Biologists have said that areas where soil changes from sandy to dark, arable soil often offers the best of both worlds for whitetails, especially concerning the nutrition they need to grow large antlers and big bodies.

And that’s what you’ll find at Wharton SF, where the area features the hardwoods one would commonly find in a North Jersey state forest, but also includes large expanses of pines and scrub brush.

In short, Wharton has just about everything a whitetail needs to grow a large body, in addition to a wallhanger rack.

Are all of those deer wandering around Wharton SF sporting hatrack antlers or tipping the scales at extremely heavy weights? Certainly not, any more than any other WMA or SF in New Jersey would offer only record-class deer. But Wharton SF offers more than its share of those trophy-class deer and for hunters, it’s an excellent bet.

As to the deer harvest numbers for Wharton SF, Larry Herrighty, chief of the division’s Bureau of Wildlife Management, said it’s tough to estimate the harvest in one particular section within a specific public land.

“That’s a tough thing to do. We keep what I consider a rather accurate count of deer harvests within each of the state’s DMZs,” Herrighty said. “But to narrow harvest figures down further to a specific area within a particular DMZ is nearly impossible. We just don’t do that unless there is something unusual happening.”

By “something unusual” within a proscribed area, he means -- for instance -- hunters complaining of a lack of deer compared to previous years. Were that to occur, DFW biologists would conduct a deer harvest count within just that particular area, or region.

“That’s the only time we conduct harvest counts that zero in on site-specific regions or areas within a DMZ,” Herrighty said. “Other than that, we rely on the harvest figures derived from the entire DMZ.”

However, he pointed out that there are two additional positives about state forest hunting: “First, let’s address late-season deer hunting. Places like Wharton SF, as well as others, offer prime deer hunting when there’s far less hunting pressure than, say, as during the traditional six-week firearms season. Essentially, only a handful of hunters just about have the run of large tracts like Wharton and other state forests. And the deer are not nearly as spooked.

“In addition -- and unlike most of the state’s WMAs -- some state forests offer camping opportunities.

“We have non-resident hunters who come here to hunt our state forests because, one, there’s a lot of deer available. And two, they can often camp in trailers or tents during the late season.”

Of the 500,000 acres of public land on which deer hunters may tread in the Garden State,

Wharton State Forest comprises a whopping 115,111 acres.

The overall or total harvest data won’t do us much good, considering we are focusing on the late season.

Consequently, let’s look at overall harvest, and then concentrate on only the late-season numbers for Wharton. Last season, hunters downed 1,082 whitetails from Wharton SF. However, that is the total for all seasons. During the late seasons, including permit muzzleloader, permit shotgun and winter bow, the tally was 311 for muzzleloader, 30 for permit shotgun, and four for winter bow -- not a shabby count, by any means!

Wharton SF is easily accessed by U.S. Route 206 as it runs through Burlington County, or by secondary Route 563, due north of the towns of Herman and/or Green Bank.

There is no entrance charge during the winter months, and some campsites are available through mid-December at a nominal cost. For additional information, hunters can call Wharton SF at (609) 268-0024.

BELLEPLAIN STATE FOREST
Belleplain SF, located in Cape May and Cumberland counties, is one tract that shouldn’t be overlooked. That’s especially true if you hail from parts south and don’t particularly relish the drive to Sussex County to do your deer hunting.