Summer Fun in Ocean City, New Jersey

Giant Ferris Wheel on Wonderland Pier at Sunset.  The Boardwalk Journal, a travel magazine for the Jersey Shore, found this photo on this blog post and made it their cover photo for July, 2012.




The shore is about memory.  The shore is about family tradition.  
It is a submerged longing for innocence and simplicity,
for how we once were.  And so we go again and again 
            to places like Ocean City, Asbury Park and Cape May.                                                      Places where we don’t have to grow up.  
Places where we can grow down.

---- National Geographic, August 2004 

I live in the west and when on vacation I crave wilderness and solitude.  So why do I travel over 2000 miles to Ocean City, New Jersey every summer to experience the beach and boardwalk with 150,000 other sun seekers?   For one thing, I can spend time with my parents, two sisters and a brother-in-law.  But especially, over the years, I’ve returned to Ocean City to be with nephews Mark, Bob and Paul—reliving, through their eyes, my own childhood memories of fun and frolic at the Jersey Shore.

The Atlantic ocean provides the backdrop; its steady rhythmic surf muffles screams from roller coaster riders on Wonderland Pier, and absorbs the din of swashbuckler and reggae music blasting from mini-golf courses.

August in Ocean City is a feast for the senses:  the buttery-caramel-vanilla scent wafting from Johnson’s popcorn and Shriver’s salt water taffy; the smooth “ping” of discs gliding over the shuffleboard court; the kaleidoscope view of beach umbrellas;  the clanging bells of bicycles and surreys; the pulsating lights on the giant ferris wheel at night.

Ocean City, NJ has been called America’s greatest family resort.  It’s a place where generations come together to celebrate summer, to experience life.

Interested in creating your own family memories in Ocean City?  Check it out here:  http://www.oceancitychamber.com/

To discover the Jersey Shore’s other beach towns visit this website:  http://www.newjerseyshore.com/

Umbrellas color the beach on a blue-sky day.

Bicycling the boardwalk.

Bob is buried at the beach!

Three generations enjoy bicycle and surrey riding 
at the shore.

Early evening on Ocean City's boardwalk.

The shuffleboard tournament has begun!
(Photo by Paul Lowrie)

Paul, Bob and Mark—ready to cruise the boardwalk.

Mark and friends enjoy the Atlantic surf.

Beach Volleyball near Wonderland Pier.

The sun sets on another day of fun in Ocean City.

Jumping for Joy!