Exploring the N.J. Pinelands

By DAN AUBrey

Those looking to take a walk on the hiking trails less traveled should pack up the car and go east or south east and escape into the New Jersey Pinelands.

Part of a designated 1.1 million acres special growth management region governed by the 1978 National Parks and Recreation Act and the 1979 New Jersey Pineland Protection Act, the N.J. Pinelands is the biggest surviving forest on the eastern seaboard

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See our ad on pg 8 south of Maine and an International Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization).

Its vastness may be a deterrent for the uninitiated to start exploring, but with the following overview of a few easy day trips, it opens a new world of outdoor opportunities.

Something helpful to know is that the Pinelands are two large state forests: the Wharton and Brenden T. Byrne.

The Wharton State Forest is the largest single tract of land within the New Jersey State Park System.

It is named after Philadelphia businessman Joseph Wharton, who began purchasing various iron and paper mills and property in the mid-19th century.

When Wharton died in 1909, his empire of 100,000 acres was sold to the State of New Jersey for public lands in 1954. Sometimes called the Wharton Tract, the forest is home to the following attractions:

See PINELANDS, Page 10