Hey, aren't dunes supposed to be, like, round? This newly-concave dune at Dorset Avenue in Ventnor had its middle carved out by that freakishly ferocious nor'easter yesterday that pounded our house overnight, flooded the roads that usually flood and made grocery shopping an Olympic event. I'm sure that Ventnor police officer found it amusing watching me hanging on to my shopping cart in 75 mph sustained winds in the parking lot, feeling imperiled for possibly the first time since I moved to the shore, but do I get a prize for my thoughtfulness in making sure the cart got back to the cart corral? (Sent it with the wind at my back, only way to do it). Still, schools were open and people went about their usual business, barreling their SUV's through two feet of water and taking note of trees on their sides, roots exposed. As the day wore on, it became clear: this was one of those nor'easters that sneaks up on the weather people but pounds a punch way bigger than the hyped storms. As Jen Miller details below, Ocean City was even more of a mess, with the bridges closed in the afternoon and lots of erosion. It was December in mid-May. Now, is everyone looking forward to Memorial Day?

UPDATE: Here's a link to Jackie Urgo's story and Tom Gralish's photos.

Vineland?
For a huge music festival organized by the people behind Lollapalooza, Austin City Limits and festivals in Glastonbury and Reading, England?
That's a tough one to wrap your mind around at first, Vineland, N.J. being more associated with depressed economic conditions, migrant workers, chicken farmers and a drive-in movie theater than alt rock music festivals featuring the likes of Amy Winehouse, the White Stripes and Dylan. But waddaya know, Vineland is suddenly a cool global brand. It's already, as my well-read colleague notes, the name of a Thomas Pynchon book (set in California), and Patti Smith, who grew up in nearby Woodbury, wrote about Vineland in a song aptly titled "Ain't it Strange." So maybe it was inevitable. Bring it on. We're always ready for drop-ins at the shore in August. What's another 150,000 who bring their own sleeping bags? Fairmount Park's dunderheaded loss is the Jersey shore's gain this summer, Vineland being just a few dozen miles of curvy back roads from most shore points, pretty much suburban Jersey shore. As one commenter on the Vineland daily newspaper's website joked, "I can hear it now: Rte 49 is closed, man." Hopefully not route 40, though. Who knows, one day, telling people you hang at the Jersey shore may yield this response: Hey, isn't that near Vineland?

All eyes won't be on the slot machines in Atlantic City casinos today, The Associated Press reports.

Thousands are expected to line the beach and boardwalk for the annual airshow.

The "Thunder Over the Boardwalk" show will feature flights by the Air Force Thunderbirds, Army Golden Knights parachute team, an F-15E Strike Eagle Demo Team and numerous civilian aerobatics.

Parking will be at a premium and traffic is expected to be heavy.

More information at www.atlanticcityairshow.com.

Taking photos at the show? Email them to us at downashoreblog@gmail.com and we'll post them.

Authorities say a British tourist was stabbed to death in Margate over the weekend, the Associated Press reports.

The Atlantic County Prosecutor's Office says Paul Ritch was on a two-week vacation to the United States and was with some friends from New Jersey. The 37-year-old went to the beach, ate dinner and visited some night spots.

Police responded to an emergency call about 2 a.m. Sunday near North Washington and Monmouth avenues. Ritch was taken to a hospital and pronounced dead about an hour later.

The medical examiner says Ritch suffered a single knife wound to his heart.

There's no word on a suspect and the murder weapon has not been recovered.

Beachwood Beach West in Ocean County has been designated a "Beach Bum" by the National Resources Defense Council, which publishes an annual list of "beach bums" and "beach buddies." The beach violated public health standards 51 percent or more of the time samples were taken.

This year's list is based on the percentage of monitoring samples tested during the 2006 beach season that violated public health standards and practices that buddies use to help protect the public from exposure to beachwater pollution.

