Exploring New Jersey Nature:
A Guide to the Garden State’s Wonders

View of the Big Flatbrook as it runs along Blue Mountain Loop in Stokes State Forest, where you'll find New Jersey nature at its finest.

Discover diverse landscapes and wildlife

Although the entire state of New Jersey is considered a metropolitan area, it manifests a wonderful medley of landscapes, ecosystems, and biodiversity. The Garden State offers nature lovers 49 state parks and forests, five national wildlife refuges, hundreds of preserves, and two national recreation areas to explore.

Additionally, New Jersey’s Natural Lands Trust, an independent agency of the the NJDEP, acquires open space through donations and land easements to protect rare plant and animal species habitat and “rare ecological communities.”
The Nature Conservancy has protected more than 60,000 acres of water and land in the state.

Come see the REAL
New Jersey

In the most densely populated state in the country, there are still many places to find peace, solitude, and adventure. From the northern mountains where rushing streams spill over scenic waterfalls, to the southern shores where rolling waves kiss sandy beaches, to the dense Pine Barrens where legend walks with nature, there is something for everyone.

A female ruby-throated hummingbird sips nectar from a jewelweed flower, capturing the essence of New Jersey's nature.

If it’s the call of the wild you seek to answer, New Jersey boasts a rich diversity of wildlife, from butterflies to birds to bears. And despite its population density, the state still has large areas of wildland, especially along the coast.

An important part of the Atlantic Flyway, the Garden State’s coastal salt marshes and beaches serve as important stopover points for migrating birds. As a matter of fact, National Geographic lists Cape May as a “World’s Best destination for birding.”

The narrow peninsula at Cape May acts as a bird funnel, bringing in songbirds during their spring and fall migrations. At dawn on a good day, legendary Higbee Beach offers front-row seats to a feathered fashion show: A steady procession flies by, each bird intent on finding a place to rest as it encounters the natural barrier of Delaware Bay. With a little luck, you can see 20 species of warblers, each in its own colorful costume.

National Geographic

If your heart needs more reason to wander, explore the parks tucked within the drop down menu—each one a doorway to something wild and wonderful, with more still to come. Let me guide you first to a place close to my heart: the quiet, rugged beauty of Stokes State Forest.