SHADES OF DEATH ROAD: Allamuchy, New Jersey
Shades of Death has such an ominous name, it just begged to be investigated.
One day we decided to take the ride to the legendary Shades of Death Road and this trip included The Fairy Hole, Jenny Jump State Park and Ghost Lake. Located in Allamuchy Township, NJ Shades of Death Road is a 6.7 mile long road according to our GPS. All of the street signs are firmly planted into the concrete ground due to the many attempts at stealing the signs; some are also greased to further discourage theives and vandals.
How did Shades of Death Road recieve its name?
Many years ago this road was one Indians attacked the European settlers on and later many carriages were robbed along this path. Shades of Death? Yes, many were killed along this road. The local townsfolk would lynch the criminals that robbed travelers and then hung them in these trees to rot in order serve as a deterrent to future robbers.
Also Malaria took its toll on the local residents before the invention of antibiotics and many people died. This being said, the area has a very deep and dark history. Yet another story in an attempt to explain the source of the name for this road was due to the packs of wildcats that used to roam the area. It is interesting to note that Cat Swamp Road is located in the area also.
One of the odder stories associated with Shades of Death road was that years ago, supposedly a pile of Polaroid photos were found along the side of the road. The photos were blurry and out of focus but seemed to center on a female form. Soon afterwards a police investigation was launched but then apparently shut down as quickly as it appeared.
A quote from the person that found the photographs (they wished to remain anonymous), “My husband and I decided to take a ride down Shades of Death Road. We ended up on a dirt road that leads to it coming out of Frelinghuysen. There were tons, and I mean tons, of Polaroid photos scattered everywhere! They are very weird. There are pictures of women, none of them smiling. Almost as if they were caught off guard. Many of the pictures were of people laying down on something metal, and they didn't look to be asleep.”
GHOST LAKE (also known as Haunted Hallow):
Located along Shades of Death Road in Allamuchy, is a man-made lake created by two wealthy men that dammed the area off.
The lake was rumored to be built above an Indian burial ground, the name came about from the ghostly looking vapors that can be seen rising off of it on cold mornings.
Upon our arrival here it was dark and pitch black. It was like looking off into a dark abyss. So we couldn't really see Ghost Lake all that well. But it was blacker than oil.
In the early morning, the mist that comes off this lake looks like ghosts.
THE FAIRY HOLE
This location was hard to venture to; we had to hike along the right side of Ghost Lake to get to it, but not without tripping on the rocks, getting pricked by sticker bushes, tormented by bug
Shades of Death has such an ominous name, it just begged to be investigated.
One day we decided to take the ride to the legendary Shades of Death Road and this trip included The Fairy Hole, Jenny Jump State Park and Ghost Lake. Located in Allamuchy Township, NJ Shades of Death Road is a 6.7 mile long road according to our GPS. All of the street signs are firmly planted into the concrete ground due to the many attempts at stealing the signs; some are also greased to further discourage theives and vandals.
How did Shades of Death Road recieve its name?
Many years ago this road was one Indians attacked the European settlers on and later many carriages were robbed along this path. Shades of Death? Yes, many were killed along this road. The local townsfolk would lynch the criminals that robbed travelers and then hung them in these trees to rot in order serve as a deterrent to future robbers.
Also Malaria took its toll on the local residents before the invention of antibiotics and many people died. This being said, the area has a very deep and dark history. Yet another story in an attempt to explain the source of the name for this road was due to the packs of wildcats that used to roam the area. It is interesting to note that Cat Swamp Road is located in the area also.
One of the odder stories associated with Shades of Death road was that years ago, supposedly a pile of Polaroid photos were found along the side of the road. The photos were blurry and out of focus but seemed to center on a female form. Soon afterwards a police investigation was launched but then apparently shut down as quickly as it appeared.
A quote from the person that found the photographs (they wished to remain anonymous), “My husband and I decided to take a ride down Shades of Death Road. We ended up on a dirt road that leads to it coming out of Frelinghuysen. There were tons, and I mean tons, of Polaroid photos scattered everywhere! They are very weird. There are pictures of women, none of them smiling. Almost as if they were caught off guard. Many of the pictures were of people laying down on something metal, and they didn't look to be asleep.”
GHOST LAKE (also known as Haunted Hallow):
Located along Shades of Death Road in Allamuchy, is a man-made lake created by two wealthy men that dammed the area off.
The lake was rumored to be built above an Indian burial ground, the name came about from the ghostly looking vapors that can be seen rising off of it on cold mornings.
Upon our arrival here it was dark and pitch black. It was like looking off into a dark abyss. So we couldn't really see Ghost Lake all that well. But it was blacker than oil.
In the early morning, the mist that comes off this lake looks like ghosts.
THE FAIRY HOLE
This location was hard to venture to; we had to hike along the right side of Ghost Lake to get to it, but not without tripping on the rocks, getting pricked by sticker bushes, tormented by bug
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