The Ghost Lake cache is part of The Shades of Death Geocache series which profile some of the local folklore and legends of the famous centuries old road that twists and turns its way through a rural part of the state.
Ghost Lake (unnamed on U.S. Geological Survey maps) is just off the road, in the state forest south of the I-80 overpass. It was created in the early 20th century when two wealthy local men dammed a creek that ran through the narrow valley between houses they had just built. They gave it its name from the wraith like vapor formations they often saw rising off it on cooler mornings. They further named the pass Haunted Hollow.
Weird NJ writes that visitors have told them that no matter what time of night they visit the lake at, the sky above it always seems as bright as if it were still twilight and several have reported ghosts in the area, especially in a deserted old cabin across the lake from the road, supposedly victims of the murders once believed to have given the road its name.
Ghost Lake Sign
Shades of Death Road, sometimes referred to locally as just "Shades", is a two-lane rural north-south road of about 7 miles in central Warren County, New Jersey. Shades of Death Road is steeped in local lore, where reality and legend have become intertwined, obscuring exactly what can be considered facts, folklore from the numerous local legends.
What is known is that for centuries, this road has been a dark, mysterious thoroughfare for travelers to cut across one of the more isolated parts of our state. What isn’t known is exactly how this street earned its curious name.
The Northern New Jersey Cachers, NNJC is about promoting a quality caching experience in Northern New Jersey. For information on The Northern New Jersey Cachers group you can visit: www.nnjc.org.
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