But the correct path was straight as the next trail marker could be found on a tree. I called them back, then we passed under the cables and went on our way.

 

Red Trail To Side Of Lake

We passed through the Castle Point trailhead again but the day was still early to go back so we decided to go around the lake. The road was wide and filled with tiny pebbles with lots of bikers passing us by. I asked my group members to stay close to the side and to let the bikers have an easier time passing by.

 

Ramapo Lake

Looking towards the infinite sky, there stretched before me, a vast pool of water. Clear and clean, the beautiful lake tried to reflect the cloudy skies high above us while a few fishermen cast their lines on the silvery water. The water felt cold and clean as I dropped down to the ledge to wash my hands. It was a soft and mellow viewpoint, a great place to sit down, relax and let the wind wash away all of the mind’s troubles away.

 

Lake At Other Side

At the other side of the road were beautiful lily pods of different sizes that dispersed themselves through out the blue lake. Three cables were hanging on the top, with various nylon fishing lines attached to fishing floaters and sinkers, a clear indication that beginner fishermen who don’t know how to throw were here. We sat at the edge just admiring the scenery that was very calming before we all decided to move on.

 

Snake Skin

In another day and in another hike, we found this snake skin lying on the ground. It was a peculiar thing to see and everyone took pictures of it. At the end, there were two girls that were left behind to get a better picture of the skin. They were so focused and so serious that I threw a branch at their feet then screamed, “Snake!!” They looked at the branch near their feet and thought it was a real snake so they both jumped back and screamed.

 

Ramapo Lake Opposite Side After Lily

It was a beautiful lake, cold to the touch with a deep blue color just like the ever changing sky. We stood at the edge, enjoying the breeze that was coming and going while admiring the lake and the lonely green island in its center. The calm and steady lake amplified a feeling inside of me, a feeling of peace that started from my heart and propagated through out my body. In that moment, I felt one with nature, a deep love for the Earth, and an admiration for its dazzling beauty.

 

Yellow Trail Top

The yellow trail took us in another ascent, huffing and puffing, my group members struggled to get to the top. The slope was not very steep but most of my group members were rather new to hiking. The length of the hike was showing on their bodies as fatigue was emanating from all of their movements. Like drunk old men, they hunched their backs while putting their hands on their waist and knees as they tried to climb higher and higher until they reached the top.

 

Yellow Trail

The yellow trail was smooth and gentle on the legs with a few boulders of different sizes sticking out of the ground. The sun peeked out of the white clouds and into the holes of the forest, illuminating our path. We passed by various dead logs, broken branches and wild plants on the side of the trail. The mellow trail was welcomed by my group members as they were very tired and ready to go home.

 

End Of The Hike

The familiar bridge was a sight to be seen as we were here before and the blue trail going back to the parking lot was at the end of it. Drained and overworked, my group members sat at the concrete rails of the bridge, enjoying the mild afternoon sun and the cool breeze that was blowing in. There was a smile on their faces as we all enjoyed each other’s company while thinking of a restaurant we could all go to.

As the yellowish rays of the sun became milder and milder as time passed by, we sat at the rails some more enjoying the viewpoint while replenishing our energies. After a few minutes, we all went to the blue trail, eager to get back to the parking lot. It was a great hike, and all my group members seemed to have thoroughly enjoyed it.

 

 

For More Hikes

For more hikes similar to this one, you can go to my Best New Jersey Hikes Or Best NYC Hikes.