Places worth a trip
76 real places and outings across Hunterdon County, checked one by one. Picks show the moment the page loads; answer a question or two to narrow them to your crew, and add your town to put the closest ones first. Events with dates live in the email; this is the evergreen list.
Local events, what's opening and closing, road closures, and the scams going around. Free, every Monday and Thursday morning.
Sources: each entry's official site or the county's own pages. Hours and seasons change; check the link before you drive.
Where you can actually swim
Hunterdon has a lot of water and very few places it's legal or safe to swim in it. The two state beaches, and the spots people wrongly treat as swimming holes. Updated July 2026
Round Valley Recreation Area
Lebanon Township
Swimming is allowed at the lifeguarded beach only. Beach hours are 10am to 5:30pm in the summer season.
Cost: NJ residents pay $5 per car on weekdays, $10 on weekends.
Spruce Run Recreation Area
Clinton Township
The beach opens some years and stays closed others — it was closed in 2025 over water quality. Call to confirm before you go.
Call first: 908-638-8572
Cost: Call ahead; don't assume the beach is open.
Read this before you jump in anywhere else
Ken Lockwood Gorge: Swimming is prohibited. It's posted catch-and-release trout water managed by NJ Fish & Wildlife — no swimming, no wading to cool off. Source.
The Delaware River in Hunterdon: There are no lifeguarded beaches anywhere along the Hunterdon side. The access points at Byram, Milford, Frenchtown, and Lambertville are boat and fishing launches, not swimming beaches. The National Park Service says swimming outside lifeguarded areas is not recommended — the currents and sudden drop-offs are what get people. Source.
Life in Hunterdon County, twice a week
Local events, what's opening and closing, road closures, and the scams going around. Free, every Monday and Thursday morning.