Besides its incredible cultural diversity and proximity to major cities like New York City, my favorite thing about New Jersey is its geographical diversity. From central Jersey, you can arrive at mountain hiking trails, sandy beaches, or entire cities in a few hours’ driving, depending on which direction you drive in. Duke Farms, a nearly 1,000-acre estate in Hillsborough, NJ is a natural escape from both suburbia and the city noise. The best part is that Duke Farms is completely free! It is open from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. for most of the year and from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. during the winter (Nov 1 to April 1), every day except Wednesdays, Thanksgiving, Christmas Day, and New Year’s Day.
Duke Farms was originally envisioned as a site for James Buchanan Duke’s residence, one of the richest men of his time and the same man who later founded Duke University. After his death, his daughter Doris Duke wanted the massive space to protect wildlife and be a space for agriculture, horticulture, and research. In 2012, Duke Farms opened to the public.
While Duke Farms has guided audio tours and informative billboards at each major site, some of the joy of visiting the farms is getting lost on the miles of walking and biking trails with no particular destination. It can be refreshing and restorative to take in the nature around me. There are certain places I always make sure to visit.
Firstly, the Orientation Center is where visitors can pick up a map, visit the Farm Barn Cafe– I’m a huge fan of their fresh fruit smoothies– and learn more about the history of the estate. After all, Duke Farms is not just a place to admire pretty flowers and take pictures, but also for children and adults who like to learn more about biology, ecology, agriculture, and protecting the environment.
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Further, into the park, the Orchid Range is a beautiful indoor garden that boasts stunning tropical and subtropical American orchids no matter how cold it is outside. Flowers, vines, and plants grow in every nook and cranny of the Orchid Range, including a giant tree in the entrance room, surrounded by bridges and a koi pond. The diversity of plant life, with their stunning colors and shapes, make the most of the somewhat small space.
In the warmer months on less crowded days, the Meditation Garden can be a truly tranquil space. With a Japanese-style bridge over a stream, stone benches in a quiet garden, and Japanese maple trees, it’s the perfect rest stop to gather your thoughts and take in the scenery around you.
Several areas that J.B. planned for his estate still have the original foundations that were never built. One example is the eerily abandoned Old Foundation that overlooks the stunning Great Meadow, a gently sloping, wide green field with magnificent trees and flora. The Hay Barn, closer to the park’s entrance, was abandoned after a fire in 1915 and still has the marble sculptures of human figures after Doris Duke turned it into an outdoor sculpture garden Finally, the Coach Barn still stands, 117 years after it was built. The building itself is impressive, with rustic fieldstone walls and a formidable clocktower, and after its restoration in 2015, it is usually open to the public as a place for educational classes and conferences.
Duke Farms is a true local gem in central Jersey, with staff that actively encourages exploration and creativity. Its website offers tips for photographers and young scientists alike who want to study animal tracks, and Duke Farms also offers bike rentals from April to October. No matter the weather, it hosts engaging educational and recreational activities. Even when it snows, visitors to Duke Farms can go snowshoeing or cross-country skiing. Meanwhile, the researchers and ecologists at Duke Farms identify plant and animal species to create activity sheets for the whole family to explore the biodiversity at the park. Even with so many things to explore and learn, the park still guarantees an escape into nature even if all you choose to do is walk and take in all the beauty around you.