Getting the flavor of...New Jersey’s Pine Barrens

New Jersey’s Pine Barrens

An escape into total wilderness is possible in New Jersey, said Jesse Smith in The Washington Post. The state’s Pine Barrens “represent the largest area of open space on the East Coast between Boston and Richmond, Va.,” but you have to get out of your car to put civilization behind. “The sun shone through the trees” as my partner and I began paddling our canoe on the narrow Mullica River, heading five and a half miles downstream to a wilderness campsite. The massive land preserve we were traversing is a densely forested coastal plain that supports a great variety of wildlife, and on our way we passed red-bellied turtles, woodcocks, a beaver, and a few great blue herons. We were disappointed to find a sign at the campsite declaring a ban on fires because of dry weather. But a fire proved unnecessary. The temperature held steady, and when the full moon rose, it was so bright that I could see my shadow on the white sand.

Oregon’s first beach getaway

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Lincoln City, Ore., is five different towns rolled into one, each “with its own idiosyncrasies,” said Terry Richard in the Portland Oregonian. Created in 1965 when five small communities voted to unite, this beach haven is said to be where tourism began on Oregon’s coast, thanks to two 1837 honeymooners. A drive through town shows why local officials call the communities the “String of Pearls.” Oceanlake recently got a tax-funded upgrade, and there you’ll find antiques shops and a ’50s-style ice-cream parlor. Easy beach access makes Delake home to one of Oregon’s busiest state parks. World-class surfing can be found in Nelscott, Lincoln City’s “most fashionable” neighborhood, while Cutler City houses the area’s best restaurant and best gallery. To many visitors, though, “the gem of Lincoln City” is Taft. As soon as one passes under Taft’s “welcoming arch,” the community’s cozy lodges and restaurants make the “cares of the highway disappear.”