Meadowlands
The New Jersey Meadowlands defies an easy description. Just a stones throw from New York City, it covers approximately thirty two square miles, and is bordered by the big cities of Newark and Jersey City, and urban residential communities such as Secaucus, Kearny, North Arlington, Harrison, Lyndhurst, among others.
The basin that forms what is referred to as The Meadowlands was created many tens of thousands of years ago as the glaciers retreated during the last ice age. Lake water replaced the retreating ice, which itself eventually drained, to be replaced by a mix offresh water and sea water that alternated over time between a swamp, a bog, and then a salt marsh.
In addition to being a geological wonder, the Meadowlands eclectic man-made history includes hay farming, pig farming, brick making, and copper mining and remains today, among other things, part industrial, commercial, land-fill, residential, and nature preserve.
The Meadowlands is a wonderous landscape. Amidst a vast tract of wetlands, it's a visual cacaphony of train tracks, smoke stacks, power lines, radio antennaes, and highways, including the New Jersey Turnpike. The many bridges that cross it's expanse include the famed Pulaski Skyway, a landmark highway and bridge that spans 3.5 miles and connects Jersey City and Newark.
In my own limited explorations of the Meadowlands, I experienced the thrill of standing beneath the New Jersey Turnpike at rush hour, the energy of it like some wild living thing. I walked on trails atop a landfill built of
old tires, discarded boots, and bricks, my presence largely hidden by reeds and tall swamp grass. There I stood, triumphantly, immersed in one of the densest population centers in the world, yet completely isolated, and utterly alone.
