New Jersey's Smallest State Park Is A Quaint Coastal Escape With Incredible Views Of Long Beach Island

Though it may be New Jersey's smallest state park, the Barnegat Lighthouse State Park packs sweeping views into its modest plot. Per the New Jersey Audubon Society, the park is just 32 acres (for scale, you could fit that in NYC's Central Park about 26 times). It sits at the northernmost extreme of Long Beach Island, a pristine New Jersey island with 18 miles of beach. In its compact acreage, the park has a trail, a rare forest, a center with some historical displays, and, of course, the namesake lighthouse, which you can climb up to get panoramic views.

Aside from the lighthouse itself, Barnegat Lighthouse State Park provides a few other ways to enjoy the outdoors. Fishers can cast a line into the Barnegat Inlet, which, according to the nonprofit Save Coastal Wildlife, is a habitat for fish like striped bass and fluke. The New Jersey Audubon Society also identifies it as an important bird area, noting that it's New Jersey's only habitat where harlequin ducks take refuge in winter.

"An amazing park to go and look out over the ocean [...] beautiful trails and a string of rocks along the ocean you can go explore and see the wildlife for yourself," a Google reviewer said about the park. Best of all, there's no entrance fee, making it a good option for a budget-friendly outing by the sea.

For visitors interested in the historical context of the Barnegat Light (nicknamed "Old Barney"), a good place to start at Barnegat Lighthouse State Park is its interpretive center. A state park brochure highlights how the center not only covers the construction and history of the lighthouse itself, but also some context about the surrounding area, including the coastline's environment. The center shows a livestream from the top of the lighthouse if you want to get the bird's-eye views without climbing up. Otherwise, it's a 217-step journey to the top for the views of the Atlantic Ocean and coast.

Past visitors have enjoyed the sandy Maritime Forest Trail that encircles the lighthouse in a 0.2-mile loop, leaving from the interpretive center. "It's a very short trail but it's just so different from everything else on the island," one Google reviewer wrote. Indeed, the trail winds through a special ecosystem: one of the few remaining maritime forests in New Jersey, according to a trail brochure. Most other forests of its ilk were wiped out by development. You'll walk among dense trees and shrubs that have adapted to oceanic salt spray. There are also interpretive signs along the trail that point out different plant species — and bring your binoculars, since the forest harbors abundant migratory birds.

After the climb up the light or the short hike, you can relax by the small beach area. There's a jetty extending to the inlet, where you'll often see people fishing. Swimming, however, isn't allowed.

Travelers flying in can land at the Atlantic City International Airport, northwest of the Jersey Shore city famed for its delicious seafood and about an hour from the Barnegat Lighthouse by car. There's a free parking lot at the park, with restrooms located next to it. The park is open every day between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m., but if you want to climb up the lighthouse, it's only open on weekends. Also, while general entry to the park is free, there is a fee to go in the lighthouse that applies between Memorial Day and Labor Day (just $3, as of this writing).

A few dining options are available by the state park. There's a coffee shop, Andy's Coffee Shack, which doubles as a bait and gift shop. An option with more food offerings is Kelly's Old Barney, which serves everything from omelettes and sandwiches to soft-serve ice cream. The restaurant is only open seasonally, though, and is closed as of this writing. For more dining options, you might consider driving 35 minutes to Tuckerton, New Jersey's bayfront borough with boardwalk nostalgia.