Abstract study of the Superman ride

Six Flags is aiming to be the king of the hill, top of the heap–of amusements–right here in New Jersey, New Jersey, with its Great Adventure park, and is pulling out all the stops to make that happen. Frank Sinatra references aside, this adrenaline wonderland has been a staple of steel, screams and soda pop for locals and out-of-state thrill seekers since 1974 (it was privately owned until 1977). Like its many stomach-churning rides, the park has had its ups and downs, including the nadir of a horrific haunted house fire in 1984 that killed 8 teenagers. The park survived that PR disaster and thrives today (the haunted house did not); it is now the largest amusement complex in the US with the merger of its 160 acre theme park and 350 acre wild safari in 2013.

Great Adventure is just one of eighteen Six Flags properties in North America. Not as sugar-coated as its Disney competitors, Six Flags has linked itself in recent years with Warner Brothers for an edgier experience, including soaring superhero-themed rides and a (tamer) Looney Toon town for the kids.  Over the years, so many fun rides have come and gone at Great Adventure, it is difficult to keep track, and it is not uncommon to hear people GenX and older reminiscing about Lightnin’ Loops, The Great American Scream Machine, Viper and Shockwave, all of which were dismantled to make room for bigger and better attractions. Purists, however, can still ride the original Log Flume, Runaway Train and the park’s first major coaster, Rolling Thunder (warning: rickety and rough!).

Nitro–impressive by any standard

Let’s be clear: Roller coaster fans will not be disappointed at Great Adventure. At least eight intense specimens snake through the landscape, each one with its own exhilarating charm. Of particular mention-worthiness are two non-inverting traditionalists: Nitro, a smooth steel ride that puts riders through many paces from its monstrous 215-foot first drop, unexpected mid-ride screeching halt, and 540 degree helix to its final frenetic return, making it easy to understand why it perennially ranks #3 on best-of lists; and El Toro, a modern wooden monolith that ascends to 176 feet, reaches speeds of 70 mph (highest and fastest of the world’s wooden roller coasters) and offers more air time than the Apollo missions as it camel-backs home. We really had to muster some gumption to get on these two rides, but it was well worth it.

For anyone worth their coaster-riding salt, though, Kingda-Ka is the absolute, non-negotiable, must-go-on fear-inducer. Take it from us and don’t listen to naysayers who complain it is too simplistic. This ride is one of the wildest sucker punches we’ve had in our lives.

The fearsome silhouette of Kingda-Ka

Unlike the other coasters that click nerve-wrackingly up huge hills to get their momentum, this journey starts with a simple horizontal glide that belies the experience to come. The small train moves into position and sits idle for what seems like an interminable time length, then the brakes hiss and yet more seconds elapse. Just when you think something has gone wrong, the hydraulic launch (the very same used to send air craft carrier jets on their way) kicks into high gear, hurling you wildly forward from 0-128 mph in 3.5 seconds. Sky, land, wind, steel and fear meld equally as you twist over a single, enormous, 456-foot hump, and are deposited nonchalantly back at the depot only 28 seconds later. Your hair and mind equally blown, you can say you’ve survived the world’s tallest (and second fastest) roller coaster, if your pallor and frizz don’t give it away without you saying a word.

Juxtaposition of signs: Grape Adventure wine and High Voltage Danger

There are more than 50 rides at Great Adventure, there’s a wild safari drive-through (on park trolleys and no longer open to private cars) and Hurricane Harbor next door (separate admission for this huge water park). Every October, the site transforms for Frightfest–the main fountain turns to blood, ghouls walk everywhere, and various terror trails offer up plenty of scares (for an extra fee). In November, after the park closes to regular guests, we attended Grape Adventure, featuring wines of New Jersey vineyards (hint: stick with fruit wines and reds) and a demonstration of some of the more accessible safari wildlife. Truly something to be had for everyone at this New Jersey amusement institution.

