[senior citizen]

"BEACH TO US MEANS A GREAT VACATION"

Who has childhood memories of the first time they saw the Atlantic Ocean???

Who has childhood memories of the first time they went to either the "Jersey Shore" or "New York's beaches"........or any others for that matter? Cape Cod, etc.?

Obviously, midwesterners would not have the same memories as those in the Northeast......or any from the Mid Atlantic states, etc.

Going "down the shore" is a New Jersey phrase we've all known since childhood.

Unfortunately devasted during Hurricane Sandy, it's rebounded via a wonderful effort of all those who love the place.

However, my first memory is of the New York City "beaches" such as Coney Island and Far Rockaway......as those were my own father's childhood memories.

Once we were teenagers with "wheels of our own" to do the one hour drive to the "Jersey shore" that was our Saturday and / or Sunday destination.......as well as that of all of our friends.

So many beaches, too numerous to mention.......but we went to them all. Of course for the "boardwalk" Seaside Heights was the place to go. Too loud now. But, as a teen, it was great.

Once married, we even would rent a home for two weeks each summer, first two weeks in July........and after a few years, would bring our baby daughter, plus invite for the second week some other relatives (parents, siblings) to share the beach house with us. Great memories. My mom and his mom wouldn't have had a vacation otherwise. They shared a bedroom and always complained about each other's snoring.

Once we moved up to Vermont, we had a three hour ride east to Hampton Beach, New Hampshire or Rye Beach, N.H...........and then up the seacoast to all of the MAINE beaches.

Just as we've explored all the Florida beaches..........we've done all of the Maine seacoast from bottom to top.......and then on to the Canadian Maritimes.

The interesting thing about the Maine beaches......it can be 90 degrees on the coast and just drive out to one of the scenic "points" and it's a refreshing 60 degrees, like stepping into a refrigerator........so many memories of all the artists with their easels and paint supplies trying to duplicate the heavenly scenery..........Maine is for artists for sure.

Getting off the Maine Pike ; exploring each and every peninsula which takes forever......is the only way to see the Maine seacoast.

New Brunswick Canada has some great pristine empty beaches as does Prince Edward Island, Canada. Very very pretty.

Massachusetts' Cape Cod, Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket Island were also close to us for autumn vacation weeks............with the kids in tow. Again, wonderful memories along with the ferry rides over......best seafood is found in Maine and Mass.....

So, "beach" to us means a great vacation.

If one looks, they can find the hidden gems..........one just has to get off the "beaten path" and go in search of the true beauty in each state........not artificial beauty, but "nature".

When we began our road trips driving "west" we discovered that the GREAT LAKES BEACHES looked, to us anyway, like the ocean.........Presque Isle State Park is great. Lighthouse and all.

Growing up in New Jersey.........not only the "shore" but the lakes were our weekend destinations..........I guess only natural to gravitate to WATER.

Where we are now.........within 3 to 4 hours we can be to any New England beach, and a few more hours to the "Jersey Shore"..........

Great memories, for sure.

Last year we did our first two week family reunion at the Maine Seacoast with our five grandchildren and their parents/friends who joined them, etc...........what fun in a big modern rental home. Cousins bonded, etc.


This year,2014, there will be six grandchildren. All wonderful kids who add joy to our lives. With everyone's busy schedules at school, work, extra curricular.....it stands to reason that seeing these "kids" is a rare event.......that's what makes the two week family reunion.........plus other holiday times of the year so special.

Old people aren't meant to be totally alone in their old age..........our kids were raised knowing their grandparents as they all moved UP HERE TO VERMONT. But as the old saying goes......you enjoy the grandbabies and then they "go back home".

[EnglishJW]

https://www.flickr.com/photos/jacken...57603909641821

This was pre-Sandy. We still don't have the protective dunes in place (and, honestly, it looks much more impressive without them). The dunes will be built up again beginning this fall. Growing up in NJ, both my wife and I had experiences very similar to yours. There were also many concerts and shows at the shore as well as rides (before all the huge theme parks). Thanks for the memories!

