Things to do & places to visit in Franklin Park, New Jersey, United States

Franklin Park city in New Jersey, United States. Timezone: America/New_York, current date and time: Thursday, May 02, 2024, 18:39.

Top things to do

5.0 Franklin Park Natural Area (2 reviews)
- Nature with Benefits!
Spent < 1 hour Nature & Wildlife Areas • Hiking Trails

The Franklin Park tract has fields that are currently leased to a nearby farmer with trails running along the edges of several fields. A small portion of the trail goes through a mature forest. Perhaps the most interesting feature on this site is the 30-foot high red-rock cliff that overlooks the stream. NJ’s geology resulted, in part, from continent collision and the subsequent breakup of the supercontinent and with the formation of the Atlantic Ocean. This resulted in a huge basin forming in NJ that slowly filled up with sediment like a lake. That lake shale is what one looks at when down at the Ten mile Run cliffs. This is called the Passaic Formation and runs right through parts of NY, NJ and into PA. The way the rock breaks up is distinctive. The red color is typical of lake sediments that were exposed to oxygen-rich water during deposition allowing for minerals especially iron, to oxidize. The reason that we see only a relatively small outcropping here and there of this red shale is because of more "recent" glaciation and subsequent erosion. Passive See more..