The old flour mill, seen from across Lake Carnegie

Kingston (pop. 1200) is a little village-y town that extends around a section of Route 27 north of Princeton. The main street features some antique stores, an equestrian tack shop, professional services offices and a strangely high density of quality restaurants: Eno Terra, Osteria Procaccini and Main Street Cafe to name three heavy hitters. One possible explanation for the plethora of fine food? Tradition from when Washington Slept (& Ate & Destroyed Bridges) Here, while esconced in his Rockingham estate on Laurel Avenue. Well, currently on Laurel Avenue, as the house has been moved several times to make way for the ever-expanding Trap Rock Quarry.

In any case, GW’s house and the restaurants are for other posts… For now our focus is the town’s branch of the Delaware and Raritan Canal State Park, accessible next to the Eno Terra restaurant just off Route 27. This mostly straight and flat trail, known as the tow path from its days as a working waterway, runs next to the canal itself and is a favorite for joggers and cyclists.

View from the flour mill

A short walk up the sandy path brings you past a quaint old flour mill to the adjacent Lake Carnegie, a man-made reservoir courtesy of, you guessed it, gazillionaire Andrew Carnegie who christened it eponymously in 1906. It is home to Princeton University’s rowing team and featured on the opening credits of the TV show House.

Canal offshoot with tree obstacle

Happy greenery along the tow path

The views are lovely, and the walking easy and pleasant. We saw canoers, hikers, geese and dragonflies all in states of quiet contentment in the sunshine. By foot or by canoe, you can see turtles, fish and other wildlife–even the tell-tale gnawed trees of beavers. Intrepid sorts can traverse all the way to Trenton, New Brunswick or Frenchtown on this lengthy trail! A nice way to get some exercise, fresh air and an infusion of nature and history. Oh, and a good meal too.

The glorious Battleship New Jersey

You just don’t mess with Texas New Jersey. Nowhere is this more evident than in Camden, not because the crime-ridden city is one of the most dangerous in the country, with 40% of the population below the poverty level and a police force that was entirely disbanded in August 2012, but rather because of a kickass hulk of steel floating in the Delaware known as BB62, aka Battleship New Jersey.

Life preserver

Built at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard, and launched December 7, 1942–just a year after the Pearl Harbor Attack–the USS New Jersey saw tours of duty in World War II, Korea and Vietnam, and was visited personally by President Ronald Regan before being finally decommissioned in 1991. She spent some time hanging around in Long Beach, California, and Washington State for “modernization” and was then brought to Philadelphia for restoration as a museum in 1999.  The ship was positioned in the Camden Waterfront and opened for tours in 2001.

Monument to Iwo Jima battle star

Just as New Jersey goes all-in in most things, so as well does its namesake battleship: with a total of Nineteen Battle and Campaign Stars, the USS New Jersey is America’s most decorated battleship and surviving warship.

A labyrinthian set of side roadways leads to the ship–in fact we are not quite sure we even followed the correct way, and ended up parking in what may have been an employee-only area.  But hey, it worked and no parking tickets were waiting when we came back. We got our entrance passes ($19.75 each, as the guided version is a must) and waited for a small group to form for the next tour, taking the opportunity to futilely attempt a full-body shot of the warship.

Battle stars and tours of duty

Our fun guide

Our guide was a spunky veteran with tons of colorful stories and an abundance of knowledge.  We walked along the pier, which features monuments to all of the ship’s campaigns and battle stars, and entered the main deck via a large stairwell.  From then began a fascinating foray into the physical and historical depths of BB62.  We learned about:  the giant guns and how they were operated, the missile systems, the enormous chains, the hierarchy of sailors, the ship’s structure, how to navigate the maze of staterooms, sleeping areas and corridors, and much more.

Which way to the exhibits?

A cozy coffin…er…bunk

The lengthy tour was fascinating, it was easy to imagine the drama and excitement of being on a working warship, and there was nothing our guide didn’t know. One quickly learned lesson was that it pays to have rank when it comes to food service and sleeping quarters.  Still, we tried out one of the tiny bunks for the rank-and-file sailors and were surprised at how manageable the tiny space was…at least for 30 seconds.

