Why Is It Called Devil's Footprint?

Every town has its oddities.

One of Hopatcong's? Devil's Footprint.

Six boulders sit at the end of Brooklyn Mountain Road, marking the entrance to a wooded area eventually leading to a hiking trail.

While some see it as a place to observe Hopatcong's beauty, others see it as a place to do other, things.

But a few people asked recently why it's called Devil's Footprint.

So we reached out to Lake Hopatcong Historical Museum Martin Kane. He said he wasn't exactly sure of the name's origin, the borough's 2011 Open Space and Recreation Plan Update said the following about the area:

The Natural Area Preserve and the large Hudson Farm property to its north encompass the sections of the Borough known as Wolf’s Head and Brooklyn Mountain, containing some of the earliest settlement sites within the Borough, including the “Devil’s Footprint”, one of two recognized Lenni Lenape camps found in Hopatcong. The Highlands Trail, recently re-routed in Hopatcong south of Bear Pond, cuts through the Hudson Farm property and crosses Brooklyn Mountain Road to meet up with the Tri-Community Trail inside the Natural Area Preserve, allowing trekkers to experience some of the least disturbed Highlands terrain along its 150-mile traverse of the region’s ridges.

Then we walked to the site and snapped a few photos. One area—cue dramatic music—had the look of one really, really big footprint.

The devil wasn't immediately available for comment.