This was once an Amusement Park

Burlington Island from the Bristol waterfront

  I remember going to the waterfront in Bristol when I was a child.  My parents would sometimes take us to look at the boats that went up and down the river.  The waterfront park we watched from sits across the river from Burlington Island, which I later learned was once the site of an amusement park.  There was a lake contained within the island, and several rides, including a roller coaster, Ferris wheel, and a carousel.  But by the time I was a child and visited the waterfront, any visible semblance of an amusement park was long gone.  There are some old ruins that can be seen by the boaters who stop on the island, but nothing that can be seen from the Pennsylvania shore.

  To learn more about the island’s history, I did a quick online search and found out there was more to it than just the amusement park.  At one time the island was inhabited and it is in fact the site of the first European settlement in what would become New Jersey.  It had held a fort and a trading post at different times.  Around 1900 it became a recreational park, and soon the rides were built.  It lasted until 1928, when a fire destroyed most of the rides, and another fire in 1934 finished off what was left of the amusement park.  Later it was owned by Penn Warner Cement Company, although I don’t know if the island itself had a specific use for them.  It is now managed by the City of Burlington.

  During its amusement park heyday, Burlington Island obviously could only be reached by boat from Bristol, so people got to the island by ferry.  On the Burlington side, the channel is fairly narrow, so there may have been foot bridges connecting the island to the land.  If there were foot bridges, they are gone now.  Any ferries across the river, of course, are long gone as well, but the island is still accessible to boaters.  From the pictures I have seen, there is a trail there, and some relics from the old amusement park. The boaters who visit the island use it for fishing, and some adventurous activities like diving into the lake. 

A View of Pemberton Lake

  As I made my way back from Long Beach Island two weeks ago, I was looking for a place to take a few pictures.  I wanted to get pictures somewhere in the interior of New Jersey, along the way between there and here.  Since a good part of the drive is through the vast Pine Barrens, I wanted to get some shots there, along Route 72.  I could have pulled over, but I felt safer if I could find a place to park and leave the car for a few minutes, so I passed through the 20 miles of pinelands.  As I went from 72 to Magnolia Road at the Four Mile Circle, I remembered the large lake along Magnolia Road, and I thought that would be a good place to get some pictures of a natural area.

  As usual, the weather was hot and sticky on the way home.  Once I got out of the car and made my way to the small clearing to take the pictures, I was reminded that the insects are abundant at this time of year, especially near lakes and rivers.  I heard the mosquitoes, and felt one or two ants on me as I tried to shoot the pictures.  It was best to just get in and get out.  So I was back in my car and on my way in about three minutes, and not long after that was over the bridge and back in Pennsylvania.

  I’m not very familiar with the town of Pemberton itself.  The route I take to the shore bypasses it.  It sits on the edge of the Pine Barrens, and also near Fort Dix, which together with Maguire Air Force Base and the Lakehurst Naval Base occupy a good stretch of Burlington and Ocean Counties.  Although this area has seen its share of development, there is still a good amount of farm land nearby, and along with it several roadside farm markets.

    With its proximity to the Pine Barrens, the Pemberton Lake area has some of that region’s folklore attached to it.  A few miles down Magnolia Road, toward the Four Mile Circle, it merges with Ong’s Hat Road.  Supposedly, a man named Jacob Ong threw his hat in the air, and it landed hanging on a pine tree branch, somewhere in the vicinity of where that road now sits.  For a general idea of the people and folklore of the Pine Barrens, I would recommend The Pine Barrens by John McPhee.  Just keep in mind that this book was published in 1968, and the culture of the people there may have changed drastically since then, although the region has remained mostly rural.    

  I hope to get back to that area sometime, because I do want to take some more pictures of the Pine Barrens.  My goal would be to take them from the top of Apple Pie Hill, the highest point in the Pine Barrens, with the vast forest of pines below.  Right now, I’m glad I have these pictures to post here.

LBI Pics for This Year

The beach in the evening

Veteran's Bicentennial Park

Bay Village, showing the ship

Bistro 14 in Bay Village

Country Kettle Fudge Store

    I made my annual trip to Long Beach Island last week.  My family rents a house there for a week at the end of July, and I usually join them toward the end of that week.  I love the island, and spending time there, but I find a few days there are enough for me.  I don’t participate much in the water sports or spend much time on the beach, at least not during the midday hours.  I spend most of that time inside, usually reading or listening to the radio and checking the Jersey Shore radio stations.  Sometimes I’ll venture out for a brief period and get some pictures, like the ones I have posted here. 