We sat in gunnery chairs, stood in the missile hull, peeped through periscopes, and helmed the control room and much more before being released to the self-guided exhibit section towards the back of the ship. It featured historical items, scene recreations and various curiosities and was a quick walk-through. We exited to stormy skies and a fierce looking helicopter on the rear deck, thoroughly awe-struck by our experience of the previous 3 hours.

Gray steel and storm clouds

The Battleship New Jersey is a nonprofit entity, always looking for help with funding (they need to restore the wooden deck among many other projects) and volunteers. It is a unique location for special events of any kind, offers sleepovers for scout troops and other youth organizations, and frequently has special fundraising outreaches like golf tournaments, fun runs and the like. The best way to start supporting BB62 though is to take a tour–we highly recommend it.  Here are some additional photos:

Every naval vessel has a letter and number designation based on when it was constructed in the chain of naval vessels…USS New Jersey is BB62, and proudly displays this in huge numbers on its hull

The enormous guns

Snake (flag) on a ship

Old missiles

Doors to infinity

Bridge leading into alien territory–Pennsylvania

Signs of life outside the NJ borders: Philadelphia

A spectacular sunset and a slice of small town America right here in a New York suburb

As fairs go in New Jersey, Middlesex County’s is one of the best. Like clockwork every first week of August, the fairgrounds site in East Brunswick populates with enough rickety rides, “whack various animals” arcade games and greasy food vendors to satisfy even a Midwesterner. We drove over early in the week, while the vegetable displays were still fresh, the grounds were pristine and the food plentiful.  As an extra bonus, we were treated to a blazing sunset of pinks, purples and oranges as the backdrop to the whirling lights and pleasant buzz of the crowd.

The smoking Peanut Man nonchalantly watches over his tasty little goldmine

We were gleeful to see the return of the Peanut Man, a wiry and somewhat dour vendor of roasted legumes whose schedule in some years has precluded his attendance at the event. He sells, hands down, the most delicious peanuts we have ever had, handed over still warm from the barrels in brown paper bags. Some of us have been known to pay admission to the fair just to retrieve a bag of these treasures and scurry away like a squirrel in October.

New Jersey-grown eggplants spill from a rustic bucket

There were lots of nice animals, including donkeys, ducks, prizewinning rabbits, guinea pigs, chickens, cows, sheep, horses and goats.  The farmer’s exhibit featured a baby pig that had everyone oohing and ahhing at its cuteness as it snuffled around in the hay. “Jersey Fresh” stickers were abundant, not only at the food kiosks, but at the vegetable and fruit stand on the main corner of the agricultural area, where for a few dollars you pick up some local produce to bring home.

The dining, well, forget your diet and just enjoy. Fried everything can be had, as well as Mexican specialties, pizza, potatoes of every cut and preparation, meat skewers, cheese steaks, ice cream, frozen cheesecake and shaved ices. We opted for the perennially fantastic grilled corn-on-the-cob, basted with melted butter and handed over with the leaves and husk as its handle, as well as Greek gyro and falafel that were quite good. We haven’t even scratched the surface describing the other eats that were available.

Even in NJ they usually don’t get this big

As usual, an extensive tractor collection was on display, as well as local artwork, canned goods and yarn crafts.  The agriculture department sponsored an arresting display detailing the dangers of mosquitoes and how to eliminate standing-water breeding grounds from yards and patios. The nearby dog training outfit gave agility demonstrations with pooches of varying capabilities and interest–almost always good for at least two laughs–and there was also a glitzy acrobatic act and adorable, if mildly disturbing, pig races.

Just one of many clanking rides

There were plenty of midway-type games, spinning wheels and opportunities to win ridiculous stuffed animals, as well as an assortment of spinning, flailing and teetering rides that looked thoroughly nauseating but which fair-goers seemed to love. For non-participants, they make a wonderfully exhilarating setting within which to eat popcorn and lick ice cream cones.

