A post-snow trip to the beach reminded me how great New Jersey is

You don’t need me to tell you how particularly brutal the past few weeks of winter have been for the Garden State.

Some of us saw over 2 feet of snow with last week’s storm.

On a personal note, my family’s home had such bad weather conditions that we had a tree fall in the yard that could have killed someone if the circumstances had been different.

Thankfully, it was the best-case scenario, but the massive amount of snow made me crave a reminder of how this kind of cruel winter isn’t always the case in New Jersey.
It may seem like a distant memory now, but being outside in New Jersey doesn’t have to be miserable.

Read More: How The Blizzard Of 2026 Disrupted New Jersey Life

What a concept.

I was reminded of this over the weekend when we hit over 45 degrees and I treated it like it was a summer day.

What I mean is: the 48-degree day was spent briefly on the beach at Belmar.

As soon as I got out of the car, the marvelous scent of the ocean hit me and I couldn’t help but smile.

Despite the cool air, I was met with summer vibes as I breathed in the sea breeze and stepped on the sand.

I could see kids playing in the sure-to-be-cold playground while moms sipped (what I’m sure was) water from their reusable cups.

Summer vibes at the Jersey Shore

Seagulls flew by despite no stealable boardwalk French fries to be found.

Waves crashed on the sand with the familiar sounds of summer at the shore.

It was perfect.

After weeks of seeing inches and inches of snow on the ground, it was a beautiful reminder that the Garden State has so much more to offer and there’s an end in sight with this particularly snowy winter.

❄️ An open letter to the darn groundhogs who predicted winter for NJ ❄️

Bottom line is: don’t let this snowy start of 2026 get you down, your Jersey summer is coming, so you can shift your anger at the Bennies instead of the cold weather.

The post above reflects the thoughts and observations of New Jersey 101.5's Kylie Moore. Any opinions expressed are Kylie's own. You can follow Kylie on Instagram.

Report a correction 👈