John McPhee wrote a wonderful book about the Pine Barrens. It is surely dated now as it was published in 1968, but he has a way of going for the living "truth" of things that either do not perish, or linger as ghosts.

My personal experience of New Jersey is confined to the rest stops on the turnpike, but if ever I have a chance to actually linger, the Pine Barrens is probably the first region for which I will head.