[BarryRX]

I grew up on Long Island, and it seems like Jones Beach (west end 2 and Smith Point Park) were always there. We would go every weekend and often during the week. It seemed like all the radios were tuned to either 77wabc or 1010wins. The water was always so cold it was hard to get into at the beginning of the summer, but the waves for body surfing were great and we would spend hours in the water and come out with blue lips and chattering teeth. Remember, this was before air conditioning was commonplace and going to the beach was the only relief from the heat. Some of my best childhood memories!

[graciegirl]

was our beach in Columbus, Ohio. Had all the same kinda fun and memories and all the same kind of family connections too, Martha.


The first time I saw the ocean I was overwhelmed with it's beauty, but it was not a greater event than the little Columbus girl wading for the first time into Buckeye Lake.

[pooh]

Grew up on the beach, beginning part of Buzzards Bay so salt water is in my blood. Every day in the summer was spent at the beach, just a very, very short walk, 4 houses away. Ocean water was just a part of life.

When I finally got to live near the Pacific, again, nothing out of the ordinary since I had spent so many years around water. What I did notice though, the Pacific was a heck of a lot colder than the Atlantic AND the air at the beach on the left coast didn't smell quite the same as it did on the right coast....

[irishamr]

I was born in the Atlantic City, NJ Hospital and our house was in Ventnor NJ right by the ocean. I recently moved to the Cape area in Florida. Just returning to my roots. There is nothing like the peace and tranquility of it.
Nancy

[Shimpy]

First time I saw the ocean was when I was about 8 years old. I was disappointed................thought it would look bigger than that.

[senior citizen]

Originally Posted by EnglishJW

https://www.flickr.com/photos/jacken...57603909641821

This was pre-Sandy. We still don't have the protective dunes in place (and, honestly, it looks much more impressive without them). The dunes will be built up again beginning this fall. Growing up in NJ, both my wife and I had experiences very similar to yours. There were also many concerts and shows at the shore as well as rides (before all the huge theme parks). Thanks for the memories!

Absolutely wonderful photography.......which brought back so many memories.....of so many places.

The last time we saw the beautiful cherry blossoms illuminated at Branch Brook Park was in 1965, right before our wedding.

The extreme storms that have hit New Jersey most recently truly seem to point to climate change. Lets hope for a calmer road ahead........for all.

Thanks for sharing; you are a talented photographer indeed.

[senior citizen]

Originally Posted by BarryRX

I grew up on Long Island, and it seems like Jones Beach (west end 2 and Smith Point Park) were always there. We would go every weekend and often during the week. It seemed like all the radios were tuned to either 77wabc or 1010wins. The water was always so cold it was hard to get into at the beginning of the summer, but the waves for body surfing were great and we would spend hours in the water and come out with blue lips and chattering teeth. Remember, this was before air conditioning was commonplace and going to the beach was the only relief from the heat. Some of my best childhood memories!

Jones Beach was one of my dad's favorites, as well. He would take us there when we were very young. I forgot to mention it earlier. Thanks for sharing.

[senior citizen]

Originally Posted by Shimpy

First time I saw the ocean was when I was about 8 years old. I was disappointed................thought it would look bigger than that.

I guess it all depends from what vantage point one is seeing the ocean.
In the past few decades we've enjoyed the bold open ocean of the Maine seacoast as seen from places like Schoodic Point or Bar Harbor, where the waves are crashing against the big rocks and boulders. Great place for photographers.

[senior citizen]

Originally Posted by irishamr

I was born in the Atlantic City, NJ Hospital and our house was in Ventnor NJ right by the ocean. I recently moved to the Cape area in Florida. Just returning to my roots. There is nothing like the peace and tranquility of it.
Nancy

When we rented a home on "The Nubble" at York Beach Maine last summer for the two weeks (family reunion with all of the kids and grand kids), we were sitting on Short Sands Beach so that the toddlers could play in the gentle water, when a family from Atlantic City, New Jersey (inland) struck up a conversation. The father told me that even though they were somewhat inland away from the actual beach, their home had damage from Hurricane Sandy.......he was thinking of selling that house which had been in their family farm for such a long time........as the weather was no longer what it used to be plus taxes were rising higher and higher. It was a difficult decision for him and his wife. Their son was encouraging them to move to Florida!!!!

