NJ just got a summer preview — here’s your 5-weeks to real summer plan

Wednesday and Thursday of this week, New Jersey got a message. It was not subtle.

Temperatures hit 90 degrees across much of the state on April 15th and 16th — the kind of heat that makes you forget what month it is. The Shore stayed a little cooler, running in the high 70s, but even that felt like a gift in mid-April. Windows came down. Grills came out. And for two glorious evenings, Linda and I sat on the deck with beverages of our choice — like it was July 15th — warm air right up until bedtime.

Here is where I confess something. I never turn the AC on in April. Never. It is a personal policy. So that night we went to bed with the windows open and paid the price. Neither of us slept particularly well. But honestly? The warmth was worth it.

This weekend the temperatures slide back to the 50s by Sunday, with a low in the 30s Monday night. Reality is returning. But that two-day preview changed something. I have been saying it since Thursday morning and I will keep saying it — it is going to be a great summer.

I say that every year. I mean it every year.

Memorial Day is five weeks out — act like it

Here is the thing about that heat wave. Beyond the joy of it, it was a wake-up call. Memorial Day weekend is five weeks away. If you have not made your plans yet, this chilly week ahead is the perfect time to sit down and do it.

I wrote back in February that Shore rentals were booking up fast — and that has not changed. Scoring a full week in a house may be tough at this point depending on where you are looking. But hotels and motels still have availability in a lot of Shore towns. The move right now is to block out your long weekends, put in your PTO requests before someone else beats you to it, and lock in those reservations while you are stuck inside watching the temperature drop.

For us that means long weekends in Wildwood Crest and Cape May, and day trips to Strathmere. That is our summer. We know it, we plan for it, and we protect it on the calendar like it is sacred — because it is.

SEE ALSO:  Cape May — in May!  

Take stock before the season starts

While you are at it, do a quick inventory of your shore supplies. You probably have not touched that beach bag since Labor Day. Go find it.

Is the beach umbrella still in good shape or did it lose a battle with last summer's wind? Do you have enough sunscreen or are you working from a half-empty bottle that expired in 2024? Check the beach towels, the blankets, the chairs. And while you are at it — do your kids' bathing suits still fit? More importantly, does yours? Hopefully it is a size too big at this point in the season. Either way, now is the time to find out — not at 8 a.m. on Memorial Day Saturday when the stores are already packed.

One more thing. Beach tags. Prices are up in several Shore towns this year, so factor that into your budget. That said, if your summer plans include Atlantic City, Strathmere or the Wildwoods, you will not need them at all. Free beaches, no badge required — and three very good reasons to put those towns on your list.

The countdown is on

Five weeks. The warmth will come back and when it does it will stay. Get your plans together this weekend while the temperatures remind you that summer is not actually here yet — and make sure you are ready when it is.

It is going to be a great summer.

I say that every year. This time I really mean it.