Who needs roadways (or, for that matter, cue sheets, GPS, or phones) when we have a river to follow? And one with such fame – at one end, the industrial port city of Newark, and at the other, Paterson and the Great Falls.

Our tour begins at Harrison, though, near the juncture where the Passaic, further down, merges with the Hackensack to spill into Newark Bay and from there out into the Arthur Kill. But we'll be moving upriver, instead, against the stream, as those salmon do, but not before we first grub up at Tops Diner, an “East Newark” landmark, just off the rusted banks of the Passaic, for breakfast. (We're in for the avocado toast; and we'll be sure to make reservations this time!) From there, we'll then crisscross the Passaic, charting its ebbs and flows, passing through numerous riverfront parks, revolutionary memorials, and eight 19th century steel-girded bridges. The ride ends at the Great Falls itself, in Paterson, where all that flow generated America's first industrial boom. Lunch is at the halfway mark, Cedars Lebanese Cuisine in Wallington, after which, we'll cross the Main Street bridge paralleling the site of the revolututionary-era Acquackanonk Bridge, burned by Washington on his retreat from the British, and visit the Blanchard House, in Passaic, before moving further upriver to the Paterson Great Falls. 

Here is our route. Return trains from Paterson: 3:42, 4:51. Total miles: 18-20. Though a happy face ride, we'll travel at a relaxed, though steady, pace.

NOTE -- We'll take the 9:14 AM NJ Transit train to Newark, and after a (brief) exploratory tour of the new Riverfront Park, we'll cross over the Passaic to Harrison to begin our journey upriver. Meet up is at the usual place: Penn Station Amtrak waiting area, by the escalators (at the 31 Street and Eighth Avenue entrance), where the NJ Transit ticket booth and machines are.