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Cape May County,
New Jersey
Attractions at the Jersey Cape: History, Arts,
Nature
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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