The New Singles Scene

So you haven’t found Mr. or Ms. Right tooling through the frozen food section or perched on a bar stool at happy hour? Wish you could find someone who shares your love of hiking or volunteering? It might be easier than you think. Just figure out what you like to do and then find a place to do it. There’s a good chance that someone nearby shares your interests.

1 Like to ski? The Garden State Ski Club (973-478-8722; gardenstateskiclub.com), established in 1958, consists of more than 400 mostly single people. Besides great skiing options, the club offers a year-round schedule of other sports, including rollerblading, golf, tennis, bicycling, and canoeing. While the club welcomes skiers 21 and over, most members are between 30 and 60.

2 If water is your thing, the 21-year-old Hackensack River and Canoe and Kayak Club (201-287-1970; www.hrckc.org) includes a mix of families and singles with all levels of experience. In addition to leisurely day trips, the club features expeditions to wild spots such as Georgia’s Okefenokee Swamp and the Florida Everglades.

If the ocean calls to you, spend the day aboard the Cape May Whale Watcher (800-786-5445; capemaywhalewatcher.com). Or schedule sailing lessons at Off-Shore Sailing in Jersey City (800-221-4326; offshore-sailing.com) or the New Jersey Sailing School in Point Pleasant (732-295-3450; newjerseysailingschool.com).

3 If you’re at home on the range, then gallop over to one of the hundreds of stables throughout the state. Singles groups like Parents Without Partners (Ramapo Chapter, 973-831-1535; parentswithoutpartners.org) organize lessons and trail rides, while Spring Valley Equestrian Center in Newton (973-383-3766; springvalleyequestriancenter.com) lets you choose between English and Western riding styles and supplies the necessary safety headgear.

4 Tennis anyone? Groups throughout the state set aside court time for singles. As many as 70 players attend Net Set’s (908-580-9777) weekly singles sessions at Maywood Tennis Club, which include three to four hours of court time and food for about $28.

Racquet Buffs (www.geocities.com/racquetbuffs) meets at the Binghamton Racquet Club in Edgewater, Tiger Racquet Club in West Caldwell, and Packanack Lake & Tennis Club in Wayne. According to founder Marvin Furman, more than 25 couples have met and married through his tennis parties, and while some of the attendees are couples, most are singles from 30 to 55 years old.

5 More and more New Jersey singles have increasingly demanding work schedules that leave them little time to date or socialize. Enter the Biz-to-Biz Cafe (201-818-8913; biztobizcafe.com), an organization that hosts regular evening meetings in various North Jersey locations for busy professionals who want to establish business/social relationships with like-minded people. And Toastmasters International groups for singles (toastmasters.org) will help you enhance your communications and leadership skills.

6 Dinners by Dana (973-680-1099) organizes face-to-face dinner meetings for single professionals in Nutley. Guest lists are evenly split between men and women ranging in age from 35 to 55.

On a smaller scale, Spectra Singles (spectrasingles.com) orchestrates casual lunch or dinner meetings for single professionals who want to try new restaurants in Essex, Morris, Bergen, Middlesex, or Passaic counties. Each gathering is planned for eight to twelve people in their thirties or forties.

7 If sports or networking isn’t your thing, consider other options. Take a professional development course, like this month’s Landmark Forum (landmarkeducation.com) in South Plainfield from the 24th through the 28th. And check out Rider University’s College of Continuing Studies (rider.edu). Or join a theater troupe, such as the Bergen County Players (bcplayers.org) in Oradell; there are plenty of backstage jobs like set design, decoration, makeup, lighting, and manning the box office for those who shun the spotlight.

8 Seeking community-minded singles? Volunteer. The Food Bank of South Jersey (foodbanksj.org) holds a Sort Night twice a year—a great way to meet others while helping those in need. Berlin-based Caring Singles (www.geocities.com/caringsinglessj/index.htm) organizes blood drives, charity work for homeless shelters and orphanages, and other social-service projects. Table to Table (tableto-table.org) is a food salvage program that disbursed more than 4 million meals to needy New Jerseyans last year.

Read more Jersey Living articles.

By submitting comments you grant permission for all or part of those comments to appear in the print edition of New Jersey Monthly.

Required
Required not shown
Required not shown