SPLIT ROCK ROAD

Faithless is he that says farewell when the road darkens --J. R. R. Tolkien

Split Rock Road, Hibernia, New Jersey

+Roadtrip::North Jersey+

[Kinnelon Castle]   [Split Rock Road]   [Dover Mental Cage]   [Satanic Church]   [Tomb of 12 Nuns]

explored & photographed by: Shady

After leaving Kinnelon Castle, we literally stumbled across the legendary Split Rock Road, when our driver yelled, "HEY! There's a sign for Split Rock Road!" (well, what else would he yell? Heh)

We decided to make a detour to check out this other infamous NJ spot. I had heard lots of stories about this lush and lonely stretch of road that crossed over Split Rock reservoir, in Hibernia. Many strange and spooky stories surround this area, and it's said to be downright scary after dark. Urban legend states that if you attempt to drive down the narrow single lane bridge at night, gangs will block the bridge at either end, trapping you inside

Some have reported seeing unidentified glowing lights hovering above the reservoir late at night. Others say that the old bridge itself is haunted by the spirits of unfortunate drowning victims- stories tell of skinny-dipping teens leaping from the guard tower in the middle of the bridge, into the reservoir, only to be sucked into the unseen underwater drain below that runs through the dam and empties into the man-made concrete "waterfall" on the other side. Ouch. The bridge also has a reputation as being a sort of "suicide leap"; there are tales of unhappy souls slipping through the bridge's fence and throwing themselves over the deadly drop, to the jagged concrete of the waterfall below. However, whispered rumors say murder- not suicide- is what really goes on at Split Rock

We had heard many reports of black magic rituals, cult activities, skeletal remains at the altar-like base of the waterfall, and the mysterious stone furnaces, so we decided to see for ourselves whether any of it was there. We headed across the bridge and down the incline to the other side of the dam. There we found the gaping dark opening of the deadly drain that we had heard about, and something else- bones. Lots of bones.

We continued on down the stream, deeper into the forest off of Split Rock Road. Already we had spotted the shapes of the weird, giant furnace-thingys through the trees. You couldn't miss 'em. The first one was huge; I crawled inside of it to get a view from the inside (pic below, second from right). We haven't been able to find out the exact origins of the looming stone structures, but local folklore says that they are haunted by ghostly figures late at night. Furnaces closely resembling these can also be found alongside another legendary NJ spooky spot- Clinton Road

After wandering around for a bit and climbing stuff, we made our way back up to the other end of the bridge and walked the length of it back toward the Shady Lady. It was a really nice day, we were just enjoying the weather and the company so we lingered by the water's edge for a little longer.

Then, back into the truck, and we hit the road. Along the way out of the area, we saw the weird rock-art house, a bunch of llama, and a cute 'lil baby deer <insert awwww here>. The next thing on our list was the Dover Mental Cage, a site that I had been to a few times before,  and were familiar with. However, little did we know we were in for a surprise this time...

<---LAST STOP- KINNELON CASTLE           NEXT STOP- DOVER MENTAL CAGE--->

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