Barnaget Bay to Manasquan Inlet, NJ

From Barnaget Bay, we had another day on the New Jersey ICW. Fortunately, this day was much easier and more pleasant than the previous one. We still had to be very vigilant to make sure we stayed in the marked channel, but there was much more water here. And, there were no greenheads!! We made our winding way through to the Manasquan River and on through to just short of the inlet into the Atlantic Ocean. Hoffman’s Marina East was just past a very narrow railroad bridge. Just before we were ready to pass through, it was closing for a train. After the train passed and the bridge reopened, we had to wait to get through. No way could more than one boat get through at a time, and a larger boat had no chance! There were two or three smaller boats impatiently waiting on the inbound side to get through the bridge, so we let them pass. Once through the bridge, we had a pretty strong current to fight to get into our slip. Dan did a masterful job, even having to give it up and try again to hit it just right. But, once we were in, everything was fine. It had been a pretty easy cruising day – beautiful sunny weather, not too hot, no bugs – in short, perfect!

We decided to eat at a restaurant right there on site – had a lovely dinner there and then plenty of time to relax. We enjoyed viewing all the lovely homes on the Barnaget Bay and the river. Tomorrow, we go outside on the Atlantic Ocean for the last cruise to New York City! Weather is slated to be perfect and smooth for a pleasant cruise.

New Jersey homes

more Jersey homes on the ICW

bridge on the ICW

another bridge on the ICW

Jersey shore home

another pretty home

lovely home, right on the water

more Jersey shore

House envy!

lots of boats

just going along the ICW

lift bridge

closer

gorgeous!

We lucked out on being there at the Manasquan Inlet on Thursday nights, the night that Port Pleasant has their fireworks on the beach! We were in the perfect spot to enjoy them. Some local people apparently make it a habit to come there on Thursday nights to enjoy the fireworks and do some fishing. We really enjoyed their friendly repartee. One brought a young boy, probably about 10. He kept spotting crab in the water, but had no net. Well, Dan loaned him our net and he had a ball pulling crab out of the water. Unfortunately, they were all pregnant females, so they had to be put back. All in all, a fun day and evening!