It is a bittersweet story for the 450-foot-long, 60-foot high timber Lake Matawan Trestle. NJT, who owns the ex-CNJ Freehold Branch planned on tearing down the trestle in 1998 to prevent lawsuits in case someone fell through the rotten ties, but failed to produce the documents before leasing the right of way to the Monmouth County Park System. Seeing the historical relevance of the bridge the MCPS let the bridge stand. Ironically, other than an arsonist or nature induced collapse, the only threat to the Lake Matawan Trestle is the potential reopening of the Freehold Branch which would call for the bridge to be replaced with a sturdier structure. Photo taken through the protective fences.
