Gunnison Beach, Sandy Hook

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Gunnison Beach located in Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States, is part of the Sandy Hook unit of the Gateway National Recreation Area, and is managed by the National Park Service. It was named for the Gunnison Battery, a fortification built by the US Government to protect New York Harbor in the 1800s. Remnants of the battery, including gun emplacements, overlook the beach. It was once part of Fort Hancock, a test site and proving ground for the US Army for many years and was later the site of a Nike missile defense installation.

It is, by custom, the only nude beach in New Jersey, and one of the major clothing-optional recreation areas in the New York metropolitan area. The clothing optional beach attracts nearly 5,000 naturists per weekend in the summer months. Part of the beach is shared on a seasonal basis with a reserved breeding ground for the endangered Piping Plover, a native shore bird.