  The main attraction to the island is, of course, its natural setting, along the ocean and the bay. There is plenty to do in those two places. But there are also plenty of man-made attractions that help people spend their money, and can in and of themselves bring people to the island during the off season.   It lies in Ocean County, which is blessed with an abundance of beachfront and Pine Barrens land.  Tourism is probably its main industry.  LBI itself occupies 18 miles of shoreline, and most of the Barnegat Bay lies within the county boundaries.  And I can’t forget to mention that Seaside Heights and Island Beach State Park are in Ocean County too.  That town, of course, is host to a popular reality show that, if nothing else, has created its own media sensation and made 15 minute stars of its cast.  I don’t know what direct effect that show has had on tourism for Ocean County, but for the past few years it has been featured weekly to a nationwide audience.

    Long Beach Island probably got its name because it is long and narrow, running 18 miles from top to bottom, and never more than a few blocks wide from the ocean to the bay.  This is typical of the barrier islands that line the east coast from New England to Florida.  There is one bridge/causeway to take traffic on and off the island, near the geographical center at Ship Bottom.  At Ron Jon’s Surf Shop, the causeway ends as it runs into the main boulevard of the island, where most of the shops and restaurants are located.  In each of the towns, water towers bearing the town names are visible from the boulevard, letting travelers know where they’re at.  Since we stay in Beach Haven, near the bottom of the island, I make a right and go south along the boulevard.  Going left would lead toward the lighthouse, and through the more affluent communities of Harvey Cedars and Loveladies, where those who can afford it are yearlong residents with beachfront and bayfront houses. 

  I go through several of the beach towns as I make my way down the boulevard toward Beach Haven.  Each town is marked by its own water tower, which also serves to let the vacationers know where they’re at.  There are many other visual cues that let me know that I ‘m nearing my destination.  There are also many favorite places I try to visit each time I travel to LBI, most of which within walking distance of where I stay in Beach Haven.  I have plenty of pictures from past years that I may post later.  Right now, I here is what I have for this year, posted above.

A Visit to Styer's

   I took a ride to Styer Orchards today, which is a fairly popular destination in my area, or at least it was at one time.  Often, relatives who came by to visit made sure to stop there, since they were nearby.  I had my camera on me and took a few pictures of the fields around the market.  As can be seen in these pictures, the fields immediately behind the market are mostly empty, with a few cornfields.  And a row of small pines that look like they might be Christmas trees.  The actual orchards they are famous for are farther off. 

  Their specialty is apples, with basketfuls of different kinds of apples, as well as apple cider and apple pies.  They would always have a box of complimentary small apples that anyone can pick from.  They also had a cider fountain that dispensed for about a dime a cup if I remember right.  Today, the free apples are no longer there, but the fountain is still around.  The cups of cider are now 75 cents, which still sounds cheap to me, since it is under a dollar.  At one time during the mid-90’s, I was told that cider was no longer produced on the premises, but I think their mill is back up and running today, since their own brand is back on the shelves.  It must be exclusive, since I don’t see it in any supermarkets in the area, and most people I have shared it with are not familiar with it.

     Over time, the area around Styer’s has changed.  Other than the orchards on their property, the surrounding farmland has long since been replaced by housing developments.   Across the railroad embankment and Woodbourne Road once sat Buehl Field, which was a popular air field where people could take rides in a single engine plane for 10 dollars.  Sometime in the 90’s, the field was razed to make way for the over 55 community that stands there now.  There also used to be a small turkey farm right along the tracks, across the road.  I remember seeing and hearing the turkeys from outside the store.  I don’t remember exactly what happened to the turkeys, but they too are long gone. 

  Regardless of what has changed, I’m glad the best things (to me, anyway) about Styer’s still remain.  The orchards and the market are still there, and the apples and by-products they’re known for are still being produced and sold.  Hopefully the old line “some things never change” will remain true here for the foreseeable future.

Geese Crossing

Something about this makes me think of the Partridge Family Theme Song

  As I was taking my usual walk around the lake at Falls Township Park, I came across a flock of geese crossing the path ahead of me.  Not really unusual, but this time, I had my camera and was able to get some pictures.  Sometimes they can stop traffic when they decide to cross a busy road, but here they are only a temporary distraction to the joggers and bike riders who like to use the path here.  Wherever there is a park like this, with a river or lake, there always seem to be plenty of Canada Geese hanging around.

  I did a quick Wikipedia check on Canada Geese.  As their name indicates, they are native mostly to Canada and the Northern United States.  In the northernmost parts of Canada, and the southernmost parts of the United States, they are migratory.  They will fly south for the winter months, and return when the weather gets warmer in Canada.  In southern Canada and the northern United States, they are stationary.  That is why in my area there are flocks of geese that stay around and flocks that can be seen above, making their way to warmer destinations.

  Presumably, most geese can be seen in parks like this one because it is their natural habitat.  And I assume that, like the deer, heavy land development flushed them out of most wooded and rural areas they once dwelled in, and forced them to concentrate in the parks.  Some parks around me hold deer counts and when it is determined that they are overpopulated with deer, a one-day hunt is scheduled.   I don’t think anything similar exists with geese, although it seems that parks are dealing with an overabundance of them as well.  I don’t think that geese are as valued by hunters as deer.  Whatever the reason, the geese are out in the open much more than deer, as this photo shows.

