Manasquan River / Barnaget Bay, NJ

Anyone familiar with the Manasquan River, NJ and especially that mile long or so channel that connects it to the Metedeconk River / Upper Barnaget Bay?

Is that channel rough water for smaller boats? How about the inlet where the Manasquan meets the Atlantic? Is that rough for a runabout?

Never boated the Manasquan but found what appears to be a suitable day ramp and ample parking. Any feedback or tips appreciated!

Re: Manasquan River / Barnaget Bay, NJ

The canal in question is named the "Point Pleasant Canal" and is 2 miles long. Anyone know how rough this canal is?

Re: Manasquan River / Barnaget Bay, NJ

I went through that canal once, and it didn't seem bad at all. Of course, that was once, and maybe I got lucky. I keep my boat at Forge Landing Marina at the end of the Metedeconk River by Route 70. That same day I also went through the Manasquan River inlet. That day had some unsettled weather, but there were still some < 20' boats out and about. You can certainly go out to Barnaget Bay. Just be careful if you venture out of the channel. The bay can be shallow in many places.

I'm far from being a boating expert since I just started last year. If you have more questions about that area just ask. I'll answer best to my limited knowledge.

Cheers.

Re: Manasquan River / Barnaget Bay, NJ

Manasquan inlet is a nice big easy inlet, it's about the easiest on the Jersey shore to run. If you know what you are doing, a runabout outside the inlet is no problem. The Point Pleasant Canal can easily be done in a runabout as well, but it can get bouncy REAL fast if there are a couple of good size boats in it with the current running. It has gotten a lot better since they replaced the Ocean Road (RT88) (?) bridge a good number of years ago. The old bridge had two support pillars that went down into the canal; when the current was running there was about a 1 foot differance in water height from one side of the bridge to the other. That used to be real fun trip!