St. Thomas Episcopal Church Hiker Hostel in Vernon, NJ is Closing

[Offshore]

I dropped off a couple of hikers at the church hostel in Vernon yesterday and found out that the parish is closing on 10/30/2016. The last day for the hiker hostel is September 30th. Also, Vernon Urgent Care on Route 94 has closed. The nearest facility for hikers requiring medical care looks like St. Anthony's Hospital in Warwick, NY (about 12 miles north on Route 94).

[Slo-go'en]

The caretaker who checked up on us at the hostel back in May mentioned that they would likely have to shut down at the end of the season. Seems the congregation has gotten too small to cover the overhead.

Vernon was at good location for a stop and provided a reasonably inexpensive resupply and overnight option for the area. The hostel there will be missed.

[Jeff]

Church sponsored hostels along the AT have been slowly disappearing over the years.

Interestingly, the Twelve Tribes "Yellow Deli" hostels are expanding along the trail.

[jj dont play]

Stayed there a few weeks ago and really enjoyed it. The church itself is closing, they actually would have closed earlier but fought to stay open for one more they hiker season. They really care about the hikers and are reaching out to other groups in the area to see if another church, etc. would be interested in taking starting a new hostel for next thru hiker season.


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[capehiker]

I loved my stay there in June. Great resupply and locals.

[Turtle-2013]

I stayed at the hotel in the church last fall shortly before it closed ... it is unfortunate that the church had to shut it's doors, and therefore had to shut the doors of the hostel. HOWEVER, my question is this ... are there any other hostels in the area ... or more specifically, I will be getting off a section and need a place to clean up (shower) ..... any ideas or leads would be appreciated. Thanks.

[Dogwood]

...Vernon was at good location for a stop and provided a reasonably inexpensive resupply and overnight option for the area. The hostel there will be missed.

Indeed! It was a good stop in a clean atmosphere by caring considerate people. Many hikers always felt welcome there. Thank you for the greater memories and heart warming people that supported hikers.