New Jersey’s most peaceful drives — no traffic, no tolls, all soul
I drive. A lot. At least an hour each way to work and back.
You would think that after two-plus hours behind the wheel every weekday, the last thing I would want to do on a weekend is get back in the car.
You would be wrong. That is where the fun starts.
Back in April, I promised I'd take Route 539 through the Pines to Atlantic City instead of the Expressway. I still haven't. But on a recent trip to a meeting in Toms River, I found another way through, and I haven't stopped thinking about it.
I took Route 38 east until it turned into Route 530 past Route 206. Then Magnolia Road, from Pemberton to Four Mile.
Magnolia Road is the heart of the Pines.
It runs right past the ghost town of Ong's Hat, where the pink-blazed Batona Trail begins. I daydreamed about pulling over and hiking a few miles. I had a meeting to get to. The trail will still be there.
From Four Mile, I took Route 70 up to Route 37 and into Toms River. No tolls. No traffic. Just pines, sand and quiet.
Over the years I have found a handful of roughly 10-mile rural stretches that always deliver that feeling. Fall is when they're at their best.
SEE ALSO: The leaves are already turning — time to plan your NJ foliage trip
Drives that prove New Jersey has more soul than the Parkway
Magnolia Road, Pemberton to Four Mile — the heart of the Pines
The newest addition to my list. Pitch pines close in on both sides, the sand shoulders go soft and white, and you pass Ong's Hat without a single sign telling you a town ever stood there. If you have more time than I did, park at the trailhead and walk.
Route 519 near Milford — shades of green, then gold
If there is a road in New Jersey built for a peaceful Sunday drive, this is it. About 10 miles of gentle curves past farms, open fields and old barns that look like they have been standing guard for generations.
Traffic is light. The road wraps around you like a quilt. In fall, the ridges behind those barns do the decorating.
Route 532, Tabernacle to Chatsworth — the meditation hallway
One of the most soothing Pine Barrens drives you can take without going too deep. Ten miles of straight, calm road lined with pines on both sides.
The scent drifts in even with the windows barely cracked. Cooler fall air only makes it stronger.
Route 559, Mays Landing to Hammonton — my road
This one is personal. Growing up in Mays Landing, this was the Easter Sunday drive.
We would pick up my grandparents and wind through the Pines along the Great Egg Harbor River on the way to my aunt's house in Hammonton for the feast. I can still picture those drives.
A stop at Weymouth Furnace is non-negotiable. It's on Route 559, just north of the Black Horse Pike.
The ironworks there supplied shot and bombs to the U.S. government during the War of 1812 and turned out cast-iron water pipe for decades. The ruins sit right along the Great Egg Harbor River, and most people drive past without knowing what they are missing.
Route 50 south from Mays Landing — cheesecake, ice cream and Strathmere
Start in Mays Landing and head south. Your first reward comes early: Crabby's Suds and Seafood and Merrill's Colonial Inn, where the Italian food is excellent and the bar is exactly what an old Jersey bar should look like.
Keep heading south through Belcoville, a town most New Jersey residents have never heard of. It thrived briefly as a munitions factory town during World War I and then essentially disappeared back into the pines.
Continue through Corbin City and roll into Tuckahoe. Stop for cheesecake or ice cream. You have earned it.
Shortly after Tuckahoe, you will spot a Dollar General rising out of nowhere, somehow both completely out of place and completely inevitable in rural New Jersey. They really do seem to grow out of the ground out here.
Bear left after the Dollar General and follow the road to Strathmere. It's getting beach tags now, which I saw coming. But in fall, the beach is quiet and the crowds are gone. Park, walk out, breathe.
Route 617 near the Delaware Water Gap, Warren County
This one feels like a step back in time. Less traveled, beautifully wooded, with sunlight flickering through the trees at just the right angle.
In fall, that light comes through gold. It's a drive where you forget your phone is buzzing somewhere, and you stop caring.
A few more worth the detour — North and Central Jersey
River Road, Route 29, Lambertville to Frenchtown — the Delaware River corridor
It hugs the Delaware River through some of the most scenic terrain in the state. The river is on your left, the Hunterdon County hills rise to your right, and small river towns appear around every bend.
Lambertville, Stockton, Frenchtown: each one is worth a stop. In fall, those hills turn, and the river doubles the color.
Jockey Hollow Road area, Morris County — the Revolutionary War woods
The roads around Jockey Hollow in Morris County feel far removed from the suburban sprawl that surrounds them. Washington's Continental Army camped here during the brutal winter of 1779-1780.
The woods are dense, the roads are quiet, and the history is everywhere if you know to look for it.
Route 524, Allentown to Cream Ridge — horse country Central Jersey
This stretch through Monmouth and Ocean counties passes horse farms, rolling fields and open landscape that surprises people who think Central Jersey is nothing but Route 9 and strip malls.
Cream Ridge Winery sits right along this corridor if you need a reason to stop.
SEE ALSO: The best South Jersey drives you're not taking — and where to stop on each one
It's about the trip
I had an old boss who used to say it's about the journey, not the destination. I didn't agree with everything he had to say, but he was right about that.
I have appreciated it more as I've gotten older. When you are younger, you just want to get there. But the best stuff is always along the way.
That Ong's Hat trailhead is proof. I drove right past it. Next time, I'm stopping.
The turnpike gets the reputation. These roads have the soul.
This sleepy historic South Jersey town is worth a half-day trip
Gallery Credit: Dennis Malloy
