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There’s More
to Explore at the Jersey Shore
The Jersey Cape is more than just 30
miles of pristine beaches. Visitors come to the Cape because of our white sandy beaches,
warm gentle surf and cool ocean breezes, but our diversity is what keeps them returning
year after year.
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History
Discover Cape May
County’s history – and have fun doing it! Climb
to the top of the Cape May Lighthouse and stop
by the Hereford Lighthouse, relive the county’s
patriotic experiences during World War II at
Naval Air Station Wildwood or see what life was
like here in mid 1800s with a visit to Historic
Cold Spring Village.
Most towns have local museums filled with
history, artifacts and knowledgeable people –
the Sindia Museum in Ocean City, the George
Boyer Museum in Wildwood or the Sam Azeez Museum
in Woodbine housed in an historic synagogue. The
Cape May County Museum in the John Holmes House
is one of the oldest structures in the county,
c. 1755, with period rooms, displays of
furnishings, costumes, tools and decorative and
practical objects from the 17th to 20th
centuries.
The county is filled with buildings and sites on
the National Register of Historic Places
including most of Victorian Cape May, the
state’s only National Historic Landmark City.
Tours of the town – by trolley, foot or even
horse and carriage – are a wonderful way to
learn about Cape Island’s history, great fires,
presidential visits and more.
Arts
Enjoy the Ocean City
Pops, the Cape May Jazz Festivals – both spring
and fall – or catch a play at Cape May Stage, a
professional Equity theater in a small, intimate
setting. For classical music lovers, the
Cape May Music Festival is six weeks of pure
enjoyment with chamber groups, the Bay Atlantic
Symphony, pianists and others who perform at
convention hall and Church of the Advent. The
East Lynne Company, another Cape May theater,
produces plays of American heritage as well as
works of and by American literary figures. Film
festivals are a more recent addition to a
growing, year-round arts calendar. For the
antique lovers, shops are everywhere especially
along the Route 9 corridor that runs the length
of the country.
In July and August, resorts sponsor an abundance
of summer concerts, most of them free, outside
and with the ocean and sunset as a backdrop. Sit
on the sand, spread out a blanket or grab a
beach chair and enjoy. Outdoor art shows along
Boardwalks, promenades and tree-lined paths at
historic sites showcase talent that often gets
inspiration from local scenes.
Nature
To visit Leaming’s Run
on Route 9 in Swainton is to leave the world
behind and be enveloped in acres of flowers,
gardens, birds and butterflies. From early
summer to late fall, the gardens, flowers and
birds change with the seasons.
For youngsters, there’s no more natural place to
have fun than the Wetlands Institute with salt
marsh trails, aquariums filled with turtles and
horseshoe crab exhibits – or check out those
crabs up close and personal along the bay
especially in the spring when literally
thousands come ashore to lay eggs that help
provide nourishment for migrating red knots.
Cape May Nature Center right on the harbor in
Cape May is busy with harbor safaris, guided
kayaking trips, biking tours, gardening
programs, family hikes, and beach explorations.
And don’t forget the Cape May County Zoo – it’s
home to hundreds of animals including zebras and
giraffes who live in the natural savanna.
A dozen or more golf courses – public and
private, 9 holes or 18, are located throughout
the county. Birding enthusiasts already know
that Cape May is the birding capital of North
America – and novices and would-be birders are
always welcome to join the fun. Cape May Point
is a great place to start with marked,
easy-to-follow trails to help even the novice
birder spot ducks, swans, osprey, and other
shore birds and wildlife along the way.
Straddling the border the Cape May-Cumberland
border, Belleplain State Forest encompasses
21,000 acres of Pinelands. One of Southern New
Jersey’s premier camping destinations, it¹s a
great place for hiking, biking, bird watching,
canoeing and exploring. The county also
maintains several parks, open to the public at
no cost. One of the newest attractions, the
Villas Wildlife Management Area is quickly
becoming a favorite spot for birdwatchers,
walkers and anyone who just wants to see nature
up close and personal.
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