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FreeWalkers.org is a social network dedicated to exploring life on foot, for walkers and hikers interested in participating in long-distance walking events in the Mid-Atlantic region. Membership is free and open to everyone. We support each member's effort to reach their own goals of fitness and enjoyment as we walk together, explore our surroundings, and promote pro-pedestrian interests.
FreeWalkers has thousands of members and hosts dozens of long-distance walking events each year in New Jersey, Pennsylvania and New York, as well as many in Maryland, Delaware and Virginia. Most walks are supported by mass transit for easy access and return, and are between ten and fifty miles in length. Some walks are longer multi-day or shorter distance events. We have all kinds of walks, but we are most known for our longer distance walking events. Some of our walks offer shorter 5k to 10k options.
Walkers are free to move at their own pace and distance. It is not necessary for a walk to be completed or timed, only enjoyed. Our walks expose members to countless locations of scenic beauty, historic importance, and pedestrian convenience, all with the benefit of social support, event organization and the opportunity to engage with interesting fellow walkers.
We are an IRS-approved 501(c)3 non-profit and your tax-free donations help us create free and low-cost walks that are interesting, challenging and open to everyone. We manage multiple regional FreeWalkers groups on Meetup. We do encourage joining freewalkers.org and actively supporting our partners and sponsors who help make these events possible. At our website, you can browse photos of our events, learn about our history and mission, and read about the experiences of some of our walkers.
Look for our many walks every year in greater New York City, many parts of New Jersey including Hudson, Union, Middlesex, Somerset, Union, Morris, Monmouth, Mercer and Burlington County; Southeastern Pennsylvania including Philadelphia, Bucks and Montgomery County; Delaware and greater Washington DC. Join us on nature hikes, city walks, history walking tours, long-distance walks, scenic walks and themed walking outings.
Why you might like to join the FreeWalkers:
• Did you ever wonder how far you could walk?
• Would you like to know more about the places you walk?
• Are you more interested in accomplishing personal goals than winning a race?
• Are you the type of person who can't pass up an interesting challenge or adventure?
• Have you ever longed to get out of your car and experience what a community is really like?
• Do you believe you spend nearly as many calories walking as running but over a longer period of time?
• Are you looking for a sport where social interaction is possible?
• Are you looking for an alternative exercise routine that's both easy on the body and builds endurance?
We look forward to seeing you at our next event. Walk the Walk! It's good for you, good for us and good for the greater community. Get out there for your first FreeWalk, and you will be glad that you did.
Próximos eventos (4+)
Ver todo- Union County Connects with Steve DunnCranford station, Cranford, NJ
Walk with us to promote trail development in Union County for National Trails Day. Options for 3 ,7 or more miles - your choice.
Please register for FREE to attend.
Time: 8:30 am
Start: Cranford Train Station
End points: Finish with the group in Kenilworth, or return on foot to Cranford.
Distance: 3 miles to Kenilworth, then 4 miles with UnionConnect folks and a few miles back to the station if you choose, or arrange a carpool/Uber back to your car.
Where to find us: Town side parking lot of the station.
Mini Walk: Yes - can be as short as 3 miles, or more.
Terrain: paved and some unfinished rail trails - a bit of brush.
Transit: NJ Transit to Cranford Train Station.
Return: on foot or carpool.
Parking: FREE at the station
Difficulty: Beginner / Intermediate
Category: nature, urban
Coordinator: Cory Storch
Celebrate Trails Day! FreeWalkers is excited to join Stephen Dunn, the Biking Fireman, for this impactful event to promote the development of the Rahway Valley Railroad (RVR) Trail.- If you want to make this walk longer than 4 miles (see poster below) meet us at the Cranford train station at 8:30 am to walk and meet the others in Kenilworth.
- At 10 am we will meet additional walkers across the street from the ACME in Kenilworth for talks and another short 4 mile walk with Steve Dunn and the group.
- Following the walk all are invited to join us at the Two Ton Brewing Co. in Kenilworth to celebrate!! www.twotonbrewing.com from 12- 3 pm - open house for great food and drinks.
- After the Brewery you can walk back to Cranford, take an Uber or grab a ride with someone who might be going back .
When complete, the RVR will connect from Summit all the way to Roselle Park, 7.3 miles of traffic free multi-use path. Let's turn out in force to push its development along!
Partners:
The East Coast Greenway Alliance is a non-profit organization developing a public multi-use 3,000 mile trail from Canada to Key West through New Jersey and New York. Donations and memberships help make this dream trail a reality.
More about FreeWalkers:
Our calendar of walks and hikes | About FreeWalkers | Walker stories | Walking tips
New Jersey walks | Pennsylvania walks | New York City walks - The Kruimer Walk: XNJNew Brunswick Station, New Brunswick, NJ
An easy and enlightening 13-mile walking journey along the East Coast Greenway ending at Metropark Train Station. Part of the 100-mile Cross-Jersey Challenge.