This is what NRDC said: "Beachwood Beach West is a small, river beach located in the town of Beachwood. It is a local beach with a short beach season primarily used for shallow water wading. The beach is in a low-lying area and receives storm water discharge from a major state roadway and an aging state-constructed storm drain. Local efforts to protect the beach include vacuuming storm drains prior to the beach season to minimize overflows, hiring a company called Geese Chasers to scare off waterfowl several times a day during the feeding and nesting periods, and using police officers to enforce poopscoop ordinances. Sixty percent of samples taken exceeded bacterial standards."

Here's the NRDC's 2006 "beach buddies," so designated for monitoring beach water quality regularly, violating public health standards less than 10 percent of the time, and taking significant steps to reduce pollution: North Carolina: Kure Beach and Kill Devil Hills Beach; Wisconsin: Sister Bay Beach and North Beach; California: Laguna Beach; Michigan: Grand Haven City Beach and Grand Haven State Park beaches; and Maine: Libby Cove, Mother’s, Middle, Cape Neddick, Short Sands and York Harbor beaches.

The rest of the "beach bums," so designated for violating public health standards 51 percent or more of the time samples were taken: California: Avalon Beach (north of Green Pleasure Pier) (53%) and Venice State Beach (57%); Maryland: Hacks Point (60%) and Bay Country Campground and Beach (56%); and Illinois: Jackson Park Beach (54%).

See a NRDC map and see how clean is your beach.

Video: America's 'Dirtiest' Beaches

An Ocean County man drilled nails into his wife's head and chest with a construction nail gun before turning the tool on himself in what investigators are calling an apparent murder-suicide, the Inquirer reports.

James B. Tomkinson, 77, of Stafford Township was pronounced dead this morning at the Atlantic Regional Medical Center, where he was being treated for head and chest injuries he inflicted on himself, according to township police and the Ocean County Prosecutor's office.

The day before, Tomkinson, a retired school teacher, killed his wife Susan, 76, with the nail gun, inflicting fatal head and chest injuries, while in their Cutlass Avenue home, police said. Police were summoned to the scene after a relative discovered the couple and called 911, said Lt. Thomas Dellane.

The motive is still under investigation. Dellane said there were no prior police calls to the house.

Stafford Township sits west of Long Beach Island.

Google Map: Where it happened

Lou Ann K. Behan, a lawyer-turned-composer-playwright who grew up at the Jersey Shore, has a new musical comedy, "Over the Boardwalk," premiering tonight in Reston, Va., the Washington Post reports. The play is set in 1963 but highlights what Behan describes as widespread current efforts to "gentrify the boardwalk scene at shore towns from Atlantic City to Ocean City and down the coast."

The boardwalk-on-the-beach culture, with the attendant images of cotton candy, honky-tonk music and inexpensive, family-style entertainment, may soon be a thing of the past, she tells the Post, if developers continue to remove the old piers. "If we gentrify all of these vacation spots, where will the working-class families go?"

Read the full story.

Alcohol may bring an end to teen nights at Jenkinson’s nightclub on the boardwalk in Point Pleasant Beach, the Associated Press reports. Owners plan to discuss the problem today.

The club sets aside Tuesday nights for teens to dance and no alcohol is sold. However, dozens of teens have been charged with alcohol-related offenses, including 12 with underage drinking this past Tuesday. They ranged in age from 14 to 17. Authorities believe most are from out of town and use public transportation to get to the town.

A Jenkinson’s spokeswoman told the Asbury Park Press the club might eliminate the program or change the night that it’s held.

How serious is Belmar about cracking down on noise after dark? Just ask Joseph Palermo, who was fined $572 for letting a woman ring the bell on his bicycle, the Asbury Park Press reports.

Read the full story.

The Ocean City Arts Center will present its 45th Annual Boardwalk Art Show this weekend. One of the largest summer art shows on the East Coast, the event will be held Friday to Sunday on the Ocean City Boardwalk, between Seventh and 14th streets. The show will feature the work of artists from Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and 10 other states will offer oils, acrylics, watercolors, pen and ink, photography and mixed media. The show is limited to fine arts only and does not include three-dimensional art such as pottery, carved art, glass or sculpture.

