Hunterdon Plateau

Hunterdon Plateau is a plateau in western Hunterdon County, New Jersey. It borders the higher Musconetcong Mountain to the northwest, the Delaware River to the west, Amwell Valley to the south and the lower lying areas of the Newark Basin to the east. The plateau's edge follows a line from Raven Rock to Flemington. From there it follows a curved path west of the South Branch Raritan River until it meets with the Musconetcongs. It is generally unmarred as a plateau, excluding some of the small valleys of tributaries along the Delaware, of Lopatcong Creek and Wickecheoke Creek and Cakepoulin/Capoolong Creek Valley. Other features are Thatcher's Hill and Sand Hill which form southeastward extensions to the plateau due to a valley of Walnut Brook and the curve of the plateau there. This also occurs between Lockatong Valley and the Delaware River. A small ridge called Barren Ridge runs through Alexandria and Union Township rises slightly above the rest of the plateau. Another feature in Holland Township called Gravel Hill also rises above the rest of the plateau. There are numerous cliffs along the Delaware where the plateau meets it such as Milford Bluffs where prickly pear cacti grow, a rarity in Hunterdon County. The pleateau includes Milford, New Jersey, Frenchtown, New Jersey, parts of Kingwood, Delaware, Raritan Township, Flemington, Franklin Township, Union Township, Bethlehem, Alexandria and Holland. Because of the soil types and relatively flat terrain on the plateau, there are still many farms across the area.