New Jersey

A weathered old sign, a Route 9 address, and the kind of doorway that makes you slow down…

By Duncan Edwards · May 12

A giant elephant stands a block from the beach, a smiling water tower grins over Absecon Island, and…

By Duncan Edwards · May 12

About 150 feet off Sunset Beach, the remains of a concrete ship rise out of the Delaware Bay…

By Duncan Edwards · May 11

A six-story elephant looks out over the Shore like she has been waiting patiently for everyone else to…

By Duncan Edwards · May 11

A shopping cart rattles across the floor, somebody two aisles over gasps at a pair of boots, and…

By Duncan Edwards · May 11

A funny thing happens when you stop treating New Jersey like a place to rush through. The state…

By Duncan Edwards · May 11

A few steps off Middletown-Lincroft Road, you can crouch beside a shallow creek, scoop up a handful of…

By Duncan Edwards · May 11

There is a particular kind of New Jersey magic that happens when you park once, forget where you…

By Duncan Edwards · May 11

The first thing you notice is not the skyline, even though Manhattan is sitting right there across the…

By Duncan Edwards · May 11

A red mill mirrored in a slow river. A Victorian porch with so much gingerbread trim it looks…

By Duncan Edwards · May 11

The Empire State Building is right there, doing its little postcard pose across the Hudson, while you’re on…

By Duncan Edwards · May 10

At the right time of day, New Jersey gets wonderfully dramatic about itself. A quiet millpond turns copper.…

By Duncan Edwards · May 10

A folding table covered in old fishing reels, a crate of vinyl records, three mismatched dining chairs, and…

By Duncan Edwards · May 10

The porch lights come on early in these towns, and that is when New Jersey starts showing off.…

By Duncan Edwards · May 10

There is a moment in Madison when the whole town seems to line up perfectly: the old train…

By Duncan Edwards · May 10

A peacock steps across a garden path in Hamilton like it owns the place, a waterfall roars through…

By Duncan Edwards · May 10

A bench on a bookshop porch can be a dangerously powerful thing. One minute you are “just looking”…

By Duncan Edwards · May 10

A six-story elephant stares out over Margate like she has been keeping shore secrets since the Victorian era.…

By Duncan Edwards · May 10

A row of folding tables can tell you a lot about New Jersey. At Englishtown Auction Sales, one…

By Duncan Edwards · May 9

The best New Jersey pizza tip usually does not come with a neon sign or a glossy “best…

By Duncan Edwards · May 9

The first thing you notice at Hot Grill is not the sign, the parking lot, or even the…

By Duncan Edwards · May 9

A proper New Jersey pancake breakfast does not whisper. It lands at the table with a little thud,…

By Duncan Edwards · May 9

A paved path slips under Route 1 in Edison, ducks beneath the Turnpike, and somehow still manages to…

By Duncan Edwards · May 9

The smell usually hits before the sign does: oak smoke drifting over a parking lot, sweet sauce clinging…

By Duncan Edwards · May 9

The first clue that PieGirl is not your average bakery comes before you even get a fork involved.…

By Duncan Edwards · May 9

A crumb cake so top-heavy it practically needs a seatbelt. A scoop shop where the line becomes part…

By Duncan Edwards · May 9

The first thing you notice is not the sign, though the big Hot Dog Johnny’s lettering is hard…

By Duncan Edwards · May 8

A paper plate piled with fried scallops can tell you more about New Jersey than a glossy travel…

By Duncan Edwards · May 8

A stone building sits in the woods like somebody walked away mid-project and never came back. A few…

By Duncan Edwards · May 8