Road Trip - Part 3

With our trip nearing its end, I knew that after the morning excursions we'd have a long drive to Somerset ahead of us and I didn't want to get a late start. By 7am we were on the road, driving toward New Jersey and searching for the town of Blairstown.

Blairstown was one of the towns where the first Friday the 13th was filmed and our first stop of the day was Camp No Be Bo Sco, which in the film was the setting for Camp Crystal Lake. I was afraid that we'd pull up to the entrance to the camp and find another locked gate like we had earlier in Connecticut, and sure enough as we drove up the dirt road toward the camp, a gate loomed in the distance. However, as we closed in it became clear the gate was open so we were able to drive into the camp grounds. A few groups of Boy Scouts were hiking around camp and they all smiled and waved as we explored the site of one of horror movies' most famous locations.

The camp was pretty incredible. Several of the cabins were clearly the ones displayed in the film, but the highlight was definitely the lakeside. Seeing the spot where Mrs. Voorhees battled Alice and the "lake" (which is actually Sand Pond) where Jason jumped out of the water at the films' climax actually gave me goosebumps. Friday the 13th is the first horror movie I remember seeing (I was around 6 years old and it scared the crap out of me, but I loved it!) so this had special meaning to me. We also found the totem pole shown early in the film and the archery range which was in several scenes. As for "the boy" in the lake. I didn't find any boy. So he must still be out there... (obligatory inside joke photo is included below, and only fans of Friday the 13th will get it) :)

After wrapping things up at the camp, we went into Blairstown and took photos of the streets and stores shown in the films' opening scenes (when Annie walks into town). We found the diner where Steve Christy downed some coffee and I even took some photos inside. I'd initially planned on getting breakfast there, but the place was packed and we didn't have time to spare. We then headed over to Hope, NJ where more of the opening was shot and where Annie met "Crazy Ralph" who warned her not to go to Crystal Lake. Our last stop was just outside of Hope, the Moravian Cemetery which could be seen in the background when Enos dropped Annie off as she hitchhiked to the camp.

And with that, our trip ended and the drive home began. We made good time on the way back, it only took about three and a half hours, and we drove straight through. Getting home was bittersweet. It was nice to be back and be done with the driving, but I hated to see our adventure come to an end. I'll have one more post with some closing thoughts on the trip and plans for the future, but until then here are some more photos.