Artists begin setting up at dawn Friday and judging begins at 10:30 a.m. Hours are from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday.

After a two-year hiatus, the Philadelphia 76ers' “Beach Bash” will return to the Jersey Shore on Saturday, Aug. 4, from 4 to 7 p.m. The event, to be held at La Costa Lounge at Landis Avenue and JFK Boulevard in Sea Isle City, will benefit Sixers Charities, which assists organizations that focus on youth recreation, health and education.

The fun will include outdoor carnival-type games, inflatables and appearances by Sixers mascot Hip Hop. Inside La Costa Lounge, fans will be served by celebrity guest bartenders like Hugh Douglas, Marc Zumoff, Tom McGinnis, Big Daddy Graham and Keith Jones. Sixers alumni will be on hand to sign autographs. A yard sale and silent auction is also planned.

At the same time, the Sixers organization will unveil its 2007-08 Sixers Dancers, who will show fans what they can expect during the season.

Ocean City police may have closed the bizarre case of the toe-sucker, NBC10.com reports. On Friday, officers investigated a reported sighting of a man who harassed a juvenile on June 25. The man, who police said matched the description of a man who allegedly sucked and licked a 12-year-old girl's foot after helping her untangle her kite, fled police. He was taken into custody after a short chase.

Read the full story.

Monitoring blogs is the newest tactic in Belmar's long-running effort to keep its notoriously rowdy group rentals under control in one of the Jersey shore's last true party towns, the Associated Press reports.

Read the full story.

Nothing reflects the change in Avalon - to a quintessential family-oriented town - more than the renovation last winter of the Princeton Inn, the New York Times reports. Since 1971, when the Princeton Hotel added a vast barroom, “the P” had been the quintessential shot-and-beer shore bar. When the Princeton reopened in the spring, however, it had marble bar tops, served mussels and dainty salads. The transition was lamented by few.
Read the full story.

When you're on vacation at the shore, a parking ticket can be a real turn off. But Cape May business owners are trying to help one quarter at a time, NBC 10 reports. They search for those who have parked without paying. But instead of wings, these angels come with quarters.


See the report.

Known as "The Bread Man" to customers, Joe Lombardi brings a little taste of North Jersey and New York to the Jersey Shore, reports the Asbury Park Press. He visits six or seven Jersey Fresh markets weekly and operates his new store, Italian Cucina in New Hope.
Read the full story.

State amusement ride safety inspectors Monday examined a log flume ride one day after an accident injured five people at Gillian's Wonderland Pier in Ocean City, N.J., the Newark Star Ledger reports. The accident occurred when a car on the Canyon Falls Log Flume that was being pulled on a conveyor belt to near the top of a steep ramp unexpectedly slid backward and struck a car at the bottom of the ramp.
Read the full story.

The amusement park on the Steel Pier of the Atlantic City boardwalk, facing closure last year when Donald Trump indicated he would develop the property across from his Taj Mahal hotel-casino, received a one-year reprieve in the spring. Now, with the project far from a done deal, there is hope the amusement park may see many more summers, reports Robert Strauss of the Daily News.

Read the full story.

Surfing is bigger than ever at the shore this season, Philadelphia Weekly reports. And it's just swell after Labor Day. In Ocean City, N.J., surf culture is a year-round sport ingrained in the indigenous community.

Read the full story.

A French bistro in North Wildwood? This shore town is known for several things — its annual Irish festival, its profusion of Irish pubs, its proximity to the doo-wop-and-honky-tonk extravaganza that is Wildwood — but fruits de mer isn’t one of them, writes David Corcoran of the New York Times. Yet he found it - at a sprawling yellow Victorian with a huge rooftop sign: Claude’s Cafe. The well-heeled diners who pack those rooms every night in season are on to something: in ambition, pricing and execution, this is no mere cafe, Corcoran writes.
Read the full story.
The restaurant Web site is at www.claudesrestaurant.com.

