The Hackensack Meadowlands were once written off as a wasteland of marsh, dumps and smouldering garbage, the place where gangsters supposedly disposed of their problems. Today they are something unexpected: a recovering wetland, full of herons, egrets and ospreys, wrapped around a stadium that holds more than eighty thousand people. This finish lies at the edge of that landscape, near East Rutherford, Carlstadt and Moonachie.
MetLife Stadium, home of both the New York Giants and the New York Jets, rises above the reeds, and next to it the American Dream mall, a vast complex with an indoor ski slope and water park, adds a surreal touch. On game days, traffic in the area is terrible, so check the schedule.
The Meadowlands also has some real nature. Parks along the Hackensack river have boardwalks through the marshes, and the restored wetlands are a haven for birds, a remarkable recovery from decades of pollution. Teterboro airport, nearby, is the busiest private jet airport in the New York area.
Coming back from the Poconos, the final stretch follows I-80 or Route 3, both often congested, and the roads around the Meadowlands are a maze of ramps and junctions. Watch for potholes, trucks and drivers who change lanes without warning.
East Rutherford and Carlstadt are small, low-rise boroughs with diners, delis and Italian bakeries. Fuel is everywhere, pumped by an attendant as New Jersey law requires. If you finish at sunset, look west over the marsh, with the stadium behind you; the light on the reeds can be surprisingly beautiful.