A Guide to Parks and Nature Trails near Tabernacle, NJ

Get Outdoors!

A Girl Scout Silver Award project by Christina Sunbury

 The Franklin-Parker Preserve provides over 50 rare, threatened, or endangered species with habitat vital to their survival. Some of these include the Bald Eagle, Bobcat, Pine Barrens Tree Frog, and the Pine Barrens Gentian. The preserve is about 9,400 acres, about 14 square miles, and has about 21 miles of trails. It was originally a cranberry farm, until the owner sold it to the New Jersey Conservation Foundation in December of 2003.

 The Michael Huber Prairie Warbler Preserve has 1,227 acres of land and 5 miles of trails. The preserve has a spung on the red trail, an area of wetland that relies on precipitation for its water level. The water on top is isolated from the ground water by a layer of clay. Depending on the time of year you visit, the spung may be very wet, dry, or somewhere in between. The preserve is a breeding habitat for the Prairie Warbler, so it is likely you will hear them in spring as they try to attract mates.

 The Dot and Brooks Evert Memorial Nature Trail is 1.5 miles long. This nature walk is great for bird watching, acting as a home, or at least a rest stop during migration, for many species of birds. Dot and Brooks Evert Memorial Nature Trail is on the edge of the Pine Barrens and the Inner Coastal Plains, so it sustains wildlife of both regions.

Batona Trail

 The Batona trail is a 50 mile trail through various state parks in the pine lands. The Batona trail runs through Wharton, Brendan T. Byrne, and Bass River State Forests. The name Batona comes from BAck TO NAture.

Wharton State Forest

 Wharton State Forest is the largest single park in the NJ state park system. The Carranza Memorial resides in Wharton State Park on Carranza Road. Within the park, there is an area called Batsto Village. The village once produced bog iron and glass. There are 33 buildings. The Pine Barrens tree frog and many other species that can only be found in the Pine Barrens live in this Wharton State Forest.

Brendan T. Byrne State Forest

 Brendan T. Byrne State Forest has over 25 miles of marked hiking trails. It has 735 acres of land with many different ecosystems in one park. There is a village called Whitesbog in Brendan T. Byrne State Forest. Whitesbog was founded in the 1870's for cranberry and blue berry farming. Brendan T. Byrne State Forest was once known as Lebanon State Forest. In Brendan T. Byrne State Forest, there are many streams the color of tea. These streams are iron-rich and contain pure water.

Sites Used for information and maps

Sites for Information
http://www.state.nj.us/dep/parksandforests/parks/byrne.ht ml http://www.state.nj.us/dep/parksandforests/parks/wharton. html http://www.njwildlifetrails.org/PineBarrensTrails/Sites/tabi d/1698/Scope/site/Guide/PINEBARREN/Site/262/Default.a spx http://www.njwildlifetrails.org/PineBarrensTrails/Sites/tabi d/1698/Scope/site/Guide/PINEBARREN/Site/264/Default.a spx http://www.njconservation.org/michaelhuberpreserve.htm http://www.njconservation.org/everttrailpreserve.htm http://www.njconservation.org/franklinparkerpreserve.htm http://www.state.nj.us/dep/parksandforests/parks/docs/bat ona14web.pdf

Sites for Maps

http://www.mobilemaplets.com/showplace/3292 http://www.state.nj.us/dep/parksandforests/parks/docs/bat ona14web.pdf http://njconservation.org/documents/fpptrails8x11bw.pdf http://www.njconservation.org/preserves/090424EvertTrail Map.pdf http://www.njconservation.org/preserves/Huber_trailmap.pd f http://www.state.nj.us/dep/parksandforests/parks/maps/BT B_Trail_Map.pdf