Don Wilno, who writes the Watering Hole column in the Asbury Park Press, has selected his favorite shore bars and taverns in a two-parter. He started with places in Monmouth County and wrapped up with watering holes in Ocean County.
Monmouth County | Ocean County

Have your own favorite watering hole at the shore? Share it with us. Leave us a comment.

The Jersey shore is known for its beaches and boardwalks, but don't sell it short as the home of some great surfing, according to the Press of Atlantic City.
Read the full story.
Hey surfers, tell us your favorite surf spots on the south Jersey coastline.

Global warming may spawn more flooding at northeastern U.S. beaches unless heat-trapping emissions are curbed, scientists said in a report, according to Bloomberg.com. Atlantic City could experience the equivalent of a once-in-100-years flood as frequently as every year or two, according to the report by the Union of Concerned Scientists and a team of more than 50 researchers and economists.

Read the full story.

Police departments at the Jersey Shore reported a relatively quieter Fourth of July holiday this year, according to the Press of Atlantic City. No significant arrests or confiscations were made last week, a sign that holiday revelers are beginning to heed the state's zero-tolerance policy on illegal fireworks.
Read the full story.
Did you see fewer fireworks freelancers in your town? Let us know. Post a comment below.

The national real estate market may be sluggish, but agents in Ocean City are bucking the trend, the Press of Atlantic City reports. The resort city’s Board of Realtors can point to a 17 percent jump in residential sales through May 31. Nicholas Marotta of Academy Real Estate, board president, give some credit to a marketing campaign in February targeting Philadelphia. One recent home buyer, Keith Hausknecht of Warminster, Bucks County, told the Press he and his wife wanted to buy in Ocean City because of its small-town vibe and its family atmosphere.

Read the full story.

Surely there'll be a Fourth of July weekend at the Jersey Shore. But when? asks Inquirer staff writer Jacqueline L. Urgo, who reports that with the Fourth falling on Wednesday this year, schedule shilly-shallying has driven the Shore into a near panic. With so much uncertaintly about when exactly the celebrating should begin for that out-and-out, no-doubt-about-it, in-your-face signal that summer's finally here, the great Fourth of July Weekend debate has become the season's great question.
Read the full story.
Take our poll: When are you celebrating the Fourth of July weekend? (Through Friday, most respondents said they were celebrating next weekend.)

So where can you see fireworks on the Fourth of July at the shore? Philly.com has compiled a list for you:

Atlantic City: Fireworks after the Atlantic City Surf baseball game, which begins at 7:05.

Cape May: Fireworks shot off on a barge on the ocean, visible from the beach, no charge. For tickets to an All-American picnic to be held on the lawn of historic Congress Hall, held before the show, contact Congress Hall at 888-944-1816. Tickets $20.

Lower Township: Fireworks at the Cape May Ferry Terminal Grounds, 9:30 p.m., with live music, and food available for purchase beginning at 7:30.

Ocean City: Fireworks after a kite-flying contest and other entertainment, beginning at 9 p.m., at Carey Stadium, 6th Street off the Boardwalk.

Sea Isle City: Fireworks at 9 p.m., JFK Boulevard and the beach.

Stone Harbor: Fireworks and band concert at the 80th Street Fields, 9 p.m.

Wildwood: Fireworks at 10 p.m., Boardwalk at Pine Avenue.

Ventnor: Fireworks at 9 p.m., raindate Saturday July 7.

For a list of fireworks displays scheduled throughout the region, see our Fourth of July guide.

FBI agents have joined an investigation into the theft of tools used by whalers in the early 19th century from the Cape May County Historical Museum, the Associated Press reports. The maritime instruments taken were kept in a case and included six harpoons and a whaling gun. A worker noticed them missing on June 5. The museum estimates the stolen items are worth more than $7,500.
Read the full story.

The Atlantic City boardwalk will require repairs after a fire Sunday burned a section of it, destroyed five stores and damaged the headquarters of the state Casino Control Commission, the Associated Press reports. The fire was so hot it warped the steel support beams, fire Capt. Michael Mooney told The Press of Atlantic City for today's newspapers. To do that, the fire had to reach about 1,100 degrees, he said.
Read the full story.

