We saw one last summer on the side of the parkway by the Manahawkin exit. We also saw one in New Gretna right off of rt 9. People in our campground say that there are bears in Lower Bank too.
Believe it or not, from my perspective those places are now North Jersey (used to be South Jersey for me, too).
Basically, South Jersey now is anyplace within metropolitan Philly and south. North Jersey is anyplace within commuting distance from NY. Central Jersey is basically a cultural extension of North Jersey that lies south of the Raritan, yet north of Bordentown. I live in Lawrenceville, and we always say we are in CENTRAL Jersey, NEVER South Jersey.