HUGGING THE SOUTHERN MOST POINT in New Jersey where the Delaware Bay and Atlantic Ocean meet, Cape May and Cape May Point share the tip of the peninsula with their landlocked neighbor, West Cape May. The three quaint towns, each with its own personality, history and flavor, provide a slice of Americana that’s hard to beat. The nation’s oldest seashore resort and a National Historic Landmark, Cape May is filled with dozens of beautifully restored Victorian buildings. Cape May Point is a haven for birds and butterflies and people who revel in watching them, while West Cape May hosts many annual events in Wilbraham Park as well as the local Christmas Parade.

For late summer and early fall, there is no better way to enjoy a bird’s eye view of these towns than pedaling down Broadway, along Sunset Blvd. and back through Cape May along Beach Avenue, meandering up and down at least a dozen picture-perfect side streets. The terrain is flat, traffic is usually easy to navigate and the scenery is awesome. Didn’t bring a bike? Not a problem – there are bike rental shops scattered around Cape May that feature tandems, surreys, bicycles built for two and regular bikes for the entire family.

Quaint side streets, well-maintained homes and a quiet ambiance add to West Cape May’s charm as the town enjoys a resurgence of popularity as a residential area. Visitors and residents can browse in boutiques or shop at specialty shops and businesses offering unique services. There are many elegant bed and breakfast inns and a number of great restaurants. To capitalize on the acres of lima beans once grown on farms in the area, West Cape May started an annual annual Lima Bean Festival held in October. Highlights include crowning the Lima Bean Queen, lima bean tossing contests, endless Lima Bean dishes and the singing of the Lima Bean Blues. Goldbeaten Alley, off Broadway, is the only remnant of the gold beating industry that flourished for 50 years and “beaters” who pounded inch or half inch strips of gold into wafer-thin sheets that were carefully cut into squares and sold as gold leaf.

Turn right in the center of West Cape May and head down Sunset Blvd. toward Cape May Point, a tiny community with no boardwalk, no motels and no restaurants. It is well known for a small gingerbread church, a lighthouse, a concrete ship that lies just off Sunset Beach and the thousands of birds and butterflies that migrate through the area in the spring and fall. With only a few hundred residents, the Borough of Cape May Point still resembles the original settlement of Sea Grove, a Presbyterian retreat established in 1875 as part of a nation-wide temperance movement.

In the 1920s, the SS Atlantus, one of four concrete ships built as an experiment during World War I, was under tow from Virginia to Cape May when it ran aground just off the end of Sunset Boulevard. Although not much is left of the ship, it still continues to attract visitors, especially those looking for the quartz pebbles on Sunset Beach known locally as Cape May diamonds. During the summer, a brief ceremony takes place every evening at Sunset Beach that includes patriotic music and the lowering of the American Flag at sunset.

Cape May Point State Park is a bird watcher’s paradise, attracting naturalists from all over the world to enjoy the varied populations of birds and butterflies. The Cape May Lighthouse, the third lighthouse to guard the waters where the ocean and bay meet, was built in 1859. It has been completely restored and is open to visitors, offering an incredible panoramic view of the Cape for anyone willing to climb the 199 steps to the top. Technically, the lighthouse and Sunset Beach are actually parts of Lower Township although they are most commonly referred to as being located in Cape May Point. St. Peter’s by the Sea, a tiny gingerbread-adorned church, was part of the Philadelphia Centennial in Fairmount Park in 1876. The first services were held in July 1890 and have continued every summer since then, although the church has been moved several times from its original location to protect it from the ever-encroaching ocean. It is a favorite spot with photographers and artists.

Tired of pedaling around town? Then hop on the trolley or hire a horse and carriage for a guided tour of Cape May that provides a wealth of information, and an abundance of Victorian trivia. Virtually every street in the center of town is lined with ornate Victorian homes, most of them bed and breakfast inns and often open to the public for tea and tours. The 600 Victorian-era buildings comprise one of the largest collections of late 19th century buildings in the country. The Physick Estate on Washington Street, the headquarters of the Mid-Atlantic Center for the Arts, has tours daily of the 18-room Victorian mansion that was once the home of Dr. Emlen Physick. The Southern Mansion also on Washington Street is one of the more recent restorations that transformed a dilapidated, rundown house built in 1863 into another showplace for this historic seaside town.

Attic trunks that had been undisturbed for decades were filled with heirlooms, mementos and artwork that helped trace the George Allen family’s decades of ownership. Less ornate is the Colonial House on Washington Street, the home of the Greater Cape May Historical Society and probably the oldest house in Cape May still standing. A National Historic Landmark City, Cape May is “One of America’s Prettiest Painted Places,” the only place in the United States to earn this
distinction twice in the past few years.

The resort is often referred to as the “Restaurant Capital of New Jersey,” and also attracts painters, writers, actors and artists. And, Cape May beaches are among the best in the country! All this plus some great music, theater and a host of special events.

For more information about the Cape May area call (609) 884-5508 or visit www.capemaychamber.com•
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