Honey Run Road, Hope Township, NJ
Phone: (973) 383-0918
www.njfishandwildlife.com/wmas.htm
NJ Department of Environmental Protection
From Columbia Lake, turn Right on CR 605 South and after 2.1 miles turn Left onto Lime Kiln Road. Proceed 1.8 miles, and at the stop sign turn Right onto Knowlton Road. After 0.2 miles turn Left onto Nightingale Road; use care as this turn comes up quickly. After 1.5 miles turn Right at stop sign onto CR 609 West/Delaware Road. Proceed 0.2 miles and take the first Left onto Honey Run Road. After 0.3 miles the WMA begins. Look for signs, there are several spots on the shoulder of the road to park. Map
There is a small parking area on the left side of the road. During inclement weather parking may not be possible. There are no marked trails, and a compass or GPS unit is recommended. Black bear is common. Ticks are prevalent, take appropriate precautions. Hunting and fishing are allowed; visit website for regulations. To view a map of the entire area visit www.njfishandwildlife.org/pdf/wmamaps/honey_run.pdf.
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| Box Turtle | John Parke |
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| | Given its small size, this 134-acre WMA boasts great diversity. Habitats include field, stream, wetlands, swamp, forests and grasslands, which are considered critical to state threatened or endangered wildlife. Virtually all of the Honey Run WMA is considered prime habitat for turtles, particularly the state threatened wood turtle.
a walk on the unmarked woods path along the south side of the road, skirting the edge of the WMA. Cross the small brook. The forest is easy to navigate, and following the boundary signs will prevent getting lost. Return and cross the street to the old farm road, then turn right to reach the Honey Run. The stream is small here and easy to cross. Proceed over the river to reach open fields near the power lines, where many bird species can be viewed.
Explore the stream-side; look for signs of red fox, coyote, opossum, raccoon and beaver. Navigating the woods is easier when leaves are down and also for viewing resident and visiting birds like Tufted Titmouse, Dark-eyed Junco and White-throated and Song Sparrows. Woodpecker cavities are also easier to see; look for the oblong hole of the Pileated Woodpecker, or listen for the smaller woodpeckers like Downy, Hairy and Red-bellied. Barred and Great Horned Owls are also possibilities; whitewash on the trees is a give-away to their presence.
Wood frogs begin the season with their chorus, sounding very much like ducks. Look for masses of frog eggs in still water. As the season progresses, songs of migrating Neotropical birds will fill the woods. Common Yellowthroat and Yellow, Black-and-white and Yellow-rumped Warblers will be passing through or looking for the perfect spot to set up housekeeping. Baltimore Oriole, Scarlet Tanager, Eastern Kingbird, Wood and Hermit Thrushes and Louisiana Waterthrush are all possibilities.
State-threatened wood turtles, which live along and in wooded stream beds, thrive here. They eat mushrooms and other vegetation, as well as worms and insects, all of which can be found in this habitat. It is imperative that this declining species be observed from a distance and left undisturbed. Take a walk to the field and search for Vesper Sparrow, a rare grasslands bird, which can sometimes be found here.
A walk through the fields may produce numbers of migrant sparrows; although mostly brown in flight, look closely for differences among Song, Swamp, White-throated, Chipping and Field Sparrows. Search field and forest edges for thrushes. Once learned, their call notes are distinctive. Possibilities include Wood and Hermit Thrush as well as Gray-cheeked or Swainson’s. Look for American Kestrel balancing on the telephone wires along the roadside.
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