Reeds Beach
Middle Township, NJ
Reeds Beach anchors the northern end of Middle Township's Delaware Bay shorebird viewing beaches, the most developed of the three with an actual observation platform and a small paid parking lot at the end of North Beach Avenue. Every May and June, this stretch of sand becomes one of the best places on the East Coast to watch horseshoe crabs spawn and the shorebirds that time their migration around it.
The observation platform and the sheer scale of the annual shorebird spectacle make this a genuinely significant natural site, though it's a poor fit for anyone just looking for a normal swimming beach day.
How we score beachesBring a dollar for the parking lot, and check the closure dates before you go. The beach shuts down to general access during the peak spawning window, usually early May through early June, and it's enforced.
A small parking lot at the end of North Beach Avenue charges about a dollar per vehicle, more developed than the informal parking at nearby Kimbles and Cooks.
A viewing platform near the parking lot offers an accessible vantage point over the beach without needing to cross sand, along with a stone jetty area for a closer look.
Bay water warms into the mid to upper 70s by August, though the real seasonal draw here is May and June, when horseshoe crabs spawn and shorebirds arrive to feed on their eggs.
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