Franklin Parker Preserve -- Chatsworth Lake Entrance

Great preserve to hike. The trails are well marked and easy to navigate. The parking is fine. I can see why there would be a lot of people parked to hike, but it wasn't anything that made parking difficult. The trails are pretty easy trails to hike, nothing to hard. The over look tower that is at the old cranberry bog was amazing. It is a little buggy, and be sure to check for ticks afterwards. All and all a great place to view nature, and pretty surreal scenery. I can't wait to go back again to see the trails we missed. Accomplished 8 miles and I think we could have walked another 8. Highly recommend this preserve.

I decided to take advantage of the warmer weather and have another adventure at the Franklin Parker Preserve. I have mostly done biking trails so far but after realizing how many trails in South Jersey are for hiking only I decided to give it a try. I consider this to be my first major hike, I did 6 miles in around 3 hours. The red trail at Franklin Parker Preserve is one of South Jersey's most popular hikes. It's not too long, there are several paths to cut it short if needed, and there is a variety of environments and features along the way. I really enjoyed the suspension bridge, the giant Adirondack chairs, the observation deck, and the abandoned train tracks. The highlight of my adventure was proving to myself that a 6 mile hike is doable. I did take one wrong turn towards the end and had to backtrack but luckily I remembered crossing a specific log bridge. I will definitely be back to explore more of the Franklin Parker Preserve and eventually hike the portion of the Batona trail that goes through it. Now I’m ready for more hiking adventures! 🥾🌲🪑 🛤️ #adventuresinsouthjersey #franklinparkerpreserve #njpinebarrens #chatsworthnj

Many trail options in this area of the pine barrens next to Chatsworth. Flat for the most part. I hiked the red trail in November on a picture perfect day and the trail was dry. While expansive and remote, lots of aircraft overhead remind you its not far from civilization. Cool to see the drained bogs and ruins of the old cranberry farming operation. Many breaks in the bog levees as noted on the trail map makes sticking to the published trails best.

This is a great preserve. Was my first time there. We parked across from Chatsworth lake. There are other locations to park. There seems to be enough parking, but it gets pretty crowded. There is an outhouse here, but it needs some maintenance. There is so much hiking. The parking lot could be full but you really don't see many people depending on which direction you go. There are some geocaches in the area that you can get. We hiked 8 miles. It is a bit of a maze, if you stay on the main marked trails you will have no problem. Some trails are in the woods and well maintained. Other trails are just along the old roads. My guess this would be very hot in the summer and very buggy so plan accordingly