Welcome to 2024-25 New Jersey Hunting
Assistant Commissioner's Message
I've been hunting since I was a boy, and every year I feel the same increasing excitement and anticipation as hunting season approaches. With small game season starting in early September, there's little time to shift from summer activities to preparing for the 2024–2025 hunting season. During this “transition period,” my garage is always a mess as I begin to pull out my hunting gear long before I’ve packed away my fishing gear. Fall fishing will again be heating up, but the season also calls for spending afternoons in the woods to get a jump on scouting. Such an exciting time for outdoor adventures in New Jersey!
Many hunters love the familiarity of their regular hunting spots, while others find adventure in scouting new areas and setting up in a fresh location where they just "know" a big buck is hiding. Reading sign and predicting how animals might move through the landscape is one of the most fun parts of the process. Finding that perfect hunting or trapping spot has never been easier with the "New Jersey Wildlife Management Area Explorer." Accessible from your computer or mobile device, this app gets you to where the action is by identifying parking areas, public shooting ranges, boat ramps, and other key features on Wildlife Management Areas. Check out what it has to offer by visiting our website at dep.nj.gov/njfw/maps/. With over 800,000 acres of state-owned public open space available, the licensed hunter and trapper has plenty of area to explore!
In recent years, I've watched the “locavore” movement explode in New Jersey and across the country, as more people prioritize getting food produced close to home. I’m all for locally sourcing food, and I see hunters as the original “locavores.” Since NJDEP Fish & Wildlife was established in 1892, NJ hunters have been balancing their diets with locally and sustainably sourced meat through the harvest of wildlife during regulated hunting seasons.
While hunting gives people the ability to feed their families and creates a unique bond with the natural world, the organization “Hunters Helping the Hungry” takes this a step further by giving hunters the ability to share their harvest with those in need. During the 2023–24 season, the program donated 31,169 pounds of venison (that's 124,676 servings!) to food banks across the state. See Deer Hunting Seasons for details on how you can share your harvest.
I want to also encourage all our seasoned hunters to share the experience with someone who has not yet been hunting. Introducing someone to hunting and the outdoors can be extremely rewarding. The New Jersey Apprentice Hunting License provides an easy entryway for first time hunters by allowing them to participate in supervised hunting before they’ve completed their Hunter Education Course (see License Information). What a great opportunity to get someone started.
The 2024–2025 Hunting Season has a lot to offer our new and experienced hunters. As you go afield, let’s remember that wildlife management in New Jersey is a cooperative effort from everyone. Use this publication as your guide for current hunting and trapping-related information and regulations. I want everyone to get outside with the information necessary to be legal, be safe, and have fun. Good luck this season!
