West Milford Township is situated on 75 square miles of land and 5 square miles of water in Passaic County, approximately 45 miles northwest of New York City.
It borders the municipalities of Bloomingdale and Ringwood in Passaic County; Butler and Kinnelon in Morris County; Vernon and Hardyston in Sussex County and Warwick in Orange County, New York.
With around 26,000 people spread over 80 square miles, West Milford offers perhaps the lowest population density in the entire metro area.
West Milford is one of the few pristine, clean, eco-friendly areas in the New York metro area still largely in its native state. Home to a wide variety of natural plants, majestic trees, scenic mountains and wildlife, West Milford has over 40 lakes, and undeveloped and protected forests cover nearly 2/3 of the Township.
Highlands Preserve is a 224-acre county park that is located off Union Valley Road and adjacent to Abram S. Hewitt State Forest.
Greenwood Lake is an interstate lake approximately 9 miles long, lying in both West Milford and Greenwood Lake, New York, across the New York state line. Greenwood Lake is one of only three lakes in the New York metro area offering public access for boating that includes motor boats. Marinas offer boat rentals, sailing lessons, restaurants, mooring, and fuel.
Wawayanda State Park, located in the northwest corner of West Milford, consists of over 60 miles of well marked trails. A 20-mile section of the Appalachian Trail follows the varied terrain of the park. This trail's designated use is restricted to hiking only for its entire length from Maine to Georgia.
Long Pond Ironworks was founded in 1766 and operated continually until 1882, making iron for a wide range of purposes. Today, the ruins of three furnaces and other unique structures remain in a beautiful setting within Long Pond Ironworks State Park near the New York border in West Milford.
The West Milford Township Public Schools serve students in pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade. West Milford has six elementary schools (grades K-6), one middle school (grade 7-8), and one high school (grades 9-12). High school students also have the option of attending Passaic County Technical Institute, a public vocational high school that serves selected students throughout Passaic County.
Photo: Wawayanda State Park - User:Mwanner [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/)]
