Middlesex Highpoint

This Saturday I started my quest to ride to every high point to each county in NJ. I started with a close and easy one, Middlesex. Now the highest point in each county may not be on a road so we get as close as we can. To figure out that point I use a couple of different sources. The first is NJBikemap,com which has the highest point in each county as well as the highest rode in each county. I also used Peakbagger.com to verify where each counties high point is. Lastly I used my Delorme mapping software which has a detailed topographical map.

Still with all these resources it is still hard to find the exact highest road in any county. When all else fails I just rely on NJBikemap because I just need to get close. As always it is about the adventure not the actual goal. There are 21 counties NJ and even though some are close enough to do together in a single ride it will probably take the entire ride year to get to them all.

Going to every high point in each county of the state should lead to some interesting rides as it may take me to roads I have not seen before and will allow me to explore some weirdness that is spread through out the state.

On today's ride we hit the high point of Middlesex county on Sand Hill Rd just west of Rt 1. At the point on the road where NJBikemap says the highpoint is my GPS said 282 ft which is close to the actually 300 ft official high point which is just south of the roads in the woods. As we road up Major Rd up to Rt 1 it seemed like road was actually a little higher on the east side of Rt 1 but according to my GPS it was about the same. Where the actual high point was doesn't matter we rode through it at some point.

The plan for each high point is to stop for a group picture to record the moment. I also take a picture of my GPS to record the height. So in the picture above you see the group that came along with me as well as the reading from my GPS. One down 20 more to go.

For this ride the weirdness was to see a giant cow. Animals have been used since the beginning of advertising to help sell products. One of the original animal spokes creatures was Elise the cow who helped Borden sell their milk and other diary products. She was one of the most popular animals and although she started out as a drawing Borden eventually had a real cow making public appearances at county fairs, baseball games and even the worlds fair. Elise was actually a NJ cow and is buried just off Plainsboro Rd. You can see a brief history of Elise here.

On Middlebush Rd there is a remnant of Elise. A 12 ft high statue of here that was used as a parade float. So after we  got to the Middlesex high point we headed to the farm where the statue of Elise is before heading down to the canal on our way home.

I threw in one other surprise before the rest stop, a climb up Coppermine. At the top of Coppermine we were at 344 ft which is higher than the Middlesex high point but Coppermine is in Somerset county. From there we made a stop in at the bakery in Kingston before heading back to Cranbury.

The weather is still on the cold side but we go over 40 miles in and have started the official season. I have posted the tentative dates for my other high point rides so you can see what is ahead.

April 18 - Mercer County high point
April 26 - To Infinity and Beyond (Monmouth  County high point)
May 16 - Ocean Burlington high points.
May 30 - Southern Safari (Salem and Cumberland high points)
June 6 -  Somerset high point
July 11 - Schooley's Mountain (Hunterdon high point)
July 25 - Greenwood Lake (Passaic Bergen high points)
Aug 8 - Cape May high point
Aug 22 - Top of the state (Sussex,Warren high points)
Aug 23 - Morris high point
Sept 19 - Basto Roundabout (Camden, Atlantic, Gloucester high points)

* Union, Essex, and Hudson high points are on roads too busy to ride on so we may visit them by car