In all, the Middlesex County Fair is a genuinely sweet stop for families, couples, and people seeking really great peanuts. Recommended for yearly attendance.

We’ll see you next year at the Middlesex County Fair

The giant horseshoe crab resting on its temporary barge

Few places in the world have the population of giant horseshoe crabs that New Jersey does–it is a mecca for the ancient critters, who like our state’s sandy shores for breeding, feeding and happy daily living. However, now a truly giant horseshoe crab–47 feet long to be exact–has moved in to the Brielle/Mantaloking area.

The $96,000, 25,000 pound concrete sculpture, designed and constructed by Point Pleasant artist and SCUBA instructor Christopher Wojcik, in partnership with the Blue Ocean Institute, is temporarily situated on a barge in a Brielle marina. We visited the giant crab while it was still above water and it was a sight to behold.  No crowds, little fanfare, just a 12+ ton crab on a boat, and super cool.

The concrete gaze of the giant crab sculpture

As part of a program called Art as Reef, it was due to be sunk three miles off the shores of Mantaloking on July 25 but was delayed due to weather and still awaiting deployment as of this writing.  The crab, which will hold the Guinness World Record as the largest underwater sculpture in the world, will serve as an artificial reef for more than 150 species of marine life. Another feather in the New Jersey cap!

The Walnford Grist Mill would make an excellent conversion to an apartment

In 1734, the site of the Walnford Estate was a working gristmill.  A Philadelphia Quaker named Richard Waln saw an ad for the property in a 1772 newspaper, and was compelled to buy its grist mill, saw mill, fulling mill, blacksmith and cooper’s shops, a large 2-family brick house, five tenant houses, farm buildings, 100 plowed acres and two orchards. He renamed it Walnford, constructed an elegant home and moved in with his wife Elizabeth and children in 1773.

The site saw many changes over the ensuing years: Son Nicholas Waln and his bride Sarah Ridgeway Waln took charge of Walnford in 1799.  The property grew to 1300 acres and and a 50-person village. Nicholas died, and the two Sarahs—wife and daughter—maintained Walnford as agriculture and milling production moved
west. They sold off some of the acreage and focused on redesigning the home, adding a post office, rebuilding the mill after a disastrous fire in 1872, and adding the current carriage house and cow barn.

Path leading from the main house at Walnford

The property stayed in the Waln family and was transformed into a quiet Colonial Revival estate until it was sold after 200 years of occupancy to Edward and Joanne Mullen who lived in the home and ultimately donated it to the Monmouth County Park System in 1985.

We toured the main house, learning interesting details such as the nature of the original flooring, paintings of the residents, operation of the old-fashioned kitchen, the sleeping quarters and arrangements, and eyeing the original period antiques.  We also walked through the carriage house and stables (“some” of us are apparently 14 hands tall), and visited the grist mill, which, we determined would make one cool apartment in modern day.

An antique car installment was on display, but we were too late to see anything of consequence and focused instead on the free tour, friendly guide and serene grounds (that we wish we owned). The park system holds programming on site–ice cream making and eating, tea parties, educational seminars etc.–and there are fully usable picnic tables on the grounds.

If only we’d known the history, we might have napped right here on the bridge

There used to be a load of covered bridges in NJ, but now there’s only one left–in Delaware Township.  It is pretty cute.

It is called Green Sergeant’s Covered Bridge, and it has quite a history.  In the days of horse and carriage, drunks from the local tavern would stop their horses right in the wood structure, thinking they were home, and go to sleep.  Now it welcomes motorists and cyclists traveling westbound over Wickecheoke Creek on Rosemont Ringoes Road near Stockton (a regular concrete and stone bridge accommodates eastbounders).

The bridge, named after local mill operator Richard Green Sergeant, was erected in 1872 during the administration of Ulysses S. Grant, and totally rebuilt in 1961 using its original materials. Important note:  the pronunciation of the bridge name is “sir-gent” not “sar-gent.”  Locals will laugh you out of town if you get it wrong.

