Terrace Pond West Loop Trail

Terrace Pond West Loop Trail is a loop hike in Wawayanda State Park, loop around Terrace Pond from the Clinton Road trailhead area in West Milford, NJ.

Follow the route as blazed entirely in yellow. It loops the pond and includes a brief co-alignment with the white-blazed Terrace Pond Circular trail along the west shore before turning back toward the Clinton Road parking area.

The standout crossing is the Terrace Pond outlet: instead of balancing on old logs, the route uses a floating wooden walkway that brings you across the outlet before you continue on.

After the floating walkway, expect steep, rocky climbing on and around the lake—there’s also a ladder installed to get up the steep rock section near the outlet area.

On the west side of the pond, plan for a strenuous rock scramble that demands upper-body help and careful foot placement. This is the crux that pushes the hike into the moderate-to-strenuous feel.

A practical waypoint for orientation is the junction where the loop meets the other Terrace Pond trail systems (including Terrace Pond Circular and Terrace Pond West Loop connections). From there, continue around the pond until you’re back at the yellow-blazed return to the Clinton Road trailhead area.

Route length is about 3.6 miles out-and-back/round-trip equivalent from the Clinton Road area, with elevation gain around 600 feet for the full hike.

More information: Map, Waywayanda State Park | Yo Hike This! - WordPress.com, Yo Hike This! | A Jersey Guy's Guide To Hiking The Garden State