One man's source of electric power is causing an ill wind to blow in Long Beach Island, the Associated Press reports. Two of Michael Mercurio's neighbors have filed a lawsuit to stop him from using a windmill in his backyard that helps to heat and light his house. The suit contends the windmill is too noisy, creates shadows on their property and spoils their sleep.
Read the full story.

Twenty-six beach towns on the Jersey Shore are expected to participate in the Cops in Shops program, which targets underage drinkers, the Associated Press reports. Police will work undercover in liquor stores to catch those under 21 who try to buy alcohol and adults who buy it for them.
Read the full story.
Update: Here is a list of the participating towns, according to the New Jersey Office of the Attorney General Web site:
Atlantic County: Absecon, Egg Harbor Township, Margate
Cape May County: Avalon, Lower Township, Sea Isle City, Wildwood
Monmouth County: Belmar, Eatontown, Long Branch, Middletown Township, Neptune Township, Ocean Township, Red Bank, South Belmar, Wall
Ocean County: Barnegat, Bay Head, Beach Haven, Beachwood, Dover Township, Harvey Cedars, Lakehurst, Little Egg Harbor, Long Beach, Pt. Pleasant Beach, Pt. Pleasant Boro, Seaside Heights, Ship Bottom, Stafford Township.

The fire destroyed a building across the street that housed retail shops, said commission spokesman Daniel Heneghan. At the headquarters, six large windows were blown out, and smoke caused some problems, he said.

The commission's offices will be closed Monday, and fire inspectors remained at the scene late Sunday afternoon, trying to determine whether the blaze had caused any structural damage. The cause was under investigation.

The fire damage "is actually minimal, aside from the windows. There was no charring of anything inside our building, but there is some debris around," Heneghan told the Associated Press. The cause was being investigated.

About 160 of the commission's 330 employees work out of the building, Heneghan said. None were inside at the time.

... sharks, jellyfish, red tide, medical waste, tsunamis. And now, in time for the first day of summer, we have something new to worry about at the Shore.

A new Harvard Medical School study shows that waves and sharks aren't the only dangers at the beach. More than three dozen people have been killed over the last two decades when sand holes collapsed on them.

A .22-caliber revolver that an off-duty Pennsylvania police officer reported losing Wednesday in Ocean City has been found, KYW 1060 is reporting. According to a report in the Press of Atlantic City, Gillian's Wonderland Pier on the boardwalk was shut down for two hours Wednesday night as a precaution after the officer, whom police did not identify, reported the handgun missing.
See the full story.

A Cape May woman who swerved to avoid hitting a turtle as it crawled across the northbound lanes of the Garden State Parkway Tuesday afternoon in Upper Township lost control of her car, crashed through a guardrail and tumbled down an embankment before the car flipped over onto its roof, the Associated Press reports. The driver was wearing a seat belt and was not critically injured, State Police said.
Read the full story.

They make a pizza so large at “3 Brothers from Italy Pizza The World's Largest Pizza” on the Boardwalk in Ocean City, they have a daily contest challenging people to eat the entire pie in less than an hour, the Press of Atlantic City reports. Patrons who can finish the 26-inch, 5½-pound pizza get their money back, and 10 free pies. The pizzeria is between Ninth and 10th streets.
Read the full story.

After hours of public comment, Ocean City Council last Thursday night voted 4 to 3 in favor of purchasing $1.3 million dollars worth of the tropical hardwood Ipe, to re-deck a one block length of boardwalk, NBC40 reported. The harder Ipe would replace yellow pine, a relatively soft wood that requires much maintenance, on one block of the boardwalk. The issue has sparked emotional debate, including protests, between those for and against the use of the wood, which grows in equatorial rainforests.
See the full story.

