It was like a scene out of The Wizard of Oz, with a wicked witch of a storm dropping a house on the spirits of Rumson-Fair Haven area locals. It was the scene of what many might call the Superstorm Sandy crime that devastated the Sea Bright peninsula and wiped out a decades-long iconic spot — Donovan’s Reef.

When the coast was literally clear of the storm’s wrath, locals flocked to the site to see what Sandy had spit out and left behind. They cried, reminisced, meditated on the jetty and gathered tiny scraps of memories made at the longtime RFHers’ hang-out.

The Retro Pic(s) of the Day take us back to Donovan’s in the aftermath of Sandy.

Laying on the ground were decades worth of remnants from a hut by the sea where many milestone memories were made. On the cusp  of the iconic spot’s reopening, people wonder if the new and expanded hut by the sea will be a place to DO it again? Time will tell. Locals are poised for the fresh start. But, they always seem to look back on the good ol Donovan’s days.

What is your favorite Donovan’s memory from years gone by?

— Elaine Van Develde

— Photos/Elaine Van Develde