The 5 best South Jersey hikes below Route 70 — all 7 miles or less

I have been writing about South Jersey a lot lately. The drives. The hidden villages. The Delaware Bay. The Pine Barrens at night when it is just you and the cedar water, maybe a lone whip-poor-will — and something rustling in the scrub oak that you choose not to investigate too carefully.

But hiking it? Really hiking it? That is something I did not do enough of growing up here and I am not sure I can explain why. Maybe because the trails down here do not announce themselves the way a mountain does. Nobody puts South Jersey hiking on a bucket list. There is no dramatic elevation, no summit view, no ridge walk above the clouds. Truth be told I have actually done much more hiking in the Endless Mountains of Pennsylvania, where we have had a family cabin for years.

What there is, is something quieter and stranger and more uniquely New Jersey than almost anything above Route 70. Sand trails covered in pine needles. Cedar swamps with water the color of tea. Rivers that run dark and clear through forests that look the same as they did three hundred years ago. If you grew up down here you know exactly what I mean. Maybe you can even smell it right now. If you did not, this is your introduction.

Here are five South Jersey hikes below Route 70 that are worth your time this summer — all of them easy to moderate, none of them longer than seven miles, and every one of them on home turf I should have explored a long time ago.

SEE ALSO: The 5 best North Jersey hikes above Route 80 for spring and summer 

Mullica River Trail — Wharton State Forest, Burlington County

This is the one Tom at njhiking.com calls his favorite Pine Barrens hike. High praise from someone who has hiked every trail in this state. The full loop runs 9.5 miles along the Mullica River, but the shorter 5.5-mile out-and-back along the river to Quaker Bridge is the version I am doing first — flat sand trails through tall pines, river views through the trees, and a stillness that is hard to find anywhere else in New Jersey. Park at the Atsion Office at 744 US-206 in Shamong. No fee at that lot.

One honest note from Tom: ticks can be serious in the Pines in warm months. Come prepared.

Belleplain State Forest — Cape May/Cumberland County

This is the southernmost hike on the list and one of the most distinctly South Jersey. The East Creek Trail runs 7.2 miles from Lake Nummy through Atlantic white cedar swamps and back — long wooden boardwalks over wet areas, the kind of forest canopy that makes you forget what month it is. A shorter 4.7-mile version is available and that is probably the right call for a first visit. Park at 299 Savage Bridge Road in Woodbine. The fee applies Memorial Day through Labor Day, so go early in the morning or bring your state park pass.

Lake Nummy itself is worth a few minutes before you hit the trail. The name alone is worth the drive.

Maurice River Bluffs — Millville, Cumberland County

This one is my personal wild card. A 2.6-mile loop through pine barrens along the bluffs above the Maurice River — easy, quiet, and almost nobody down there on a weekday morning. The trail ends at a floating dock with a view of the river that I cannot wait to see in person. The full preserve option runs 5.2 miles if you want more. Park at 1311 Silver Run Road in Millville. One note worth knowing — a section of the trail is closed January through July to protect nesting bald eagles, but an alternate route is well marked.

Bald eagles on the Maurice River. That is South Jersey doing what South Jersey does.

Parvin State Park — Pittsgrove, Salem County

Short, peaceful, and easy to underestimate. The loop around Parvin Lake runs about 3.5 miles through pine and Atlantic white cedar swamp and is one of the more accessible hikes on this list — good for families, good for a morning when you want to move but do not want to work too hard. The lake itself is beautiful and there is swimming available in season. Park at 701 Almond Road in Pittsgrove. Salem County does not get enough credit as a destination and this hike is part of the reason it should.

Batsto Lake Trail — Wharton State Forest, Burlington County

I have written about Batsto Village before as a stop on a scenic drive. And just a few weeks ago my family and I did a brief portion of the trail around Batsto Lake, which runs about four miles in total through the Pine Barrens with the historic ironmaster's mansion visible across the water. I am going back soon to do the entire hike.

The village itself — furnace ruins, the mansion, the old workers' houses — is there to explore after you finish. This is the one piece on the list where history and trail work together completely. Park at Batsto Village, Route 542 in Hammonton.

New Horizons Close to Home

Growing up in Mays Landing with family in Chatsworth, I spent a lot of time in the Pines. As a kid we just called it playing and fishing. As an adult with my own family we did extensive canoe camping on the Mullica River and covered a lot of miles four-wheeling on the sandy roads.

But hiking these woods? This will be a new horizon close to home.

For detailed trail maps and current conditions on all five — and every other South Jersey trail worth knowing — check njhiking.com. It is the most reliable trail guide for this part of the state and the source I used to build this list.