For all the appeal that Atlantic City may have for gamblers as a beach destination, the resort town has one chronic flaw: Every year, summer ends, writes Bill Ordine in the Sunday Inquirer Travel section. He's found an oasis, however, at Harrah's, where a new indoor pool covers a half-acre under a 90-foot dome, with every amenity offered. Only waves are lacking.
Read the full story.

Cape May County Buzz, the Press of Atlantic City's "look at the lighter, quirky and colorful side of the news," has its own take on word that Cape May County officials are considering a new library for the grounds of the county Park and Zoo.
Read their reading list of possible tie-ins with the zoo, and add your own under Comments.

The Route 52 causeway project is almost a year old, but still years away from completion. NBC40 reports that work continues to move along on the New Jersey Department of Transportation's biggest project. In the first phase, two bridges will be built to link Somers Point and Ocean City. Completion is scheduled for December 2009. The second phase, causeway replacement and circle elimination, is in its final design phase.
See the report.

Another round of comments about changing the 2 a.m. closing time for bars in Seaside Park could be served up tonight at a meeting of the Borough Council, the Asbury Park Press reported today. At a meeting last week, speakers sent council members a strong message: a midnight bar closing is a bad idea.
Read the full story.

The hurricane season in the Atlantic Ocean has begun, forecasters are predicting a 75 percent uptick in the frequency and fury of this year's storms, and New Jersey remains vulnerable, exposed and unprepared for the devastation that could come, write James Lee Witt and Adm. James M. Loy on The Inquirer's Opinion page today. They are national co-chairs of ProtectingAmerica.org, a Washington nonprofit that seeks to protect and prepare Americans for catastrophes. They believe the state should establish a private catastrophe fund now.
Read the full essay.

From today's Press of Atlantic City, a great story by Martin DeAngelis. It starts:

"He woke up Monday morning in a no-newspaper, no-TV, no-Internet sweat.
He had to know what happened, now. But even though he's a three-newspaper-a-day guy, he couldn't know yet, couldn't take the risk of seeing a headline or hearing even a snippet of news — anywhere.

It's a long story. But it starts at the end of “The Sopranos,” the long-running Mob hit's series finale Sunday night."
Read the full story.

Pennsylvania slots continue to hurt Atlantic City casinos, as seven of the resort's 11 gambling halls suffered revenue decreases last month, The Inquirer's Suzette Parmley reports. The casinos took in $408.8 million in total revenue, down 1.9 percent from a year ago. "We're continuing to see the impact on our slots business as a result of slots in Pennsylvania and in New York," said Tony Rodio, president of the Atlantic City Hilton and Resorts casinos.
Read the full story.

Visitors to the Belmar municipal Web site soon will be able to zoom in on a satellite picture or map of the borough's 320 summer rental homes to a street-level view of the properties, the Asbury Park Press reports. Clicking on a specific address on the Web site, powered by GoogleEarth, will enable visitors to keep tabs on the legal status of rentals designated as "animal houses" in Belmar, according to Mayor Kenneth E. Pringle. The information online will serve not only the interests of permanent residents wary and watchful of summer rowdies, but those seasonal renters with an interest in properties subject to legal entanglements, he said.
Read the full story.
For more 'Animal House' information, go to the Belmar Web site.

Comps, those freebies that casinos dangle to entice gamblers to spend their time and money, are getting a closer look in Atlantic City, where for the first time in the 29-year history of legalized gambling, casinos will likely take in less money than they did the year before, the Associated Press reports. Comps, which range from free hotel rooms and show tickets to coupons for a free buffet or a roll of quarters to pump into slot machines, were up 2.1 percent over the first quarter of 2007, even while revenues at the city's 11 casinos declined by 5.5 percent in May. Some casinos are cutting back on comps, while others are handing out more as a way to attract customers that can gamble closer to home, including at the new slots parlors in Pennsylvania.
Read the full story.
Click here for key facts on casino revenues.