The Green “Sir-Gent” bridge and its concrete counterpart

We exclaimed with glee when we finally came upon this bridge, since we weren’t sure exactly where to find it.  After driving over the 84-foot covered span, we pulled to the side to take photos, read the historical plaque and, ok, swipe some rocks for the garden from the dry streambed (shh).

Sergeant Bridge Plaque

As the lone remaining of its kind in the state, this bridge is a non-negotiable stop for all Newjerseyologists.

The antique-looking sign at Rambo’s Country Store

Andy Griffith may be gone, but the spirit of a bygone era lives on at Rambo’s Country Store in Califon. It is, no doubt, an odd stop for a group that is 2/3 vegetarian, as its main claim to popularity is as a meat counter. However, even the more herbivorean of us enjoyed a trip to a different time at this unusual find.  Touted as “not a convenience store,” the store showcases meats, deli, homemade dinner specialties (chicken pot pies are a mainstay and the store says they sell 60 per week!), and grocery items in a old-fashioned general store setting.

The store was built as one of the town’s three original general stores, by Abraham Philhower in 1888, and it has been in continuous operation ever since.  It was sold to the Apgar family, who owned it for almost 50 years, and then taken over by the Rambo family who ran it for another 50 years (the butcher shop section was added during this time by Leonard Rambo, Jr.).

The front window at Rambo’s–meat-o-rama

The store is now owned by Donald Freibergs, who was born and raised in Califon, and worked stocking Rambo’s vegetables shelves before and after school when he was only 10 years old.  He and his wife, Marie, bought the shop in 1998 and work together there as a family with their children Margaret and Andrew. The pot-bellied stove, 1911 hand-crank cash register, counters and wooden floors are all original. Leonard Rambo, the former owner, still comes in twice a week to help out, stuffing sausages and helping out with the meat deliveries.

Not the only Bentley in Califon…

We partook in a sandwich, chips and some diet sodas (resisting the temptation for an ice cream cone), and sweated old-fashioned summer style on the store’s rustic porch. Other customers (including someone also with a dog named Bentley) were going in and out as we sat.  It was good to see an old mom-and-pop shop thriving in the middle of our usually modern state.

Paranormal Books & Curiosities by night…woooooo!

Along the main drag in Asbury Park is a one-of-a-kind venue called Paranormal Books and Curiosities, a self-proclaimed “experience boutique.”  This combination bookstore/museum/seance parlor is a quirky stop even by Asbury Park standards.  The bookstore proffers a huge selection of paranormal titles and local lore as well as paranormal themed T-shirts and gift items (think Edgar Allan Poe bobbleheads, anatomical drawings of the Jersey Devil, zombie statuary, ghost hunting paraphernalia and so forth), and offsite ghost hunting services for those being haunted by a pesky relative or leftover resident spirit.  The museum housed next door contains oddities like an Abraham Lincoln death mask, Jersey Devil artifacts, an alien under glass, videos of ghost encounters, explanatory panels about Haitian zombification, werewolf/vampire repellants, relics from the ill-fated Castle Morro ship and the like.  There is a charge for admission to the museum–$5 to enter the museum, $13 for combination museum entry and ghost walk tour.

We opted for the combination ticket, toured the museum (which packs quite a bit into a small space) and then headed off on the Ghosts and Legends Tour of  downtown. Our spunky guide in shorts and Converse All Stars with a candle lantern was part of the ghost hunting crew and full of colorful stories about otherworldly encounters past and present.  Among the tales were: screams of a drowning woman (a prostitute, natch) in the lake who sparks on occasion local residents to call 911, all for naught; the spirit of a little kidnapped girl in the boarding house-turned-pub who has run many a burly bouncer from the premises; residual visitors from the Castle Morro disaster; the Lenape Native American who walks through the intersection on Cookman Avenue near JFK Park; and more. There’s also a boardwalk tour, but we only had time for one foray that night.

Although we didn’t have any supernatural encounters of our own (aside from the gorgeous moon that was out that night and more than once arrested our attention), the tour was lively and entertaining–well worth the $13.  Recommended!