About Ocean Grove Surf Travel
The yin to the yang of Asbury, Ocean Grove is home to sanguine hotels and B&Bs, and, not surprisingly, a heavy religious sect. Until the early ’90s, you weren’t even allowed to drive your car in town on Sundays. And you still can’t drive there along the ocean from Bradley Beach — you have to go west, then back to the beach. It may be a little old school, but it most certainly has its perks.
Ocean Grove and Bradley Beach
Don’t mistake the area’s quiet nature for a lack of surf action. There is a local crew. The pier is usually a good spot, but beach replenishment projects and major storms like Sandy always throwing the wildcard, it’s really a matter of pick-and-choose–one month the pier or some sandbar might be good, and the next . . . poof. This is the nature of surfing in New Jersey: like the communities themselves, the waves are all over the place.
Surf Hazards
Tourists in the summer, blizzards in the winter. All told, the threat level in Ocean Grove is pretty minimal. There are the typical ocean pests like stingrays and jellyfish when the water starts to warm up. And there’s hypothermia when the water cools down. Also, it’s important to know all of the weird New Jersey rules…like anyone over 12 years old has to have a beach badge. Apparently, that’s still a thing there.
Surf Pollution
The waters around Ocean Grove are routinely monitored and tested for harmful bacteria and other possible sources of pollution. According to 2017 statistics, the water tested clean 95-percent of the time.
Best Surf Seasons in Ocean Grove
1) Fall
(September-November) after Labor Day is the time to get after it in Ocean Grove. The crowds all go back to school and work, hurricane and tropical swells from the south can make for some serious warm-water fun. And thanks to early action in the North Atlantic, there is a chance for an extra dose of spice while the conditions remain balmy and pleasant.
2) Winter
(December-February) it’s not going to be warm by any means, but it’s also not going to be too crowded either. The winter means big storms, offshore winds and solid Atlantic swells around the part of the New Jersey coastline. When the conditions come together it can be a little bit magic.
3) Spring
(March-May) another one of those places that starts to go to sleep as soon as the Nor’Easters and Atlantic swell train start to slow down. True, the water and weather warms up, but that’s little consolation for a hardened Jersey local.
4) Summer
(June-August) break out your beach badge and get busy with the rest of New York’s overflow crowd. Sweltering summer temps drive the masses to The Shore, thankfully Ocean Groves endures it a little better than most communities.
Directions to Ocean Grove
An hour to an hour and a half from both New York City and Philadelphia, there is no shortage of alternatives when it comes to how to get to Ocean Grove. Train and bus lines feed right into the zone. From the north take the Garden State Parkway south to exit 100B and follow Route 33 East to Ocean Grove. From the south take the NJ Turnpike north to exit 7A and follow Route 195 east to Route 35 in Belmar. Take RT. 35 around Shark River and across the inlet. Travel North, parallel to the RR tracks for 2 miles to Corlies Avenue. Turn right across the tracks and into Ocean Grove. The spot you want to check in Ocean Grove is the beach located at the end of Broadway Avenue.