Crazy from the Heat and Looking Ahead

Our backyard, showing the effects of heat on the grass

                                

Today, I guess I’m like most people around here.  I have been spending most of the last week indoors, since it is around 100 degrees at the moment.  Even at 9 o’clock last night, the temperature was 86 degrees.  It still felt like a steam bath with the only advantage being the absence of the scorching sun.  It’s not going to get a whole lot better in the next week, except for Monday and Tuesday, when the temperatures will dip back down into the 80’s.  That is, unless there is a change in the forecast coming.  Right now, it’s still a good time to be staying in.

  I was over at my brother’s house earlier today, helping him and his family to get ready for their trip to Long Beach Island.  I actually didn’t really help with any of the packing for the trip.  My way of making myself useful is by keeping my toddler nephew occupied so they could focus on getting their packing and other details taken care of.  Now, he and the rest of my family are at the Jersey shore.  I’ll be joining them on Thursday, since two or three days at the shore is enough for me.  I love the ocean and the LBI area, but I just don’t get into the activities as much as they do.  For one thing, I stay off the beach most of the day.  I usually only go out there in the early morning, and late afternoon and evening, which is enough for me.  I just enjoy the shore itself and the area around it, as well as the ride there and back.

  One other thing about the shore that is really appealing to me at this time is the ocean breeze, and just the much needed cooling off that it brings.  Sometimes in the evening, when there is a strong wind blowing in from the ocean, it can actually feel almost like October.  I always bring a sweatshirt, because sometimes I’ll need it.  Everyone around here could sure use a wind like that, but right now, we’ll have to stick to our swimming pools, fans and air conditioners.

  I just noticed something yesterday, and that was that there are now some leaves falling.  That’s the first visual sign I got that fall is around the corner.  But the leaves may just be drying because of the heat and lack of rain.  It seems that every summer we get a dry spell, and watch our grass turn to hay.   Right now, however, the leaves have started to fall, and we’ll start to see more and more leaves on the ground. Other than that, I start looking forward to the fall once I return from the shore.  Our rental time has been the last week in July for the last 10 years.  When we come back, it’s always on or near August  1.  The official end of summer is around September 21, but to most people in America, it runs from Memorial Day to Labor Day.  So when I return, it means there is about a month left to go, and it is then that  I start thinking then about the football season, the fall foliage ,and all other things associated with that season. 

  In the meantime, I’ll still be experiencing more of this heat.  Until I head to LBI on Thursday, I’ll be watching my brothers’ homes and taking care of their pets.  That will require me to head outside into the heat, at least for brief times.  It won’t be pleasant going outside, but I don’t think I’ll have to be outside for long, just a few inconveniences.  But I can sit in the air conditioning in their houses and take care of business on their computers.  I’ll just be looking forward to joining them at the shore, and then after that start looking ahead to the fall while trying as much as I can to enjoy the rest of the summer. 

A River Runs to It (and past it)

Philadelphia skyline down the river

Beverly, NJ across the river from the park

Dirt path through the meadow

Another shot of the meadow

 

  Last week, I took a ride to Neshaminy State Park in Bensalem, to get some more pictures of Center City Philadelphia.  It was hot and humid, but sunny, so I thought this would be a good day to do it.  The skyscrapers are visible from the banks of the Delaware at the park, which is just outside the city limits.  I’m guessing the spot where I stood is about 10-15 miles up the river from Center City.  Aside from that, I also wanted to get some more shots of the interior of the park, and maybe of the mouth of the Neshaminy Creek.

    I got a better picture of Center City this time, but the buildings still appear fairly small.  The haze also affected the picture a little.  However, it is an improvement, and I think the best I can get with the zooming capabilities of my camera.  Next, I pointed the camera across the river to Beverly, New Jersey.  I usually only pass through Burlington County twice a year, going to and from Long Beach Island, and Beverly is out of the way.  However, I have been in that area a few times, having been to a friend’s house in nearby Willingboro, and I also rode the River Line from Burlington to Camden last year.  Although it is not visible from where I stood on the Pennsylvania side of the river, I did hear the horn from the River Line, which is basically a light rail train going between Trenton and Camden, and paralleling Route 130.

  Lastly, I took my walk alongside the macadam, and then I went a little off alongside a gravel trail.  It took me through the meadows, which I have pictured here.  It was hot, and I didn’t know exactly where the path would lead or how long it would take.  I didn’t pick up a little map pamphlet.  It took a little while, but I eventually found my way around, as the path went in a kind of semi-circle around the park, and back to the parking lots.  I did look around for a place to get some pictures of the Neshaminy as it flows into the Delaware, but I couldn’t find a clear path that could cut through the woods.  The creek wasn't visible from where I was at, except for a spot where I was faintly able to see the cattails which line the Neshaminy in the park.  Maybe I’ll try again in the fall.