Photo of the Day: Shark River, Avon-by-the-Sea, NJ

Yesterday an event took me down to an area that, despite my lifelong residence in the state, I have rarely gone to in recent years: the Jersey Shore. As soon as I stepped out of my car in the parking lot next to the Marina Building, I was enthralled by this setting, with the bridge leading to Belmar off to the right, so I took this picture.

The Shark River is one of three bodies of water, along with Sylvan Lake and the Atlantic Ocean, that surrounds Avon-by-the-Sea. It was a quiet late afternoon when I got down there, so I missed the parade of boats that often go by. But I gloried in the view and the crisp air of this seaside community.

Running eleven miles, the Shark River is bordered by Avon-by-the-Sea, Neptune City, Neptune Township, Wall Township and Belmar Borough. Despite its approximately 800 acres of shellfish growing waters, much of the river is classified “Restricted “by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection.

Oh, yes: wondering about sharks? Turns out none is present in these waters. So why this name? Some possible theories:

*Maybe the name dates from the mid-1800s, when a shark might have been in the river;

*Maybe it derives from the “low-grade” fishing huts or shacks around in the late 1700s, with “shark” being a twisted form of  “Shirk” or “Shack”; or

*Maybe it comes from because upstream in Shark River Park can be found shark teeth left in fossil from the Cretaceous geologic period.

For an interesting oral history of the Avon River (including bootlegging that went on during Prohibition), see this interview with longtime area resident Ray Dodd, recorded and posted online by his son Charlie after his death.