Cape May County tourism officials said a stronger Canadian dollar has reinvigorated interest in north-of-the-border tourists and has renewed marketing efforts to highlight the sandy beaches and boardwalks at the New Jersey shore, the Press of Atlantic City reports. Canadians, primarily those from the province of Quebec, formed a large base of the region's tourism market for decades, but a weaker exchange rate in the mid-90s apparently triggered a dropoff in their numbers visiting the Jersey Shore.
Read the full story.

Ocean City officials said residents and local businesses could enjoy free wireless Internet access by next May, the Ocean City Gazette reported today. The city's Library Board has contracted with a firm to create a "Wireless Wave" that would cover the entire city. Visitors to the city would have to pay $6 daily or $25 weekly for access to the Net.
Read the full story.

Click here for a related story from the Press of Atlantic City.

Saturday and Sunday (June 9 and 10) will be this year's New Jersey Free Fishing Days, which are held annually in conjunction with National Fishing and Boating Week, the state Division of Fish & Wildlife announced. The special designation means anyone may fish the public waters in the state without a license or trout stamp. All other regulations, including size and daily catch limits, remain in effect. Anglers should also note that any smallmouth or largemouth bass caught during this time must be released. For information and a guide on places to fish at the shore, click here.

Bill Santora, a World War II memorabilia collector from Toms River, made it possible for the National D-Day Museum to present the dog tag of an American soldier killed on Omaha Beach to his family today in Tennessee, the Associated Press reports. Exactly 63 years after that tragic day, the remarkably well-preserved tag was returned to the relatives of Pvt. William Bernice Clark. "I always wondered who it was," said Santora, who handed the dog tag over to the Bedford, Va., museum. "I feel more connected to the soldier, a little connected to family and I think they are going to be happy to have this memento back."
Read the full story.

State environmental officials were investigating Wednesday whether to take action against a sewage plant in Asbury Park after a broken pipe leaked as much as 250,000 gallons of sewage into the ocean, the Associated Press reports. Beaches in four Monmouth County communities remained closed to swimmers today, as county health authorities were awaiting the results of the most recent water quality tests.
Read the full story.
UPDATE: The beaches were reopened Wednesday.
Read the full story.

One minute, the dogs are living large, hanging on the sands, fetching balls from the surf, keeping order among warring flocks of seagulls. The next, in the name of progress and summer tourists, it’s this: a barren, pebble-lined, fenced-in desperate stretch of land nestled in the shadow of the Ocean City’s sewage waste treatment facility (ok, fittingly nestled, but still). Its own website euphemistically and apologetically describes the park as “sterile.” Even my dumb dogs would know this is not exactly doggie heaven.
Officially known as the Cape May County/Ocean City Dog Park, it was unveiled last month to the backyard-challenged dogowners of the shore as a refuge during summer, when their dogs are suddenly canis non grata on the beaches. They are promising some trees at some point. It’s located at 45th and Haven Streets, with the scary-big pipes of the treatment facilities as the view, complete with the sounds of sewage being treated as you scoop your dog’s poop. Four blocks away, the beach beckons.
Once the dog lovers of Ocean City dreamed of getting a stretch of actual beach front declared open for dogs, even just in the early morning hours. But all their efforts _ and they were considerable _ resulted in this penitentiary-like setting on the bayside of the island. There are a few amenities: a tire to jump through, a cute little water fountain at dog height, double entrances so your dog doesn’t go chasing after a new friend, and, eventually, the company of other dogs. There’s lots of room to throw a ball and to run. It costs $35 a year for out-of-county folks to get a “Paw Pass,” $25 for locals and $10 for a week. Mandy, a 9-year-old miniature pinscher, was the only dog there today. “It is kind of bleak,” her owner, Gene Hall, said. “It’s all gravel. But if you try to take them to the beach anymore, it’s like a federal case.”

Beachgoers are packing more than just bathing suits and sunblock for their summer vacations: An AP-Ipsos poll released Friday said that one in five people also packed a laptop computer for their most recent vacations, the Press of Atlantic City reports. Some businesses, like How You Brewin' and Buckalew's Cafe in Beach Haven, cater to such visitors by offering free Wi-Fi access.
Read the full story.

