Total of about 10 miles of hiking

As of April 30, 2009, new parking areas for this park are open! The map was last updated on March 23, 2009

Trails are marked with square plastic blazes on trees (blue, white, red, or orange). At trail entrances, intersections, and places where there are no trees and the trail might be unclear, there are brown posts with trail markers in the same colors. Arrows on the posts, and sometimes on tree blazes, are used to emphasize direction at sharp turns.The Honey Hollow area at the eastern end of the preserve has a separate detailed map showing its network of trails that are too dense to be shown on the overall preserve map. See Honey Hollow.

Rugged. From the lowest point of the preserve to the highest is about a 400-foot climb, and some trails are quite steep. Walking the Ridge Trail, however, involves only moderate ups and downs.

Most trails involve climbing or descending, sometimes steeply. Some sections of trail may be wet and muddy. Some trails include steep stone steps, which require a moderate degree of caution. None of the trails are paved.

Entrance to the Ted Stiles Preserve at Baldpate Mountain trail network can be gained at five places. New lots have recently opened!

1.Honey Hollow Entrance from Church Road: Parking is possible at the Brick Road entrance to Washington Crossing State Park, off Church Road just opposite Fiddler’s Creek Road. At present, there is space for perhaps 8-10 cars along the edges of Brick Road.

2.NEW! Fiddler’s Creek Road Parking: The entrance to the parking lot is approximately 0.3 miles east of Route 29 on Fiddlers Creek Road. From Route 29 continue on Fiddler’s Creek Road past a gated driveway and large "Green Acres" sign to the entrance to the parking area which is a few hundred feet to the east of the gated driveway.

3. NEW! Pleasant Valley Road Entrance: On the south side of Pleasant Valley Road, 1.1 miles west of Bear Tavern Road is the entrance to a large parking area, which is marked by a large "Green Acres" sign. Entrances to the trails are at the south end of the parking area. NOTE: WHEN A FELLOW HIKER VISITED THE PLEASANT VALLEY ROAD ENTRANCE ON APRIL 15, 2009, THE PARKING LOT WAS STILL CLOSED OFF WITH YELLOW RIBBON, AND DID NOT APPEAR TO BE OPEN. HOWEVER, THERE IS PLENTY OF ROOM TO PARK ALONG THE VERY WIDE DRIVEWAY LEADING TO THE PARKING LOT AND NO SIGNS PROHIBITING SUCH PARKING.

4. Fiddler’s Creek Bridge Roadside Parking: On Fiddler’s Creek Road,.5 mile from Church Road, and 1.1 miles from Route 29, it is possible to pull off on the grassy shoulder on the north side of Fiddler’s Creek Road, where the Creek Spur trail begins. A wooden post with a blue trail blaze marks the spot.

Walkers interested in entering the preserve from the Howell Living History Farm can walk down Hunter Road to Pleasant Valley Road. Be sure not to leave your car past the Farm’s closing hours, which are posted, since the parking lot gate is then closed.

Deer hunting, organized by Mercer County, is allowed on Baldpate Mountain in December, January and early February each year, on specified days. Hunting generally is allowed Wednesday through Saturday, and on hunting days there is no public access except for hunters registered with Mercer County. There is no hunting on Sundays. To confirm the hunting days, check Mercer County Parks or the signs that are posted at all preserve entrances during hunting season.

As of 2007-2008, Mercer County is working on a management plan that will limit uses of some trails, but has not posted any signs indicating allowed uses. It is anticipated, however, that hiking will be allowed on all trails, and that horseback riding and mountain biking will be allowed on some, but not all trails. Motorized vehicles—including ATVs and motorbikes--are not allowed on any trails.

In the Honey Hollow area, public access is allowed thanks to an easement, but the land is still privately owned, and the owner allows more hunting than the County allows in the rest of the preserve. Please respect any private property in this area. Hunting extends approximately from October through early February, and during that period public access is allowed(and there is no hunting) only on Sundays. Please respect that limitation, which is posted on trails that enter this area.

Mercer County is preparing public restrooms in the main house and the adjacent "lodge" near the top of the mountain.

The Ted Stiles Preserve stretches across almost 1,800 acres of a ridge running roughly east-west, between Fiddlers Creek Road to the south and Pleasant Valley Road to the north. Most of the land was preserved as open space in 1998 by a consortium of Mercer County, the State of New Jersey, Hopewell Township, and Friends of Hopewell Valley Open Space. Many citizens and local organizations also worked to preserve the lands on Baldpate Mountain. Other acquisitions of land and easements have expanded the preserve, which is managed by Mercer County. In 2007, the preserve’s original name of Baldpate Preserve was changed to honor the life of Edmund “Ted” Stiles, PhD, one of New Jersey’s most accomplished and tireless activists for protection of natural lands, who passed away in 2007.

Baldpate Mountain offers some of the most extensive and rugged walking in Mercer County. An extensive network of trails, some old logging roads and some specially built trails, lace the southern and northern flanks of the ridge, and a 2-mile trail runs along its spine. There are great views of the Delaware River to the south, historic farmland to the north, and on clear days the Philadelphia skyline to the southwest. Ruins of a 19th century settlement and scattered farms can be found on or near some of the Baldpate trails. There are five entrance points to the preserve—two from Fiddlers Creek Road, two from Pleasant Valley Road, and one from Church Road. New parking areas have recently opened. Please see parking section for details.

For more information about Mercer County Parks, visit: Mercer County Parks.

From I-95:

Take Exit 1 onto Route 29 north. Go 4.7 miles and turn right on Fiddlers Creek Road. Go about two-tenths of a mile to the iron gate on your left (limited parking here).

For the Church Road entrance, continue another 1.4 miles up Fiddlers Creek Road to the intersection with Church Road; continue straight across Church Road into the Brick Road entrance to Washington Crossing State Park, where there is more ample parking.

Go west on Delaware Avenue (from Route 31 at the light at the Pennington Market). Continue for 3.0 miles, first straight, then through several twisting sections. At stop sign on Bear Tavern Road (Route 579), turn right.

For the Church Road entrance, take first left after .4 mile onto Church Road. The Brick Road parking is about .75 mile in on Church Road. From that point you can turn right and follow Fiddler’s Creek Road 1.4 miles to the iron gate on your right.

For the Pleasant Valley Road entrances, continue a total of 1.5 miles north on Route 579, and turn left on Pleasant Valley Road. Access to the Ridge Trail is through a simple metal gate on the left at 1.2 miles from Route 579, and access to the Pleasant Valley Trail, from parking on Hunter Road, is a total of 2.9 miles from Route 579.