We just want to have some fun...

[KoalaNJ]

Originally Posted by FacultyM

All day: Bike the 29 miles of Historic Batsto Village. Don't forget to look up once in a while, you might spot one of the eagles that live there. When you are done with the bike ride, get some dinner in the Village. Batsto Village Home Page

All day: Go up to High Point State Park and go hiking on part of the Appalachian trail. Have a picnic lunch by the lake.

1/2 a day: Ride down to Sandy Hook and bike the length of it on the bike trail. Turn around at the Fort Hancock station and come back down the trail. You can eat very reasonably while dining at the Gull's Nest and watching the ocean. It's peaceful and pretty but a bit windy up there, so bring a windbreaker. Sandy Hook - Sandy Hook, NJ Official New Jersey Shore site

All Day: Drive down to Chester, NJ and visit the small shops there while looking for something in particular (they have the strangest things there - pig sculptures made out of cork, steel wool lambs, antiques, odd books) and make sure to grab some food at that century-old cafe or what used to be Larison's Turkey Farm (I have no idea what it is now.). Get some homemade ice cream at the ice cream shoppe. I Love Chester

Also, check out places you wouldn't think of like the Newark Museum Newark Museum, the Morris County College Longo planetarium The Longo Planetarium, the bizarre automaton collection at the Morris Museum Morris Museum - Morristown, New Jersey and the submarine in Hackensack at the NJ Naval Museum The New Jersey Naval Museum Hompage. The NJ PNC center had a lot of inexpensive lawn seats for outdoor concert viewing but I cannot recall if they still do that.

I was always a fan of following festivals in different towns. Down the shore, Pt. Pleasant has the Jenkinsons boardwalk, Rockaway has music at the gazebo during the summer weeks, Red Bank has fireworks and Keyport has a festival almost every weekend.

Having said all of that, if you are looking to meet people, drive down to Princeton or New Brunswick (Rutgers). There are lots of people hanging around the college all of the time, rain or shine.

Thank you so much for taking the time to share so much helpful information. While we have already done the planetarium at CCM and follow the exhibits of the Morris Museum (loved the Etruscan exhibit!) I had never heard of Batsoto Villiage before! I knew there had to be quite a few gems like this we were unaware existed! I am also going to do some more investigating on the Naval museum, to see if there are other things to do nearby so we can make a full day of it.

FWIW, Larrison's is no more. There have been several restaurants that have tried to make a go of it at that location since the original closed, but sadly none seem to have been very good.

May I ask how you follow the festivals? I try to look for them in the local papers, (Star Ledger, Daily Record) as well as the local news stations, but it seems I miss most of them.

KoalaNJ

[FacultyM]

So sorry to hear about Larrison's. I loved that place. I am glad to help! I didn't think anyone went to the Etruscan exhibit except me. That was back in the 90's!!!

As for the festivals, I usually find towns that I like and bookmark their web pages. Almost all of them have some kind of announcements/calendar type of thing that will tell you what is coming up. Sometimes, they will send you an email when events are about to happen.

Have a great time exploring.

[lfsr1544]

Koala,

Not to be corny but sometimes the best way to 'get something' is to 'give something'. So why not come up with your own 'pay it forward' type of event? It's free , keeps you busy and nothing better than working for a common good goal.
You can look at great charities that work best with teamwork like 'Habitat for Humanity' or collect food/clothing for your local food pantry. Here's a link to Charity Navigator - America's Largest Charity Evaluator | Home which is an independent non-profit organization that ranks/tracks hundreds of charities around the world. Or setup a local biathlon type of event and give proceeds to charity.