#TBT Post: A Day in Sussex County

August 1, 2019 newjerseyisntboring

Originally posted in May of 2018, I took a trip up to Sussex County to locate things to do! I did not expect a wide array of things including a distillery, alpacs, antiques, and ice cream.

On a cloudy, rainy day in May my husband and I took a trip to Sussex County; an area we don’t get to visit too often because it’s the most North part of the state and we live about 2 hours away. Having said that, Sussex County is one of the best places to go if you’re looking to get out of the city or the suburbs.

Starting with the drive, getting up to Sussex County is filled with nature and trees. If you’re looking for a break from screen time, there’s a chance you may lose some cell service depending on where you are.

We started our trip at where else? A New Jersey diner of course! We stopped at the Andover Diner (193 Main St, Andover, NJ) for brunch before starting the rest of our trip. They have a great menu, included banana nutella crepes which I got as my meal.

Afterwards we walked around the cute town of Andover which has lots of cute antique shops along Main St.

We also checked out Scranberry Coop, an indoor flea market located in Andover as well.

Scranberry Coop was so cool! We spent about an hour looking through antiques, furniture, old toys, vintage clothing and more. I definitely recommend check out this year round flea market!

Next we decided to try some local wines at Ventimiglia Vineyard (101 Layton Rd, Wantage, NJ), a small family owned and operated winery. The vineyard has been open to the public since 2008.

We tried five samples of their wine and ended up taking a bottle home!

Because we were so impressed with Sussex County wines, we decided to check out Sussex County’s spirits at Milk Street Distillery(Building 1, 1 Milk St, Branchville, NJ).

Milk Street Distillery is the first Sussex County distillery in over 69 years, located in the small town of Branchville. The distillery is owned by brothers Mike and Gordon Geerhart who turned a 125 year old building into a business producing fine spirits.

We took and tour and tasting at the distillery and I ended up getting one of their signature cocktails made with their vodka. I highly recommend their Lavender Lemonade!

After the distillery I couldn’t resist a trip to Hidden Pastures Luxury Fiber Farm, (35 Newton Ave, Branchville, NJ), located only 3 minutes away.

Hidden Pastures is a family owned and managed farm that opened in 2004. On their farm you can find alpacas, rabbits, goats, sheep and yaks. They farm offers a paid tour where you can interact with the animals and learn how the farm operates, or you can visit during the regular hours to visit their shop and see the animals in a designated area at no cost. I enjoyed seeing the animals and meeting a baby goat named Scarlett!

And last but not least we made a trip to Windy Brow Farms, (359 Ridge Rd, Fredon Township, NJ). Windy Brow, named for its windy location on the brow of the ridge, was originally operated as a dairy farm dating back to the late 1800s.

The present proprietors, Jim and Linda Hunt, purchased the farm in 2000. Windy Brow Farms is known for being a family owned farm, bakery, & orchard that features seasonal fruits & vegetables, PYO apples, homemade pies, artisan bread, and small-batch ice cream.

We visited the farm originally as part of my NJisntBoring Ice Cream Quest, which was started two years ago. Windy Brow Farm’s Cow Brow Creamery started by Jim and Linda’s son Jake, makes fresh, local homemade ice cream with the finest homegrown ingredients. They produce traditional ice cream with 14% butterfat as well as vegan ice cream, and dairy free sorbets. Be sure to check them out for unique flavors!

In addition to tasting their ice cream, I ended up taking sourdough bread to go. Their bakery looked so good I couldn’t resist.

Of course there is A LOT of other things to do in do in Sussex County including hiking, boating, camping, more restaurants, and lots of farms to explore.

Here are just a few other suggestions I have for visiting Sussex County:
– High Point State Park which has lots of hiking, plus the High Point Monument which is 1,803 feet above sea level.
– Space Farms Zoo & Museum in Wantage which has over 500 live wild animals including lions, tigers, bears, leopards, jaguars, lemurs, buffalo, sheep, deer, goats, pigs, kangaroos, monkeys, llamas, hyenas, snakes and much more!
– Angry Erik Brewing Co in Lafayette Twp
– Krogh’s Restaurant and Brew Pub in Sparta! Read my Review Here
– Visit Lake Mohawk! It’s gorgeous!
– Check out all the fun events going on at the Sussex County Fairgrounds. I’ve been to plenty!
– Wild West City, a theme park recreating the 1880’s. Not like WestWorld, I promise.
– Waterloo Village Historic Site, an open-air museum in Allamuchy Mountain State Park. The village is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
– Olde Lafayette Village (75 NJ-15, Lafayette Township) for fun antique shopping and local businesses including the popular Chocolate Goat Gift Shoppe
– The Sussex County Miners are a fun, minor league baseball to check out in the warmer weather
– Crystal Springs Resorts in Hamburg, a relaxing place to golf, enjoy a spa day, and sleep over! They also feature events through the year as well that are open to the public.
– A Visit to Sterling Hill Mining Museum & The Franklin Mineral Museum
– Lake Hopatcong State Park
– The Sussex County Sunflower Maze (open only in August and September)
– Other Sussex County Diners, one of my all time favorites is located there!