I agree with you re the peace and tranquility of the seashore and the ocean.......

When you say the Cape area, are you referring to Cape Kennedy near Cape Canaveral?? I've heard that Cocoa Beach is one of the flat beaches (never been there as of yet) compared to the rest of them in Brevard County south of the Cape.......most of those have a twelve foot drop down to the beach........but nice stairs and ramps over the dunes and down to the beach. When we lived in that area back in 1973.......it was a flat walk out to the beach......I guess storms have eroded the sand over the years.

However, the nice thing about that coast is that it is not touristy........but has many nice small towns, which just happen to have a beach !! Not to mention the inland waterway. All great for boating.

[EnglishJW]

Originally Posted by senior citizen

Absolutely wonderful photography.......which brought back so many memories.....of so many places.

The last time we saw the beautiful cherry blossoms illuminated at Branch Brook Park was in 1965, right before our wedding.

The extreme storms that have hit New Jersey most recently truly seem to point to climate change. Lets hope for a calmer road ahead........for all.

Thanks for sharing; you are a talented photographer indeed.

Thank you for your very kind words.

[senior citizen]

Originally Posted by EnglishJW

Thank you for your very kind words.

You're very welcome; thanks for capturing some unique shots of N.J.

I believe you mentioned Watchung area. My husband and I have our initials carved inside a heart on a tree at South Mountain Reservation in the Watchung Mountains........we used to hike/walk up there all the time. Wonder if that tree is still there?

We met at age 17, our high school senior class picnic, which was held at the South Mountain Reservation, back in June 1962.

p.s. Strange but true, we actually lived two blocks away from each other, but had never met. Attended different elementary schools; our paths never crossed in high school........until the picnic.

[2BNTV]

My first memory of the Atlantic Ocean, was when the family went to Brooklyn, and I was body surfing with the waves. I was maybe seven years old,, and a wave picked-me up, and dumped me on my head, as I tumbled into the shore. It was my first impression of the ocean's power, and that was only a small wave.

The Jersey Shore and Jones beach was a way of life, for those raised in that area. Always looked forward to the family vacation to Asbury Park beach and boardwalk.

There is nothing like the ocean and salt water for playing/enjoying the sun and water. I remember it always made me hungry while at dinner, at the end of the day.

So sad to see Sandy destroy, most of the shoreline, but it will get back to, what it once, was. A lot of people have their fond memories, of the Atlantic Ocean.

When Muhammed Ali fought in Atlantic City for the frist time and it was his first trip from Louisvile, Kentucky. He was only used to the lakes near his home. When he first saw the ocean, he remarked, "that's the biggest damn lake, I ever seen".

[EnglishJW]

Originally Posted by senior citizen

You're very welcome; thanks for capturing some unique shots of N.J.

I believe you mentioned Watchung area. My husband and I have our initials carved inside a heart on a tree at South Mountain Reservation in the Watchung Mountains........we used to hike/walk up there all the time. Wonder if that tree is still there?

We met at age 17, our high school senior class picnic, which was held at the South Mountain Reservation, back in June 1962.

p.s. Strange but true, we actually lived two blocks away from each other, but had never met. Attended different elementary schools; our paths never crossed in high school........until the picnic.

I graduated from high school in 64 - we will be having our 50th year reunion in September in Atlantic City which has become a very popular spot. Your tree might still be there in the Reservation. Development has been minimal. My wife was a docent for a number of years at the Turtle Back Zoo. It has undergone some nice improvements over the years if you haven't been back there. It is nice to meet you here.

Turtle Back ZooTurtle Back Zoo