Please register for FREE to attend.
Start: New Brunswick Station
Finish: MetroPark Station
Distance: 13mi
Where to find us: In front on the station on Albany Street.
Terrain: paved
Transit: NJ Transit to New Brunswick
Return: NJ Transit
Parking: Parking available at MetroPark for easy departure or New Brunswick Train station at the start - your choice.
Difficulty: Beginner to intermediate
Category: urban
Coordinator: Charles Updike, 916-225-0569, charlesupdike@gmail.com
Join in on this flat and easy trek between New Brunswick and Metropark in Iselin along the East Coast Greenway. The walk is FREE and open to everyone. Join us early for coffee and donuts at the Dunkin at the start.
It's a suburban walk on sidewalk along some fairly busy roads, through the interesting town of Highland Park and older neighborhoods in Edison. The trail goes through the popular Roosevelt Park and to the new Thomas Edison Center at Menlo Park with its huge monument, museum and grounds.
It's a quirky mixture celebrating the old and new, the industrial and post-industrial.
The walk should only be about 4.5 hours and is the connecting segment between the Great Canal Walk and the The Big Walk thereafter, so that you can complete the Cross-Jersey Walking Challenge.
The Kruimer Walk (previously named the Tween Walk) ends at the newly renovated Thomas Edison Center near Metro Park Station. This was the site of Edison's most famous and productive laboratory. Although the lab buildings are now gone, there remains a woodsy trail to the museum, grounds and newly restored art-deco monument to the genius he was. From there you can walk to Metropark train station to return.The FreeWalkers are again offering the Cross-Jersey Walking Challenge, with a goal of walking the 100 miles of the East Coast Greenway across the entire state at any time during the year. This walk is part of the ECG trail from Trenton to New York City. You have the option of completing the challenge over three to five days. Option 1: Complete the 40-mile Great Canal Walk from Trenton to New Brunswick in one day, or walk the Spring Ahead to Princeton and do the 28-mile Great Canal Walk from Princeton. Option 2: Complete the 50-mile Big Walk in one day, or walk 24 miles of the Big Walk to Elizabeth and complete the remaining 26 miles on the Staten Island Marathon Walk.
Highlights:
- Roosevelt Park
- Thomas Edison CenterSpring 2025 Cross Jersey Challenge
Mar 22 Spring Ahead Walk (optional) 14mi
Apr 5 Great Canal Walk 28/40mi
Apr 27 Kruimer Walk 13mi
May 17 Pauls Big Walk 24/50mi
May 31 Staten Island Marathon Walk (optional) 22/26miPartners:
The East Coast Greenway Alliance is a non-profit organization developing a public multi-use 3,000 mile trail from Canada to Key West through New Jersey and New York. Donations and memberships help make this dream trail a reality.
Circuit Trails is 800 miles of interconnected trails in Greater Philadelphia in the making, already one of America's largest trail networks. Once connected, the Circuit Trails will be one of the nation's premier urban trail networks and it will provide multiple benefits to neighborhoods, communities and the region as a whole.
The 9/11 National Memorial Trail is a network of over 1,300 miles of trails connecting New York City, the Pentagon and Shanksville, Pennsylvania, in tribute to the heroes who perished on September 11, 2001, and the heroes who, in response, answered the call for their country.
The FreeWalkers are again offering the Cross-Jersey Walking Challenge, with a goal of walking the 100 miles of the East Coast Greenway across the entire state at any time during the year. This walk is part of the ECG trail from Trenton to New York City.
- Highlands and Sandy Hook WalkHenry Hudson Trail / Popamora Point, Atlantic Highlands, NJ
Please register for FREE to attend.
Start & Finish: Popamora Point Park, Highlands, NJ - a loop walk.
Distance: 14 miles with an optional 3.5 for Fort Hancock loop and more if you want to grab a drink in the Atlantic Highlands. All choices you can make that day.
Optional endpoints: Walkers are free to 'turn around' anywhere they wish; walking to Carton Brewery in Atlantic Highlands and to the start adds 4.5 miles; lunch at Moby's - 2 miles short of the Popamora Point parking lot - is another option.
Terrain: pavement, some gravel/dirt, flat; level except for walking over the Sandy Hook Bridge.
Transit: NJ Transit 834 bus - check schedules.
Parking: Free at Popamora Point Park.
Difficulty: moderate challenge, average pace (which includes 'stop' time) will be about 3.0 , so walking pace about 3.25 - 3.50 mph. Bathroom facilities are available at the start and along the trail (the trail is managed by the National Park Service so these facilities should be open and available to us).
Pack: bug repellent, water, food; check and prepare for forecasted weather - sun, rain, wind, etc.
