Saturday, May 18, 2013
Paul D. "Pete" McLain's efforts to save the dwindling osprey population back in the 1970s have paid off
Visitors who click on the Friends of Island Beach's osprey cam are often entranced by the sight of the osprey pair keeping watch over their clutch of four rust-and cream-colored eggs. But it wasn't always this easy to keep tabs on the ospreys of Island Beach State Park. Environmental conditions were grim for the large raptor birds back in the early 1970s. Nesting sites were hard to come by, due to the rapid development of wetlands. DDT and other chemicals had been heavily used in 1950s and 1960s for mosquito control and worked their way into the food chain. Osprey nests were dwindling. By 1968 there were only 12 osprey nests at Island Beach State Park. By 1974, the number had dropped to just one. Osprey eggs laid during those years were …
Thursday, May 9, 2013
Island Beach will not be included in Army Corps of Engineers' dune and beach replenishment program
South Seaside Park resident Donald Whiteman's family has lived on the barrier island section of Berkeley Township for seven decades. And they know a washout from a storm when they see one, going all the way back to the Hurricane of 1938, he has said at more than one Berkeley Township Council meeting. Whiteman again urged township officials at the May 5 meeting to pressure the state Department of Environmental Protection to include Island Beach in the Army Corps of Engineers dune and beach replenishment program. "Residents in South Seaside Park who stayed during the storm recognized there was more than one breach," he said. "Island Beach had about five washouts." Whiteman was one of those who rode out the storm. He noticed problems at the …
Wednesday, May 1, 2013
Park now opened from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Island Beach State Park has returned to pre-Superstorm Sandy hours and more of the park has been opened to visitors, state Department of Environmental Protection Commission Bob Martin said. “We are keeping pace with the Christie Administration’s goal of having all of our state parks, including Island Beach State Park, fully operational for the peak summer season,” Martin said. “Having this popular destination getting closer to normal operations is emblematic of the state’s drive to have the Shore open for business this summer.’’ The park is now open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. for all guests. Fishing access has also been extended to 6:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. The DEP recently awarded a $268,000 contract to a New Brunswick-based Tekton Development Corp…
Wednesday, April 17, 2013
One egg now visible in nest near park's Interpretive Center
Osprey cam addicts take notice - the first egg has appeared in the nest. The rust and cream-colored egg is clearly visible on the Friends of Island Beach State Park's Osprey Cam. Berkeley Patch will continue to update the osprey family's progress. The mother and father bird arrived at the park on March 24 and promptly settled in making a home. You can watch the nest 24 hours a day, seven days a week by clicking here - The Friends of Island Beach Osprey Cam camera. Hundreds last year watched in awe as an osprey couple settled into the nest perched 40 feet in the air and began to make a home. The female bird laid three eggs, but only one hatched in late May. Viewers promptly named the baby bird "Memo" and delighted in watching her rapid …
Saturday, April 13, 2013
Goal is to have entire park open for peak summer season, access to park is free until May, DEP commissioner says
More sections of Island Beach State Park are now open to the public, nearly half a year after Superstorm Sandy tore through the park's dunes and damaged facilities. Roughly five miles of beach access points - more than half of the nearly 10-mile park - are now open, state Department of Environmental Commissioner Bob Martin said. The park will be open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily, for the first time since Oct. 29, the day Sandy roared into Ocean County. “Thanks to the hard work of park staff, partnerships, volunteers and contractors, we have seen considerable progress in the cleanup and restoration of Island Beach State Park,” Martin said in a statement Friday. “This is all part of the Christie Administration’s plan to have a strong summer…
Sunday, March 24, 2013
Friends of Island Beach State Park's Osprey Cam is up and running
The waiting game is over. The osprey who make Island Beach State Park their home each spring and summer are returing to the park that was heavily damaged by Superstorm Sandy. Their return was a bright spot after a dismal winter and early spring marred by Superstorm Sandy The Friends of Island Beach paid $10,000 back in October 2011 for the solar-powered "Osprey Cam," which runs day and night. The camera and platform were battered by the massive storm and had to be repaired. The camera was reinstalled a few weeks ago and the wait began. This morning, one osprey was spotted on the nest near the park's Interpretive Center, several miles in from the entrance, according to the FOIB's facebook page. Berkeley Patch will continue to update the …
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
Park manager: additional park areas to open within the next month
- THE NEIGHBORHOOD FILES
- Daniel Nee
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Tuesday, March 12
Island Beach State Park manager Ray Bukowski told Patch the southern half of the park would most likely begin to open to the public within the next month. Bukowski said the area would probably be opened in three stages, from north to south, with the final stage being the end of the park's road to Barnegat Inlet. Currently, members of the public are allowed as far in as the park's administration building, and parking is available at OBA 1. Beach buggy owners can also access that portion of the park, and 2012 beach buggy permits are still being honored. Bukowski said park officials are concerned with the number of people feeding wild foxes that live in the park. If people continue to feed the animals, they will lose their natural fear of …
Saturday, January 26, 2013
Barnegat Inlet shoaled at north jetty, an inside look shows
- THE NEIGHBORHOOD FILES
- Daniel Nee
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Saturday, January 26
State officials announced the partial reopening of Island Beach State Park Friday, and and members of the press received an inside tour from park employees. Ray Bukowski, the park manager, said before the tour began that employees worked to remove tons of sand from the park's roads after Superstorm Sandy struck, and also pitched in to help the local South Seaside Park community recover as well. "One of the first things we did, as a park service, was to recognize that we're a part of this community," said Bukowski. "We still have people who work here who are out of their homes." Bukowski said the Fisherman's Walkway and several of the park's pavilions will be "very large ticket items," but officials have already met with FEMA as well as the…
Friday, January 25, 2013
State Park System officials hoping to reopen entire park by summer
Nearly three months after Superstorm Sandy swamped Island Beach State Park, sections of the park are now open to the public, free of charge. “This partial reopening of Island Beach State Park is an important benchmark in the state’s recovery from Sandy,” Gov. Chris Christie said. “While there is still much work to be done, we know that having even partial access to the park is important to residents and visitors and we are thrilled to welcome them back.” Ocean Bathing Area 1 - four miles south of the park entrance - is now open for walking, four-wheel drive access and sport fishing. Four-wheel drive vehicles with park-issued permits can enter the beach at Ocean Bathing Area 1 or at Gillikin’s Road, which is 1.2 miles north of Ocean Bathing…
Sunday, January 20, 2013
Dunes breached in a number of sections of the state park during Superstorm Sandy; sections of park slated to open sometime next week
Surf fisherman often trudged through the sand on Two-Bit Road at Island Beach State Park to make their way around the towering dunes, on their way to the beach and the waves. But there is little in the way of a cut now, since Superstorm Sandy swamped the park on Oct. 29. And in many sections of Island Beach, the carefully cultivated, cherished dunes - strengthened by beach grass and protected by snow fence - are no more. "There's a lot more devastation at this end of the beach," said Area Supervisor Ray Bukowski, as he steered his Ford F-250 down the nearly deserted beach in the park's Northern Natural Area. The beach is littered with pilings, crab pots, storm debris and even a roller coaster car from nearby Seaside Heights. The scene is …
Pat Korotky
5:52 am on Wednesday, May 22, 2013
I am proud to have known both Pete McLain and Ben Wurst, two hard-working, dedicated men with a vision. more ›