7/27/15 - Milton, NJ

Today we drove to Gateway National Recreation Area – Sandy Hook Unit.  This part included Fort Hancock Proving Ground National Historic Landmark and the Sandy Hook Lighthouse.  The lighthouse was built in 1764 and is the oldest continually operating lighthouse in the U.S.  The ranger took 8 of us on the tour and the people with us were from Houston.  One of them had lived in the 3700 block of Sunset, just 4 streets north of us.

After climbing the winding staircase to the top of the lighthouse we drove around in Fort Hancock.  Some of the buildings are really dilapidated.  They will grant you a 60-year lease on one but you have to fix it up and maintain it.  One of the officer’s houses had been restored to how it would have appeared during WWII.  Most of the stuff in there looked like it came from grandma’s house.

Then we went to one of the nearby beaches and took a walk in the surf of the Atlantic Ocean.  The water was cold!  There is one beach here that is nude.  Afterward we went to Woody’s in Seabright and had a beer and then to VFW 2140 for another one.