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I live next to the Meadowlands, seems like Long Branch and Sandy Hook are good options? How do they compare? I like a less crowded beach without too many children and noise. I don't need any attractions or what not, just a place to relax and swim.
Before I had a car in New Jersey, Long Branch was the first beach I went to, as it's on the train line. I remember I got off the train, asked an elderly woman for directions to the beach, and she replied, "Oh, you don't want to go there. But you should see the new shopping center that just opened down the road..."
Classic. But we did see Long Branch, which had clearly peaked about the time when President Chester Arthur used to swim there (I'm being a bit facetious, as there are nice areas of Long Branch away from the train line).
But my advice would be to drive down to Sandy Hook, where there are few amenities (besides a frequently closed restaurant and some ice cream trucks), but several beaches (including, I believe, an unofficial nude beach). It's "carry in/carry out", and I don't know if there are even lifeguards on duty, but it seems like it's a bit wilder (in the natural, not party animal, sense) than a lot of shore locations.
Before I had a car in New Jersey, Long Branch was the first beach I went to, as it's on the train line. I remember I got off the train, asked an elderly woman for directions to the beach, and she replied, "Oh, you don't want to go there. But you should see the new shopping center that just opened down the road..."
Classic. But we did see Long Branch, which had clearly peaked about the time when President Chester Arthur used to swim there (I'm being a bit facetious, as there are nice areas of Long Branch away from the train line).
But my advice would be to drive down to Sandy Hook, where there are few amenities (besides a frequently closed restaurant and some ice cream trucks), but several beaches (including, I believe, an unofficial nude beach). It's "carry in/carry out", and I don't know if there are even lifeguards on duty, but it seems like it's a bit wilder (in the natural, not party animal, sense) than a lot of shore locations.
yes, i would be driving
i heard that sandy hook bridge can get pretty congested? long branch seems a little closer?
I go to Long Branch. Long Branch is a city of about 40,000 people, and there are different types of areas in Long Branch and several different beaches. At the northern end, you have Seven Presidents Beach, which is a Monmouth County Park. Lots of kids there. Moving down along Ocean Avenue, you have the beach by Pier Village, the beach by the Ocean Place resort (where the palm trees are) and other sections of beach, such as Madison Avenue Beach and others named for the local street. At the southern end of Long Branch, you have the section inexplicably named "West End", which is west of nothing but the Atlantic Ocean. I usually go to West End beach. It's a little shorter this year than it was last year, but it's OK. It's usual more local types hanging out there because there are condos and apartments and no concessions or anything immediately along the beach road there. (There was a "Surf Shack" that sold drinks and food and ice cream that sadly was so damaged by Sandy that it was torn down.) You can walk from West End beach, however, over to the original Windmill for burgers/hot dogs/fries or you can get pizza or tacos or burgers/sandwiches on Brighton Avenue.
Re Sandy Hook--it's a National Park and it gets so crowded on the weekends that it's often full by 10 a.m. You'll see signs on the Parkway proclaiming this. Sandy Hook suffered a LOT of damage from Sandy--it only opened for public access May 1. It was covered with sand. Like Retriever said, pull out a map. Sandy Hook is a...hook, meaning a narrow strip of land that juts out from New Jersey separating the Raritan Bay from the Atlantic Ocean. It's eastern side is the first part of NJ that is on the ocean. Going south from there, the beach towns are Sea Bright, Monmouth Beach, and then Long Branch.
Sandy Hook is exit 117. Long Branch is 105. To get to West End, take Route 36 (that's where you'll end up when you take the exit) but don't keep going straight (36 takes you directly to Seven Presidents). Instead, get off at the exit that says "West Long Branch" and it might say Monmouth University. It's Route 71. Just follow that all the way to Ocean Avenue--it's a couple of miles and you will pass the University, and then make a left when you hit Ocean Avenue. You might get lucky if you're early enough and find a parking space on the streets on the ocean side of Ocean Avenue, but if not, park on one of the side streets on the other side of Ocean and walk the two blocks or so. It doesn't cost anything to park on those side streets. Up closer to Pier Village, parking lots are charging $20 to park for the day.
You didn't get that from what I wrote? They CLOSE Sandy Hook because it gets to full capacity early on the weekends. Plus, you pay by the carload, not the person at Sandy Hook so people go there because it's cheaper.
So, to summarize what I wrote above, yes. Sandy Hook is more crowded than Long Branch, and some beaches in Long Branch are more crowded than other beaches in Long Branch.
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(I'm being a bit facetious, as there are nice areas of Long Branch away from the train line)..jpg)
