A Postcard from Lake Mohawk, New Jersey
We can't get the kids out of the lake long enough to eat unless we bait them with a trip to the plaza for ice-cream. However, baiting the fish is a cinch! It feels like we are thousands of miles from New York; can it be that we are really so close?
About Lake Mohawk, New Jersey
If you long for a summer home away from the humid city and noise, look into the Sparta/Lake Mohawk area, designed from the start as a relaxed and private getaway. Here, you can leave the modern world and step back in time visually and experientially. The surrounding area of lakes, mountains and farmland offers great second home living. Within the township of Sparta are 11 private lake communities, including Lake Mohawk, the largest and oldest. Lake Mohawk, with its buildings and architecture evokes an earlier, slower, Tudor period, (though most were actually built in the 1930s.) The fact that it is only an hour from New York City makes the experience even more profound and valuable.
The largest private, man-made lake in New Jersey (3-miles, 800 acres), Lake Mohawk is stocked with fish and lined with beaches, and comes complete with a historic boardwalk lined with shops. The imposing Lake Mohawk Country Club, with its castle-like structure completes the back-in-time feeling. Carved from 2300 acres of meadowland, the area includes the Wallkill River, a river flowing north to the Hudson, and protected here by a national wildlife refuge.
Since the lake is private, owning your vacation home here gives you boating and swimming rights on a very uncrowded lake. Waterskiing, sailing, canoeing... your favorite lake activities at your doorstep. The number of homes is limited and some have been built in an earlier time, making them irreplaceable treasures. If you live on the East Coast, and long for a traditional family summer vacation on a lake, a vacation home at Sparta/Lake Mohawk can't be matched.
Local History
The Sparta Township was established in 1777, named after the Spartan lifestyle that the founding family was living. Many famous people came through here later, including Thomas Edison and George Washington. It officially became a township in 1845. Sadly, just two days after the first township meeting, the original Sparta home burned to the ground. The area was known for farming and iron mining. Finally with the railroads, summer boarders found the area perfect.
The Wallkill River was dammed and the meadow dredged in 1926 to form Lake Mohawk, creating the center of a resort community. White Deer Plaza on the lake was named after Princess White Deer, a Mohawk princess who attendee the opening. In the 1930s, The Plaza expanded, as did the private community of summer homes surrounding the lake. In 1988 the Plaza, Country Club and buildings were added to the National Register of Historic places because of its unique "Lake Mohawk Tudor" architecture.
An Average Lifestyle in Sparta/Lake Mohawk, New Jersey
Summer on the lake, in a small town. Families strolling on the boardwalk. Kids making friends they'll write to after they return home. Family traditions beginning with gatherings on Fourth of July. Dad commuting on weekends from the city; mom staying all summer with the kids. Time to stop time and live, eat ice cream and swim to your hearts content.
Housing
Buying a summer home on Lake Mohawk is buying yourself total privacy and complete country club amenities. Starting price for single family home is $350,000. Waterfront homes go from $650,000 for two bedrooms to over $2 million. Options include Swiss-like chalets with fireplaces and classic roofs and woodworking.
Lake Mohawk Median Costs(Census 2000) $208,900
Things to Do in Sparta/Lake Mohawk
Bird watching at Wallkill National Wildlife Refuge
Hike the Wood Duck Nature Trail in the Wildlife Refuge
Canoe the Wallkill River
Fish for bass, pickerel and other warm water fish
Visit Lake Mohawk Country Club (2600 member families)
Dine and visit shops in the historic district
Shop along White Deer Plaza
Tennis
Waterskiing
Sailing
Canoe and Kayak on the Lake
Golf
Swimmng
Hang out on the lake beaches
Check out the lake marinas
Cultural Activities in Sparta/Lake Mohawk
Art classes
Dance classes
Summer Concerts at Dykstra Park
Near-By Excursions
New York City
Location
Sussex County, Northwestern New Jersey, in Sparta Township.
Size: 5.0 sq miles
Distance to other major cities
Morristown, NJ: 25 miles
Newark, NJ: 38.1 miles
Trenton, NJ: 55 miles
New York City: 45.4 miles
Getting To Sparta/Lake Mohawk, New Jersey
By air to Newark International Airport (50 miles)
La Guardia Airport (58 miles)
JFK Airport (69 miles)
By car: I80 to US206.
Weather
Typical East Coast weather, with four seasons
Annual Average Temperature: Jan:24.9; July: 71.3
Annual Average Rainfall: 103 inches, average about 4.5 per month.
Economics and Demographics
Population: 9,755 (Lake Mohawk) 18,930 (Sparta Township)
Median Age, 2000: 38.7 (Sparta Township including lake Mohawk)
Median Household Income: $81,699 (Lake Mohawk)
Higher Education
County College of Morris (14 miles, in Randolph, NY)