Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, Basking Ridge: Photos, Reviews & Location

Created in 1960, this preserve features bird & wildlife viewing, hiking trails & learning programs.

At a glance

#2 of 3 Tourist attractions in Basking Ridge

LocalGuideWorld score: 4.70

2.7 km from the center of Basking Ridge

Rating breakdown

5 ★78%
4 ★16%
3 ★3%
2 ★1%
1 ★1%

32 Pleasant Plains Rd, Basking Ridge, NJ 07920, United States

fws.gov

+1 973-425-1222

Photos of Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge (199)

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Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, Basking Ridge – photo 1

Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, Basking Ridge – photo 2

Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, Basking Ridge – photo 3

Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, Basking Ridge – photo 4

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Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, Basking Ridge – photo 7

Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, Basking Ridge – photo 8

Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, Basking Ridge – photo 9

Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, Basking Ridge – photo 10

Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, Basking Ridge – photo 11

Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, Basking Ridge – photo 12

Quick facts

What is the rating of Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge?: Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge is rated 4.7 out of 5 based on 2,057 reviews.
How does Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge rank in Basking Ridge?: Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge is #2 of 3 Tourist attractions in Basking Ridge by LocalGuideWorld score (rating weighted by number of reviews).
Where is Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge located?: 32 Pleasant Plains Rd, Basking Ridge, NJ 07920, United States — 2.7 km from the center of Basking Ridge.
How can I contact Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge?: Phone: +1 973-425-1222 · Website: fws.gov

Reviews (13)

Zhentian Wei 2024 Jan 29

Great bird watching experience although it is a tough winter day. Would've missed the red tailed hawk if not reminded by the refuge staff. Beautiful creature indeed. I would say the area close to the overlook has more active species. Also saw some hooded mergansers in the lake but they are too far to have a good picture of.

Brian 2023 Dec 26

Not the most dog friendly destination… and for good reason. I hoped for more opportunities to walk away from the road, but this area is a refuge for wildlife, so don’t expect it to cater to humans. Pit toilets at the entrance only and a gravel road.

This place was packed with people on Christmas Day. Perhaps everyone got new binoculars and they wanted to try them out, but I wasn’t expecting the crowds.

Steve Silberman 2023 Oct 28

Nice tranquil shady paths well marked within swampy area including boardwalk on some paths. Several other choices of easy walking paths as well. Beautiful photos to be had. Become a member and go two times, or get the discount at the store and it is well worth it! You don’t have to join). Go to Wilderness Observation Center to talk to very helpful staff.

Dilip Tiwari 2023 Oct 22

It's a wonderful place where nature is nicely preserved. Place is also habitat to some of wildlife, we saw snake, deer and lot of different birds. We came to see Fall 🍁 colors here and it was very good. Along with red, green, yellow, brown leaves it has leaveless white trees which gave wonderful 💯😊 views. Park 🏞️ has lot of walking and hiking 🥾 trails. It has a visitor center where you can get all information, map, donation info etc here. They also have free magnifying 🔍 devices installed in various Lookup places to see various birds, insects and animals. Washrooms are present at regular places however they don't have water 💦 taps. Car 🚗 and vehicle under 5 ton are allowed to go inside 💠 the park. Parking 🅿️ spots are present in most of park areas. See pics and videos for more details. Thanks 👍😊

Malcolm Phillips 2023 Sep 02

I love the experience, just what I needed to get away from it all, nice walks, friendly, staff, interesting things in the gift shop

Abhishek Bhat 2023 Aug 23

Nice place for a walk while looking at beautiful trees and wildlife around you. You might spot some rare turtles here.

Jessica strickland 2023 Aug 14

Definitely bring bug spray lol this place is large there are different areas different locations for different things. So come early be prepared and go to the visitors center first to grab a map. Beware of rattlesnakes! I encountered one immediately, although it slithered away quickly and rattled in defense they are out there! It is beautiful 😍 but come prepared and with a backpack 🎒 with water as well to stay hydrated make it an adventurous day! I enjoyed it with my boys!

L R 2023 Jun 25

Educational building with friendly staff. Air conditioner is strong and refreshing after walking in a hot humid day like today. Fully functioning bathroom inside.

Scott Klein 2023 May 31

Great place to find your Zen. Has multitude of zones, if you want the sun or the shade. Had forts so you can look out onto nature without being noticed and decks to be able to sit and admire the big birds up above. It was ridiculously clean, don t think I even saw one piece of garbage on the ground. At the time I saw a bald eagle flying up above, so that made my day. Had no back benches to sit if you wanted. It's quit enough to bring a book and read. Everyone there was respectful and quit. Just a great place to go to escape from reality.

Somasundara Hanasoge 2023 May 29

A great place to know about wildlife of America. What is more interesting is the walking trail in the park. It is absolutely fantastic.

George Abrantes 2023 Apr 11

Nice quiet place to walk on wooden boardwalk paths. Bugs not an issue in early April will get bad later in the spring. Paths are level and not to long. Bathrooms are available.

Adati Tarfa 2023 Mar 06

Love this place and I bet it looks awesome in the spring! There is a little walking involved and not much of a wildlife perhaps due to the cold? There were a lot of birds. Not swampy due to the time of the year. Will say if you want to visit with kids and make them excited about animals or feed their curiosity a zoo may be easier to see but try coming to the swamp in spring or summer, there will be plenty to see then.

Gregory N 2023 Feb 05

Beautiful and peaceful! Winter was a good time to visit, the ground was frozen so very little mud to deal with. I was fine with regular hiking boots.

The ivory and yellow trails were a bit neglected. Both had thorns growing into the path in a few areas and I had to clear a few tree branches blocking the path. In general, the trail markers were few and far between for me. I hiked for about 2 hours and I must have walked off the trail unknowingly about a dozen times. It was fine, just a little annoying to have to back track to the last trail marker.