Category: nature, scenic, history and seashore
Coordinator: Cory Storch
We will walk through Highlands village to the Sandy Hook Bridge, use the bridge walkway onto Sandy Hook and the Sandy Hook Multi-Use Path (MUP). The walk will take us unto the dune trail affording us the opportunity to walk the South Dune Trail, where we will experience a unique American Holly Forest with red cedar and black cherry trees sprinkled in. This is the largest forest of its kind on the East Coast and an important migratory stopover for birds.Seven miles into the walk is one turn-around point (left turn) using the MUP heading south back to the start. Or we can continue north on a 3.5 loop through historic Fort Hancock, walking past Officers Row, World War 2 artillery batteries, the oldest standing lighthouse in the country, and more. We will stop at the History House, built in 1898 for a commissioned officer and his family, restored and furnished for the World War 2 period.
The return loop can either be directly on the MUP or the way we came which combined the Dune Trail, Fishing Beach Road and the MUP back to and over the Sandy Hook Bridge, THEN back to Popamora Point Park.
Atlantic Highlands Marina with great waterfront views of Raritan Bay and Sandy Hook and Carton Brewery are two post walk places to rehydrate and/or grab a bite to eat.
Highlights:
- Highlands, a gentrifying (for better and worse) fishing village
- South Dune Trail's unique ecosystem
- Historic Fort Hancock
- Sandy Hook Lighthouse
- Henry Hudson Trail's beautiful views along Raritan Bay (the optional add on to Atlantic Highlands).
More about FreeWalkers:
Our calendar of walks and hikes | About FreeWalkers | Walker stories | Walking tips
New Jersey walks | Pennsylvania walks | New York City walks - Paul's Big Walk: XNJMetropark Station, Iselin, NJ
A rigorous and beautiful 50-mile walk along the East Coast Greenway for those seeking a challenge. Part of the 100-mile Cross-Jersey Challenge. This was the walk that launched FreeWalkers in 2010. We've renamed it to celebrate and is now called Paul's BIG WALK!
Please register for FREE to attend.
Start: MetroPark Station Metropark Station, Iselin, NJ
Finish: NY Penn Station
Distance: 24-50 miles
Where to find us: Parking lot south of the station
Optional endpoints: Rahway: 4mi, Elizabeth: 24mi, Newark Penn Station: 28mi, Jersey City PATH: 41mi, many other rail stations and options.
Mini: Metropark to Rahway Station (4mi)
Terrain: paved, neighborhoods with some hills and roadway crossings.
Transit: NJ Transit to Metropark leaves Penn Station at 5:10 am. From other locations, please check your schedule to arrive by 6 am.
Return: NJ Transit: NYPenn to Metropark
Parking: Parking at Metropark Station
Difficulty: Expert
Category: urban, scenic
Return: NJTransit train
Coordinator: David Ascher
A rigorous and beautiful 50-mile walk along the East Coast Greenway for those seeking a challenge. Turn-by-turn directions will be provided. The group does not stay together along the route. Walk as slow or as fast as you choose and do as much as you can. There are many rest stops for bathrooms and snacks, but it is recommended that you carry the basics - drinks, food and clothing for whatever weather may be on that day.
The FreeWalkers are again offering the Cross-Jersey Walking Challenge, with a goal of walking the 100 miles of the East Coast Greenway across the entire state at any time during the year. This walk is part of the ECG trail from Trenton to New York City. You have the option of completing the challenge over three to five days. Option 1: Complete the 40-mile Great Canal Walk from Trenton to New Brunswick in one day, or walk the Spring Ahead to Princeton and do the 28-mile Great Canal Walk from Princeton. Option 2: Complete the 50-mile Big Walk in one day, or walk 24 miles of the Big Walk to Elizabeth and complete the remaining 26 miles on the Staten Island Marathon Walk.Highlights: Merrill Park, Nomahegan Park, Rahway River Parkway, Weequahic Park, Ironbound, Lincoln Park, Liberty State Park, Statue of Liberty, Manhattan skyline views, Hudson River Greenway.
Spring 2025 Cross Jersey Challenge
Mar 22 Spring Ahead Walk (optional) 14mi
Apr 5 Great Canal Walk 28/40mi
Apr 27 Kruimer Walk 13mi
May 17 Big Walk 24/50mi
May 31 Staten Island Marathon Walk (optional) 22/26miPartners:
The East Coast Greenway Alliance is a non-profit organization developing a public multi-use 3,000 mile trail from Canada to Key West through New Jersey and New York. Donations and memberships help make this dream trail a reality.
The 9/11 National Memorial Trail is a network of over 1,300 miles of trails connecting New York City, the Pentagon and Shanksville, Pennsylvania, in tribute to the heroes who perished on September 11, 2001, and the heroes who, in response, answered the call for their country.
The FreeWalkers are again offering the Cross-Jersey Walking Challenge, with a goal of walking the 100 miles of the East Coast Greenway across the entire state at any time during the year. This walk is part of the ECG trail from Trenton to New York City.
