Sewaren's Public Boat Launch Port is a Popular Hang Out Spot

Many Woodbridge residents come out to the Public Boat Launch area in Sewaren during the summer months to soak in some brisk wind. The nearby dock and parking area, with a clear view of tugboats, oil freighters, and the fuel storage tanks of Staten Island across the Arthur Kill, has become a popular hangout for senior citizens.

"We come here to have lunch and relax whenever the weather is nice," said Pat Marinelli as she sat alongside her husband, Frank Marinelli.

After spending some quality time gazing out into the bay and the Outerbridge in the distance, then relaxing, reading, and even doing some writing, the Marinellis often take a drive through the nearby park. "We read, I sometimes write, and watch the boats pass by. Afterwards we ride through the park down the street and sometimes catch a glimpse of some deer," said Pat Marinelli, who grew up in Avenel.

"I've grew up here and lived here for a long time and I remember before a lot of this was here. I used to swim here as a little girl before the oil company came," said Pat Marinelli.

The Marinellis enjoy the area so much that, sometimes, they even come here during the winter season. "Once we brought our lunch here when it was winter, we were wearing our big puffy jackets, and a ship went by and looked at us like we were crazy, it was funny," said Pat Marinelli, laughing.

The Marinellis also get quite a bit of old-fashioned entertainment out of their visits. "Once I came here when they brought the prison inmates," said Frank Marinelli. "They were all around me. They were having lunch and so was I, I think they had a better lunch than me," he said with a hearty laugh.

On the weekends, the port gets very busy. "Sometimes you get to see funny people who have no clue what they're doing with the boats. You can tell an experienced person from an inexperienced one very easily," said Pat Marinelli, who then went on to recall a comedic story of a man who ended up falling into the shallow water several times before he got his boat to dock.

John Longberg of Fords said he comes to the port often during the weekdays. "I don't come during the weekends because it's like a zoo," said Longberg, who fishes as a hobby.

"I come here because I get a great discount on the season pass, but I don't come here during the weekends because you end up running into people who know nothing about boats and it takes them about 4 guys to dock one little boat," said Longberg.

After docking his boat, Charlie Malin, a Port Reading resident, proudly held up a fluke that he caught out at sea, "It's five pounds," said Malin, who has lived in the Woodbridge area for the past 35 years.

"I come here constantly, about 3 to 4 times a week. I've seen a lot of changes in this area because of the oil company, but it's expected," Malin said.