SANDY HOOK
NEW JERSEY
Somewhere in the mid seventies, probably in 1974 a middle income family, for that time, living in central New Jersey in a little town called Stanton was enjoying a well deserved weekend of rest. The mother worked locally, the kids went to local schools, and the father commuted to that great city on the hill to the east two hours away.
It was a Saturday in August with temperatures in the nineties and approaching the century mark and as most husbands did on week ends he was mowing his acre and half lawn. His the son was manning the trimmer. The wife and daughter gardening and all sweating profusely. Oh, excuse me women didn't sweat back then. They were all living just above their means but not really realizing it yet and enjoying a fairly decent living for their time.
As soon as the lawn was finished the husband stalked into the house looking for an cool drink and drew his family to him.........
"I've had it, tomorrow we go to the beach!"
Instant ecstasy from the kids
"Oh great" from the wife...."Nothing but work for me and road rage from you"
"We'll get up really early, beat the traffic, get a decent parking spot and a good spot on the beach and spend the day in family bliss.........it'll be fun" We'll take Rt. 22 to 287 to the Parkway to Rt. 36 to the Highlands and then Sandy Hook. Hour and half tops.
Fast forward.
Early to husbands is before dawn, to wives is after 10:00am. Trust me!
It's 1:00pm before our adventurers go through the toll gates at the beach at the Highlands and of course all parking lots are full all the way to the end of the spit of land called Sandy Hook. Bay on the left as you go north on the only road and ocean on the right. The road splits almost at the end of the hook and there is an old fort out there. By the time the family reaches the split in the road tempers are ripe and right up there with the ambient temperature outside, IE approaching a hundred in the shade.
There is a couple of places to park at the split in the road, a couple of other cars there already and a space. A SPACE. First complaint from the wife, we'll get stuck there. From the kids, girl 14 boy 9, we have to walk to the beach? You can spit across Sandy Hook for God's sake!
The now tourists, WALK to the beach. About 80 yards and there is no one on it. What a find. And in New Jersey at that. Unheard of and all my Jersey buds know what I am talking about. You got to go down below LBI to find that...wow! Guess what.
Wife says.."We have to go up there where all those people are, I forgot to bring anything to drink"
Whaaaaaaaaaaahooo! About a quarter mile.
So with beach chairs over shoulders, coolers in hand, kids in tow, off they trudge. First thing they see is a couple of people surf fishing. Nothing strange about that except that the man has no swimsuit on. OK, they are some way away from everyone else and he hustles to put his little swimmy on quickly....not big deal. But then two naked people holding hands come strolling past and reality sets in.
The wife is wide eyed, daughter mortified, son in seventh heaven and husband just remembers that there is a nude beach on Sandy Hook and he has just stumbled upon it.
True story!
Oh and the oldest lighthouse in the country is on Sandy Hook too.
SANDY HOOK LIGHTHOUSE
Atlantic Ocean and Raritan Bay
Gateway National Recreation Area, Sandy Hook NJ
The oldest operating light tower in the United States, Sandy Hook Lighthouse has been in operation since 1764. The tower is 103 feet high with a diameter at the base of 29 feet and 15 feet at the top respectively. A third order Fresnel lens was installed in 1856 and is still in use today, flinging a white non-blinking light up to 19 miles at sea on a clear night.
British loyalists used this light as a base for raids on the countryside during the Revolutionary war. And in WW II, the light was turned off to protect New York Harbor. Located on National Park Service property it is within the confines of Fort Hancock at the north end of Sandy Hook.
http://www.lighthousefriends.com/light.asp?ID=378
NEW JERSEY
Somewhere in the mid seventies, probably in 1974 a middle income family, for that time, living in central New Jersey in a little town called Stanton was enjoying a well deserved weekend of rest. The mother worked locally, the kids went to local schools, and the father commuted to that great city on the hill to the east two hours away.
It was a Saturday in August with temperatures in the nineties and approaching the century mark and as most husbands did on week ends he was mowing his acre and half lawn. His the son was manning the trimmer. The wife and daughter gardening and all sweating profusely. Oh, excuse me women didn't sweat back then. They were all living just above their means but not really realizing it yet and enjoying a fairly decent living for their time.
As soon as the lawn was finished the husband stalked into the house looking for an cool drink and drew his family to him.........
"I've had it, tomorrow we go to the beach!"
Instant ecstasy from the kids
"Oh great" from the wife...."Nothing but work for me and road rage from you"
"We'll get up really early, beat the traffic, get a decent parking spot and a good spot on the beach and spend the day in family bliss.........it'll be fun" We'll take Rt. 22 to 287 to the Parkway to Rt. 36 to the Highlands and then Sandy Hook. Hour and half tops.
Fast forward.
Early to husbands is before dawn, to wives is after 10:00am. Trust me!
It's 1:00pm before our adventurers go through the toll gates at the beach at the Highlands and of course all parking lots are full all the way to the end of the spit of land called Sandy Hook. Bay on the left as you go north on the only road and ocean on the right. The road splits almost at the end of the hook and there is an old fort out there. By the time the family reaches the split in the road tempers are ripe and right up there with the ambient temperature outside, IE approaching a hundred in the shade.
There is a couple of places to park at the split in the road, a couple of other cars there already and a space. A SPACE. First complaint from the wife, we'll get stuck there. From the kids, girl 14 boy 9, we have to walk to the beach? You can spit across Sandy Hook for God's sake!
The now tourists, WALK to the beach. About 80 yards and there is no one on it. What a find. And in New Jersey at that. Unheard of and all my Jersey buds know what I am talking about. You got to go down below LBI to find that...wow! Guess what.
Wife says.."We have to go up there where all those people are, I forgot to bring anything to drink"
Whaaaaaaaaaaahooo! About a quarter mile.
So with beach chairs over shoulders, coolers in hand, kids in tow, off they trudge. First thing they see is a couple of people surf fishing. Nothing strange about that except that the man has no swimsuit on. OK, they are some way away from everyone else and he hustles to put his little swimmy on quickly....not big deal. But then two naked people holding hands come strolling past and reality sets in.
The wife is wide eyed, daughter mortified, son in seventh heaven and husband just remembers that there is a nude beach on Sandy Hook and he has just stumbled upon it.
True story!
Oh and the oldest lighthouse in the country is on Sandy Hook too.
SANDY HOOK LIGHTHOUSE
Atlantic Ocean and Raritan Bay
Gateway National Recreation Area, Sandy Hook NJ
The oldest operating light tower in the United States, Sandy Hook Lighthouse has been in operation since 1764. The tower is 103 feet high with a diameter at the base of 29 feet and 15 feet at the top respectively. A third order Fresnel lens was installed in 1856 and is still in use today, flinging a white non-blinking light up to 19 miles at sea on a clear night.
British loyalists used this light as a base for raids on the countryside during the Revolutionary war. And in WW II, the light was turned off to protect New York Harbor. Located on National Park Service property it is within the confines of Fort Hancock at the north end of Sandy Hook.
http://www.lighthousefriends.com/light.asp?ID=378
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