Most shore visitors don't know what to do when they get caught in a rip current 50 yards from the beach, and that has some advocates calling for a week of awareness about the dangerous currents, the Press of Atlantic City reports.
Read the full story.

Euphoria swept the Claridge Ballroom inside Bally's Casino in Atlantic City early Sundayas the United Auto Workers racked up a key election victory to represent Bally's dealers, the Inquirer's Suzette Parmley reports. Bally's dealers voted, 628-255, to unionize, and now the UAW and casino management are tied at 2-2 among casinos that have held elections. Dealers at Caesars and Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino voted overwhelmingly to join the UAW, while the union has suffered two narrow defeats in recent weeks at the Trump Marina and Atlantic City Hilton.
Read the full story.

From concerts and comedy shows in Atlantic City to the Mummers in Wildwood to a Victorian fair in Cape May, there are oodles of events at the shore in June.
Read the full events listing.

Too much of a good thing can be painful, even deadly, when it comes to sunshine. So with summer just about in full swing, dermatologists and skin cancer researchers say people should limit their time in the sun and take other steps to protect themselves from the sun, the Associated Press reports. "Enjoy it, but enjoy it in moderation and with common sense," said Dr. Warren Heymann, head of the division of dermatology at Cooper University Hospital in Camden.
Read the full story.

A cooling real estate market is spurring a growing number of home foreclosures at the Jersey Shore, reports CBS3's Cydney Long. Foreclosure rates - affecting homes of all shapes, sizes and prices, according to mortgage brokers - are up 110 percent over last year, according to the story.
Go to the CBS3 report.

Staffers at Philadelphia Magazine, as part of the "Best of the Shore” feature in the June edition, picked their favorite ice cream spots at the beach.

Leading their list (in no particular order): Dry Dock in Cape May, Sea Shell in Wildwood, Springer’s Homemade Ice Cream in Stone Harbor, Avalon Freeze in Avalon, Marita’s Homemade Ice Cream in Sea Isle City, Dairy Bar in Margate, A La Mode and Hobby Horse, both in Ocean City, Custard’s Last Stand in Ventnor Heights, Aunt B’s in Brigantine and Barry’s Do-Me-A-Flavor in Beach Haven.

We invite our readers to submit their own favorites, and tell us why.

Business on the boardwalk in Ocean City was booming thanks to great weather at the shore this weekend, the Press of Atlantic City reports.
Read the full story.

The Press also has an interesting story about the McDonald's Restaurant in Somers Point, which has put music on the menu.
Read the full story.

In the 10 years since gentrification and a surge in real estate values created a whale of a breach between modest longtime residents and new big-time spenders in Avalon, bait shop owners David and Tammie Carbohn are able to relate to everyone quite nicely, the Inquirer's Melissa Dribben writes, because they deal in a sport that gives no great advantage to the lavishly equipped.
Read the full story.

Shore merchants are seeing blue skies despite higher gas prices and storm predictions. Many hope visitors will "party like it's 1999," a record year for profits for businesses by the ocean.
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It was a flawless Saturday along the Jersey Shore, with Mother Nature and visitors giving the beach season a warm reception.
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It may have been a beautiful 90-degree day on the sands but it was a different story in the water. "It's freezing," said Isabella Capecci, 6, of Langhorne, who was playing in the Atlantic City surf .
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From Belmar to Cape May, shore towns and organizations will honor the memory of those Americans who have died in military service to our country. A list of services scheduled for Saturday and Monday follows.

AP Photo

Some 90 environmental and preservation groups have hired a plane to tote a banner promoting open space up the coast, from Cape May to Sandy Hook, during the Memorial Day weekend, the Associated Press reports.
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Jersey Shore communities have a whole bunch of crazy rules about what you can and can't do on the beach, the Associated Press reports. Did you know you can't draw dirty pictures in the sands of Belmar, or ride a camel on the beach in Wildwood? And keep your ruler ready if your kids are digging in the sand on Long Beach Island.
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