Mount Hope Pond, also written Mt. Hope Pond, is Rockaway Township’s resident swimming beach. This is our permanent guide to the pond. We update it each spring when the Township opens beach badge sales for the new season.
2027 season: the Township has not announced 2027 badge prices or dates yet. The details below are from the 2026 season.
Beach badges
- Badges are sold through Community Pass.
- In 2026, badges cost $25 per person.
- Badges are for Rockaway Township residents only.
- Children 5 and under do not need a badge.
Picking up your badge
Badges bought online are picked up at the Recreation Department inside the Township municipal building, 65 Mt. Hope Road. In 2026, pickup hours were Monday through Thursday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., and Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
Swim season and hours
In 2026 the swim season began Memorial Day weekend, ran weekends only until school let out, then opened 7 days a week through Labor Day. Beach hours were 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Swimming lesson registration opened June 1.
Questions
Contact the Rockaway Township Division of Recreation at 973-983-2841.
More at the pond
The Township’s 2026 Fall Clean Up, part of its Clean Communities program, was held Oct. 17 at Mt. Hope Pond and Lake Ames. Read our 2026 Mt. Hope Pond beach badge story, and for more summer fun see our Park Lake Gazebo concerts guide and White Meadow Lake Festival Days guide. For other lakes in the area, see our guide to lakes in Rockaway NJ.
