Getting From DWG to Bear Mountain

[kolokolo]

Hi All,

I'm planning to hike the section from Bear Mountain Bridge in NY to Delaware Water Gap next Spring, and I've been looking at transportation options.

I'm planning to drive to DWG and then get a ride to the start of my hike at Bear Mountain Bridge.

I could arrange a shuttle, but another
possibility is to make this trip by taking a Martz bus from DWG to NYC (Port Authority Bus Terminal), then a Coach USA Short Line bus from there to the Bear Mountain Inn.

I'd be interested to hear about experiences with either of these bus lines, and also if anyone has made this trip, what it was like.

I've dealt with buses in the past (Concord in Maine comes to mind) where my ticket didn't necessarily guarantee me a seat on a specific bus, and I ended up getting to my destination much later than I had planned. I don't know if Martz or Coach USA are like that.

I could probably save at least $100 by taking buses rather than a shuttle, but I would want to be sure that I wouldn't be delayed by transportation snafus.

If you have any guidance/lessons learned with regard to transportation around NYC, I'd definitely like to hear.

Thanks.

[Slo-go'en]

I've taken the Martz bus before. It's a commuter bus, so it will be busy in the mornings with suits going to NYC. I took a late morning bus and there were plenty of seats. If you can make the connections before and/or after rush hour, it should be doable. A shuttle would likely be a little faster, but you'd wind up killing most of the day one way or the other.

[MrCharlie2]

Second that. Martz is OK. The terminal is about 1 mile from the AT trail head on the Jersey side.

Martz has a big parking lot, but they charge. You should figure out your parking arrangements.

[Slo-go'en]

Second that. Martz is OK. The terminal is about 1 mile from the AT trail head on the Jersey side.

Martz has a big parking lot, but they charge. You should figure out your parking arrangements.

No, it's on the PA side. I don't think it's quite a mile.

[Strategic]

It should work just fine. I've used both Martz and the Short Line/Bear Mt. buses in the past. Be careful of your schedules, since the Short Line bus has limited service, but otherwise it will work. You should plan on an early start despite the commuter traffic on the Martz bus, since otherwise it will take you much of the day to do both rides and that won't leave you a lot of time to hike in at Bear Mt. in the afternoon. You'll be going up and over Bear Mt. itself and at least 5 miles down trail to get to a camping spot of any kind, and the first shelter is at West Mt., 6.2 miles from Bear Mt. Inn (which is where the bus stop is.) On a weekday, if you take one of the morning commuter buses from DWG (last one departs at 6:40am), you can be at the Port Authority early enough to catch the 11:15am bus to Bear Mt. and get there by 1:00pm. Otherwise, you have to take the much later bus that will drop you in the 4:15-4:30 time frame, which doesn't leave you much light to get to West Mt. by nightfall. If it's a weekend, the whole thing is a bit easier, since there are later morning buses out of DWG (last one at 8:30am) that can get you to the Port Authority in time for the 11:15. It means an early start either way, but not too bad if you're used to getting up and on the trail anyway.