NJ: Cape May

Day 361
July 19, 2016
NM Today: 54
NM to Date: 5978

We left the docks in Delaware City shortly after 9:00 a.m. on our way to our home state and the historic town of Cape May, New Jersey. We knew we had a long travel day ahead of us, so Clark had a contingency plan of a stopover on the Cohansey River if we needed to stop part way for some unexpected reason.

Last Look at the  C&D Branch Canal
running through Delaware City, DE

A Last View of Delaware City, DE
before heading out into the Delaware River

 The Delaware River offered a variety of things to look at during our travels today starting with a big ship leaving port just as we entered the river.

Minerva Clara
Leaving Delaware City and
Heading upriver towards Philadelphia, PA

Dole Ship - Pineapple Anyone?

Salem Nuclear Plant - Cooling Tower

Ship John Shoal Lighthouse on the Delaware River
near entrance to the Cohansey River

 We arrived at the entrance to the Cohansey River near 1:00, and Clark decided we should just keep going.

Elbow of Cross Ledge Light

In addition to inanimate objects, Clark spied numerous stingrays and even dolphin. They are very tricky to capture clearly in pictures however, so none appear in the blog.

As we approached Cape May, New Jersey, we passed the Cape May, NJ - Lewes, DE ferry terminal.

Cape May - Lewes Ferry

Yay - Home! (almost)

Delaware Ferry Boat
at the ferry terminal

Cape May Canal

Home Along the Cape May Canal

Coming into Cape May itself we passed more large vessels.

Cape May Whale Watcher
going out with a boat load of passengers to look for whales

Fishing Boats - docked in Cape May, NJ

Approximately seven hours after we left Delaware City, we docked at South Jersey Marina in Cape May. Once we had checked in and were settled, we contacted our new boating friends, Frank and Alexis, on Carribean Queen to walk to the Washington Street Mall in Cape May for dinner and sightseeing. We walked down Washington Street since the person working in the marina told us this street was the more picturesque of the two choices.

Clark had his camera in hand as we walked along, and he made frequent use of it. We saw many turn-of-the-century homes - some with beautifully manicured gardens.

View of the docks in Cape May

"Inn at the Park" c. 1893

"Thomas Webster House"

Carefully Tended Garden

Lighting makes this older building look
like a candidate for a horror movie

"Le Petit Jardin"

"Southern Mansion"
note "Widow's Walk" on top of building

 Along the way we found, quite by accident, the firemen's museum. The old firehouse is situated in front of the current, working firehouse and is now displays historic artifacts.

Fireman's Museum

 We missed the main attraction. The old fire engine "LaFrance" was out being worked on for periodic maintenance.

Finally, after making the one-mile walk from the marina, we arrived at the Washington Street Mall.

Horse and Buggy Rides Available

Fountain and View of the "Mall"

Clark asked at the information booth and got a recommendation for dinner at a restaurant called "The Ugly Mug". My analysis on my smart phone had led me to the same conclusion, so the four of us headed there. We noted the number of mugs hanging from the ceiling and found the explanation for their being there written on the back of the menu.

Mugs, mugs, and more mugs hanging from ceiling at
"The Ugly Mug" Restaurant

Mugs belong to members of "The Ugly Mug" club.
Mugs of deceased members are turned to face the ocean as a sign of respect

After a very filling meal, we continued our stroll along the mall as we headed towards Beach Avenue and the Atlantic  Ocean.

"The Merry Widow" Bed & Breakfast
one block from the beach

Besides getting a view of the ocean, Clark headed to Beach Avenue because he had a specific ice cream shop in mind ... one that sold sorbet! We stopped into "Fine Fellows Creamistry" where I found toffee ice cream (so I had to get some), and Clark found his raspberry sorbet. He was "half happy" with this find. He told them they needed to stock blueberry sorbet as well.

As our overly-full ice cream cones dripped a sticky mess on our hands (and Clark's shorts), we walked across the street to get a view of the ocean. When I got near the beach, I turned to Alexis and said, "Now I feel like I am home. Welcome to the Jersey Shore!"

Sunset at the Beach in Cape May, NJ

 We finished our cones and then headed back towards the mall and ultimately our respective boats. Along the way we passed a church that was open to the public. We did not go in, but we could see the beautiful stained glass from outside, and Clark was able to capture the moment.

Beautiful Stained Glass Windows in
Cape May, NJ church

When we arrived at the mall earlier, Alexis and Frank sampled a free taste of the fudge made in Cape May at the Fudge Factory. Before heading back to the boats, we stopped in so they could buy some to take with them. A chef was busy making fudge by the store window in full view of folks walking by. As we waited for Alexis to make her fudge purchase, we watched the cook work his fudge. He was clearly enjoying being on camera and appeared to be good at his job.

Racks of Fudge on the Shelves
and More in the Making

Before leaving the mall, Frank kindly agreed to take our picture standing next to the bell from the S S Cape May.

We walked back to our boat via Lafayette Street (for comparison purposes) and found that the marina staff was correct in that the view was not as interesting as Washington Street.

Tomorrow we are traveling to Atlantic City, and Alexis and Frank are going to Little Egg Inlet which lies beyond our destination, so we parted ways here and wished them a Bon Voyage and an enjoyable Great Loop adventure.