Qualla: Round Valley Reservoir

Round Valley Reservoir: Introduction

Sat, 28 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Kjerish, CC BY-SA 4.0. Somewhere beneath 180 feet of cold, clear water, the walls of a schoolhouse and a church still stand. When the New Jersey Water Authority constructed two massive dams in 1960 and flooded the circular valley inside Cushetunk Mountain, they submerged an entire farming community -- homes, roads, foundations, and all. What rose in its place was Round Valley Reservoir, the largest reservoir in New Jersey, holding 55 billion gallons of water for central New Jersey. From the surface, it is strikingly beautiful. But the valley's history, and what has happened on its waters since, give it a reputation that beauty alone cannot explain.

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Image: Kjerish | CC BY-SA 4.0

Round Valley Reservoir: A Valley Shaped by Fire and Water

Sat, 28 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Public domain. The circular shape that gives Round Valley its name is not accidental. Cushetunk Mountain, the ridgeline that encircles the valley, is made of diabase -- dense volcanic rock that cooled slowly beneath the earth's surface and now resists erosion. The softer sedimentary rock at the...

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Image: Public domain

Round Valley Reservoir: The Town Below

Sat, 28 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Public domain. Before the reservoir, Round Valley was farmland. Families worked the fields in the basin, their children attended the local school, and the community's social life revolved around a small church. When the state decided to flood the valley, the community was displaced. The buildin...

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Image: Public domain

Round Valley Reservoir: The Bermuda Triangle of New Jersey

Sat, 28 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Public domain. The nickname is not playful. Since 1971, more than 26 people have drowned in Round Valley Reservoir. Six of their bodies have never been recovered. The reservoir's extreme depth, cold water temperatures, and sudden wind shifts create conditions that are genuinely dangerous, espec...

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Image: Public domain

Round Valley Reservoir: Trout, Trails, and Clear Blue

Sat, 28 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Public domain. For all its dark history, Round Valley is also a place of genuine natural beauty and ecological significance. The New Jersey Division of Wildlife identifies it as the southernmost body of water in the United States that supports naturally reproducing lake trout -- one of only two...

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Image: Public domain