Ten Activities to Enjoy in Middletown This Spring

Celebrating the arrival of spring with your family and friends can be really fun and refreshing after a long winter. Now that the weather is finally improving, it's time to break free from cabin fever, get some fresh air and enjoy fun outdoor activities.

Here are 10 fun ideas to try in the Middletown area. 

1)    Take to the extensive network of locals trails. Explore a trail near you at a local park, including Thompson Park, Huber Woods Park and Hartshorne Woods Park, or plan a day trip along the the Delaware Water Gap: Mt. Tammany on the NJ side and Mt. Minsi on the PA side with The Monmouth County Parks Dept.

2)    Zip to the Popcorn Park Zoo in Forked River, or coo over the purebreed puppies behind clear windows at the American Puppy Club store. See the snakes at the Huber Woods Park Environmental Center. (There is a family-oriented show there all day on April 21.) Beat the summer crowds and enjoy a visit to Poricy Park. You may find the animals are outside and more active as they emerge to enjoy the warmer weather too. You'll enjoy the visit even more if you bring some binoculars, which you can purchase at Le Camera.

3)    Hit the water. You can experience kayaking with the county Parks System through the Eco-Kayak Drop-In Tours on the Navesink River from Hartshorne Woods Park. 

You can pick out your own kayak, including stand up paddle boards, at Dosil's Scuba & Surf.

4)    Serve Middletown together by sprucing up your favorite place to play outdoors. Check out Clean Ocean Action for opportunities to volunteer with friends or family to clean up local beaches.

5)    Dig out your wheels. Time to break out your bikes from the garage. You can get your bike a tune-up at Mike's Bikes. If you find your child has outgrown his or her old bike, purchase a new one at Mobile Bicycle Center. Ride together on a bike-friendly trail at Thompson Park. And don’t forget bike helmets, which you can purchase at Target.

6)    Build a fort or a tree house. If your family includes kids, spring is an ideal time to build a fun place to play. A great source of inspiration is The Treehouse Book by Peter Nelson and David Larkin, available from Amazon or Barnes & Noble. Hufnagel Tree Service can be a  resource to help you pick the best tree to build your tree house in and to offer suggestions on how to build it without harming the tree.

7)    Start a garden. Now is the time to get your garden beds ready for planting by putting down compost. New to gardening? The Garden Club RFD can help you build your garden beds and offer advice on which flowers and veggies will do well in your climate. And kids can help start the garden too by planting seeds indoors in empty egg cartons that can be transferred outside into your garden beds in just a few weeks. You can find great soil and seeds to get started at Capelli's Landscape Supply & Nursery, Molzon Garden Center, and Holmdel Garden Center, all in Middletown.

8)    Learn some new navigation skills by going Geo-Caching. Geo-caching, or letterboxing, is an outdoor hunt for hidden treasures using navigational tools. You can learn about geo-caching at Thompson Park here.

9)    Enjoy your flea and farmer’s markets.  In many parts of the country, outdoor markets can be found all year round or from early spring to late fall. You can visit Atlantic Highlands Chamber of Commerce Farmers' Market Across road from Borough Hall starting in May.

10)  Go fly a kite. The wild wind makes spring an ideal time to enjoy kite flying.  You can purchase a great kite at Hobbymasters in Red Bank.

TELL US: How will you celebrate the arrival of spring here in town? Share your ideas for getting outside and enjoying the warmer weather in the comments section below.