Chang grew up in Hawaii and there’s really no dazzling him with the beaches on the East coast (and quite possibly neither the west) but according to the photographs of Island Beach State Park, I thought it was worth a try. This beach is a white sanded oasis. A maze of dunes lead you to the beach through blueberry bushes and buzzing bees, my apologies but New Jersey, really?
Island Beach State Park runs 10 miles along New Jersey’s coast sheltering Barnegat Bay. The park is just under two hours from Brooklyn and on NJ’s park website you can source directions and find information about fishing, fires on the beach, and the sea birds and plants that the park is known for. The park has trails too. We didn’t but you could bring your bicycle and bike up and down the strip of street that runs the park. On your drive/ride down the park’s thruway look for little red foxes scampering around in the brush.
A couple notes: This place fills UP on the weekends (we went on a Tuesday), there are public bathing areas with bathrooms and food and all the people that want those things. We decided we wanted to find a secluded spot and drove way down, we didn’t see any other beach-ers but we did see a couple (two) large trucks parked on the beach fishing.
For all those that miss the Jersey shore that you’ve seen in Cops! and from the top of the ferris wheel you can get your fill as soon as you exit the park. We went to the first clam shack we saw and ate an early bird special. We had fresh oysters, a baked potato, and fried scallops. Honestly near the park and even down the strip is pretty charming and I’m just giving Jersey a hard time. There are 60’s style motels, soft-serve ice cream, and mini-golf. I think this would be a special place for an overnight from the city.
Oh and yes, Chang was impressed. He’s deemed it ‘the most beautiful beach’ he’s been to on the mainland. I still haven’t taken him to Cape Cod.
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