Prospertown Lake - August 2019 - Kayak Trip

Summer is rapidly coming to a close (insert heavy sigh). This summer was extremely busy and we were not able to get out in the kayaks as much as we would have liked. Now we are trying to catch up and make the most of thee nice weather weekends we have left.

This trip brought us to an interesting little location, Prospertown Lake in Jackson, NJ. This man-made lake and wildlife management area is an excellent spot for some low impact paddling with a little extra interest of being located right next door to the Six Flags Great Adventure amusement park—you can see (and hear) some of the roller coasters from the water.




We arrived at 9:30 am and were there in time to see the empty car test runs before the park was open. 
There is an especially good view of the Nitro coaster. We could also see the “Six Flags” tower of Skyscreamer, and the crazy flipping coaster The Joker.


 



Many turtles, mostly maps and sliders. We also had a close encounter with a heron—he let us get so close. Unfortunately this was the time we didn't bring the "real" camera, only the phones so the photos are not as good as they could have been. Lesson learned.



There were several people fishing from both shore and boat. We saw one guy land a pretty big fish (too far away to see what kind).

We paddled the whole lake following the coastline. It took about 2 hours to get around the 2.8 miles (including stopping for a snack and a nice chat with a fellow kayaker). On the way back the park was open and we could now hear people screaming as the coasters plunged over the hills and loops. It made me laugh every time.

This was a nice little place to paddle and one I am sure we will go back to.


Prospertown Lake, Jackson NJ
+ Ample free Parking
+ Free, easy water access / launch point
+ Some shade available on the water
+ Unique location
- No restrooms available

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