Driving Tour of the Jersey Shore (Pt. 1)

(Ft. Dix/McGuire AFB, NJ) Hi 69 Lo 62) – Today can be described in one word: lazy. We basically did nothing productive (besides me working on this blog, that is). So We’ll tell about our exciting day yesterday as we drove up the Jersey Shore. To keep our blog posts at a reasonable length we’ll cover part of our trip today and the rest tomorrow. Today we’ll cover our visit to Asbury Park Boardwalk and the drive up the coast. Tomorrow we’ll cover Sandy Hook and all it has to offer, and the Twin Lights of Navesink. We’re glad we went yesterday when it was sunny and in the 80’s. Today is cloudy, with off and on rain and a high of only around 69.

Ed and Lessie (Gail) arrived at our place around 9:30, and we showed them our rig. They’re looking to buy a New Horizons fifth wheel for their future full time journey. We soon headed out, and on the way across base we saw this large group of soldiers preparing for a mission of some sort.



Love seeing the protectors of our freedom in action! We made our way east on I-195 to Asbury Park, legendary hotbed of rock and roll made famous by Bruce Springsteen and the E-Street Band. We were surprised to find plenty of parking along the boardwalk, so we fed a couple of bucks to the meter and spent a pleasant hour walking the boardwalk in the bright sunshine.



We got a kick out of the fact that they charge you $5.00 to go onto the beach. It’s a nice beach, but that seems a little much.



The Asbury Park Boardwalk was pretty blighted in the recent past. In 2007 it was completely renovated and revived. The main boardwalk stretches about 10 blocks, with the famous Paramount Theater and Convention Hall at the north end.



There was a political rally going on in front of the Convention Hall. The rally was for “family rights.” We won’t make any comments about this, except to say it was not very well attended.



We slipped quietly past the small crowd and went inside the large lobby of the Convention Hall.



There were a few vendors (mostly souvenirs), but overall it was rather quiet. The building is amazingly beautiful, with architectural details from another era.



There was a large billboard with upcoming events.



One thing caught Jim’s eye. This Bruce Springsteen signed guitar was for sale for $7,500. Let’s see, a guitar sitting out in the open, with a hand-written sign. Mmm, we’ll pass.



We exited the building to see what was at the north end of the boardwalk.



It turns out, not much. This is what we figure the whole boardwalk looked like before the 2007 renovation.



It was a nicer view of the Convention Hall from the north side, without the rally.



A little closer view.


Ed and Dee seem amused at Lessie’s “mid-shot” pose.


Jim took all these pictures, so we have to include one shot of him, courtesy of Lessie.


One more shot of the beach, this one from the Convention Hall building looking south. Sure was a beautiful day!



When we travel we always like to ask locals for the best places to eat. We asked a nice lady who was walking by, and she recommended Frank’s Deli, a few blocks away on Main St. Sounded good to us. It was one of those hold-in-wall places that we love so much. And the food was great! Good old fashioned hoagies, with home made rolls and top quality meats and cheeses. The perfect lunch place on the Jersey Shore!



After that wonderful lunch we proceeded north on Ocean Avenue. It was about a 20-mile drive from Asbury Park to Sandy Hook. We passed through many upscale residential areas with beautiful, old, large homes.



And areas with smaller, but still very nice, homes.


But overall, it was the typical beachfront atmosphere you see in any number of beach towns up and down the east coast.



We did see some leftover damage from Hurricane Sandy that ravaged this area a year ago.

That’s enough for today. Come back tomorrow for part two of our driving tour of the Jersey Shore.