Ocean Fun Days Offers FREE Family Fun with an Eco-Friendly Focus

(Sandy Hook, NJ) … One of the spring’s most popular environmental education events, Ocean Fun Days, will be held this year on Saturday May 17 at Island Beach State Park in Seaside Park and Sunday May 18 at the headquarters of the New Jersey Sea Grant Consortium (NJSGC) in the historic Fort Hancock section of Sandy Hook. Hours are 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. each day.

For the eleventh consecutive year, event admission and parking will be free. Visitors will be able to enjoy educational displays, eco-tours, classes and hand-on activities and exhibits that all celebrate the wonders of the Jersey Shore and how to preserve its natural resources for generations to come.

A record number of exhibitors have already committed to be a part of this year’s event. Activities at both locations include seining, coastal crafts, an energy-saving scavenger hunt, youth fishing clinics, face painting, touch tanks, a student science fair competition and the NJSGC’s famous fiddler crab races. Additionally, there will be a new clamming the bay activity at Island Beach State Park.

The Sandy Hook location will also include guided tours of many of Sandy Hook’s historic sites and an open house at the NOAA/James J. Howard Marine Sciences Laboratory. A complimentary shuttle bus service will be available at both locations to take visitors to tour sites. For additional event information and directions, visit njseagrantconsortium.org or the Community section of njng.com.

Ocean Fun Days is presented by founding sponsor New Jersey Natural Gas, in partnership with the New Jersey Sea Grant Consortium, Asbury Park Press, New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, New Jersey Division of Parks and Forestry and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

The New Jersey Sea Grant Consortium is an affiliation of colleges, universities and other groups dedicated to advancing knowledge and stewardship of New Jersey’s marine and coastal environment. NJSGC meets its mission through its innovative research, education and outreach programs. For more information about NJSGC visit njseagrantconsortium.org.