It's a tiny state forest in comparison to other places in America, especially out west and in New England, but for NJ citizens it is a nice respite from the congested areas of the state. I've been here multiple times whether driving through on my way down the shore, or hiking the Batona Trail, or most recently, camping at the lone campground close to the park HQ. We had campsite #60 which is on the edge of the campground so it's a little more secluded. The best and most secluded spots in my opinion are 66, 59 and 58. The campground has indoor flush toilets and showers, as well as several hand pumped water wells throughout. Each campsite has a picnic table, a fire ring, and a hook to hang trash bags from. Brendan T Byrne State Forest is a small part of the Pinelands which is a U.S. Biosphere Reserve due to its biodiversity and was designated as the country's first National Reserve by Congress in 1978. The Pinelands is a beautiful area of New Jersey and well worth exploring, and this state forest is a great spot to do it, with its many trails, ponds, streams and dirt roads. read more

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This state park is in the Pine Barrens... I've been here many times... It has quite a few trails and Pakim Pond area of the park... It also has RV and travel trailer areas to enjoy... They don't provide electricity, so you'll have to do some boondocking.... But they don't offer showers and toilets within walking distance... They also have a dump station that may or may not be locked... Jersey residents get a discount... read more

We decided to take a walk around some of the trails last week, and it was nice. We went over to Pakim Pond as well, and I thought there was a trail all around the pond, but that was not the case. read more

I have lived in New Jersey my whole life and this was my first hike in the Pine Barrens! My brother and I took the Mount Misery Trail (9.7 mile loop). When we arrived we were the only car in the parking lot on a Friday morning and only saw one person on the trail the entire hike. The trail was very well-maintained, as it was wide in some areas, allowing us to walk next to each other. The trail was mostly clear of branches and tree limbs. We did walk into quite a few spider webs, but this is to be expected on any morning, especially when the trail is quiet. Around mile 8, the trail takes you through old cranberry bog and here the lake was overflowing onto the trail. It had been raining for a few days prior, so this was not surprising. We were able to step on some rocks and logs in order to not get too wet. One of the only downsides to the trail was that it was very flat, so it was more of long nature walk than a hike. There are bathrooms at the start of the trail, which I would recommend using before you begin your hike! Unlike some park bathrooms, these bathrooms have flushable toilets, sinks, and soap, which was very nice to see. Overall, I would recommend a hike/nature walk in this park or on this trail! It was a great escape and well-spent time in nature. read more

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Well maintained and patrolled. The staff is very helpful and familiar with the park. Camping areas are spacious for both tent and RV campers. The cabins are clean and well maintained. Highly recommend. read more

Cool but spooky vibes with a beautiful and big nature trail and some areas of water you might also find! Very quiet, serene atmosphere and good for those who want a quiet day out in nature to themselves too! read more

Nice area for a hike. There are short or long trails. Very flat but scenic. There are some trails that are a little washed out that they tried putting boards down for you but some are still washed out. Found a cool fire tower to climb too. read more

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We went hiking here today, and we enjoyed it. I had driven through the state forest may be a jillion times, but I wasn't aware of how it had trails. So, we finally went. The trails are just not well marked. I don't know why the state park service doesn't do a better job with them. They have free maps available at the office, but the maps are not accurate. They just have all the trails marked as a red color, but there are many that you find along the route that are not marked. We had a lot of fun with the uncertainty, however. It's mostly flat, and the trails are sandy and covered with pine needles. I would say it's moderate difficulty. We enjoyed the fragrance of the cedar bags. There is one area called the Pakim Pond. They had interior bathrooms there. There were also grills and parking. You can park on the other end near the office. We checked out Mount Misery on the other side. Apparently it is an old Methodist camp that can host guests. read more

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Came here specifically for the ADA Accessible Cranberry Trail. Pluses: Peaceful pinewoods setting, only encountered 5 other hikers in 2 hours, and mainly flat trail. Minuses: Tough to push wheelchair over exposed roots and sandy/gravel mix sections. Made it about half way and had to turn around. Pleasant flat hike for able-bodied hikers but just a heads up that the trail is not totally wheelchair accessible. read more

Brendan T Byrne State Forest - Cranberry Trail - Parks Near Me - New Lisbon, New Jersey

This is one of the most remote woodlands of New Jersey. So, it's a little rougher around the edges than a more tourist-friendly park, with the advantage of being way less crowded. It consists of walking trails and driving roadways through the pine forest. As for biking: If you're using a road bike, you're limited to the regular two-lane driving roads, but it is very safe because you'll encounter only a few cars. The Lebanon Loop, which is misleadingly listed as "multi use", requires a mountain bike because part of the loop is dirt & sand. However, as the trail guide suggest, if you don't mind a small part of your loop being on Route 70, you can do a 10.6 mile loop via the main park road and the paved portion of the Lebanon Loop (pictured), suitable for a hybird bike. It is so quiet here. read more

Brendan T Byrne State Forest - Single lane, not all well maintained. - Parks Near Me - New Lisbon, New Jersey

Took the family there one afternoon. Pleasant trip very clean fun. It was closed so couldn't kayak. read more

Brendan T Byrne State Forest - Parks Near Me - New Lisbon, New Jersey

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This was our first visit to the park. Staff at the visitors center were very friendly and willing to answer all our questions. My wife and I decided to take a walk on the shortest trail, 1.1 miles. We found the trails to be sparsely marked with no mile markers to help you to know how far you have walked and how much further to the end of the trail. At times we were not sure if we were still on the trail we wanted or if we had made a wrong turn taking us to a different trail. During our one mile walk we came across over ten trees that had fallen and were blocking the trail. Very disappointed with the maintenance and condition of the trails. Not sure if we will ever come back to this park read more

Brendan T Byrne State Forest - Picture we took to show tree blocking the trail. Again, this is only one tree of more than 10 we encountered on our one mile walk. - Parks Near Me - New Lisbon, New Jersey

beautiful park in the heart of the NJ pine barrens. Staff are super friendly and you can tell they take a lot of pride in their park. Amazing plants and wildlife--can be somewhat buggy, so wear long plants! read more

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This was my first time visiting the Brendan T Byrne Park. There are numerous trails for biking and hiking that I'll look forward to checking out soon! We came across the Cranberry bog and there was the remains of a building, which were visible from the paved trail. It may have been a packing house when this bog was in operation. After researching, it may have been the Reeve's Bogs, which is now abandoned. I also found that there is a historic building, hidden deep in this park. It's known as the Lebanon Glassworks, operated in the 1800s. I'll look forward to finding this in the future, but it seems to be a tough find. All in a, a gorgeous well maintained park! read more

Brendan T Byrne State Forest - Cranberry bog - Parks Near Me - New Lisbon, New Jersey

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came here with my mom's church for a "family retreat". we didn't sleep in the cabins but rather in the tents. there are a LOT of bugs here haha but honestly the camp space wasn't bad at all. there's a place where you can get washed up not too far from the camping area (bring fashlights) and you can park your car right there (so if you really don't want to sleep outside, you can sleep in your car). the space is big and there are picnic tables so you can place your food there and eat. we were able to have a fire pit and play games around the area during the day and night. overall had a great time. just a little hard to find since all the camping grounds are just little divits in the road in the middle of the wood. read more

First time there yesterday... I will definitely be back was beautiful amazing... lots of photos read more

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