Brandy Jones
- Dec 27, 2019
- 2 min read

Visit to Cape Henlopen, DE

Once again, we were leaving Ocean City (OC), Maryland. It's a long drive home and we wanted to stop somewhere. We randomly selected Cape Henlopen, Delaware, which is near Lewes, Rehoboth Beach, and Bethany Beach in Delaware. The Cape May ferry landing is right near the entrance to the park.

December is not peak time and there are no costs to get in during this time. Luckily, it was a decent winter day. I prefer to travel with fewer crowds, but I can see that in nice weather it would be a bust but nice place to go.

The were so many things to do and see. The free bike rides were something I could see myself enjoying in good weather. You give them your driver's license and you can borrow bicycles (bikes) for 2 hours. The small nature center was great. The "touch" tank, where you can touch a hermit crab was a nice touch. The big aquariums showing the fish you can typically find in the area helped me to see some varieties of fish I was not aware were local. The guide there was very knowledgable. I enjoyed her discussion of the area and her recommendations for other things to do. Apparently in summer, their youth camps are quite busy.

The park has long beautiful beach, a historic fort, massive historic military guns, lighthouses, observatory tower, miles of hiking trails, camping, fishing pier, and so much more. It's my understanding that it is even a popular surfing location.

The actual cape, which is a pointed piece of land that sticks out into the water, is a wide beach with sand dunes between. While we were there they had vehicles driving on the beach, riders on horseback, many shells washed up on shore, and gorgeous views of the two lighthouses.

The observatory tower was used by the military is over 110 steps to climb, but the view is amazing. They have a regular schedule of activities and one of their upcoming activities caught my eye. From the top of the observatory, a small number of pre-registered attendees can watch the Quadrantids Meteor Shower. I wish I could make that one. It does look like they have these viewings on a regular basis. I'm going to make it a point to go back another night. From the day time, the observatory view allows you to see a huge area.