For Memorial Day we wanted to take the bikes out again but this time do some serious kilometres. We saw that there was a cycle path along the D&R canal and there was parking at Carnegie Lake – about 20 minutes from our house. We set off from home at about 9am as didn’t want to risk the car-park being full.

As we turned into the car-park I spotted what I thought was a turtle on the lake so as Stuart unloaded the bikes, Tom, Izzy and I wandered to the spot where I thought the turtle was…… it was a turtle but unfortunately jumped off its log into the lake as we approached.

We got on our bikes, cycled over the bridge and turned right to cycle north along the tow path. It was an absolutely brilliant cycle trail….. flat with a lovely gravel path.

I needn’t have been disappointed we missed the turtle – within a few minutes we spotted another one, then lots more along with a toad, some baby geese and a tree partly eaten by a beaver. It seems a pretty good place for wildlife spotting. I also hadn’t realised how big the turtles in New Jersey are!!!!

^{Wildlife along the canal}

In total we cycled 15km before we stopped to have our lunch. We then decided to turn back as 30km in a day was pretty good going for us and our legs were beginning to hurt. As we passed the town of Griggstown we noticed a shop renting out canoes so Stu enquired as to the cost and decided we would have to come back and take a canoe out one day. We saw loads of people paddling down the canal and it did look like fun.

The cycle trail seems to go on for about quite a long way so we will have to pick up another part of it next time. This was one of my favourite cycles to date.