On the way to Cape May

July 1, 2007 7:20 PM

We're driving from DC to Cape Henlopen State Park tomorrow morning. Anything to see on the way? Any suggestions (besides the obvious) for stuff to do there?

I'm packing myself, my wife, and my 12-year-old daughter into the car and heading to the beach for the day. We're planning on hitting the bathhouse at Cape Henlopen in Delaware around 10, hang out all day, then come home when we're tired of it all.

We're taking a cooler and chairs and swim fins and sun screen and all that, but I'm wondering if there are any must-sees along the way, or things to do off the beach in the mid-day heat.

posted by MrMoonPie to Travel & Transportation around Washington, DC (7 answers total)

I demand that you get Nic-O-Bolis at Nicola's in Rehoboth. You'll like them so much that you'll buy a case of them frozen to take home! (At least, that's what we always used to do.)
posted by escabeche at 7:39 PM on July 1, 2007

Best answer: The cape is right next to the uber-charming town of Lewes, where I've spent many a summer. If you really want to beat the heat, drive the 3 minutes to Lewes and visit the teeny Zwaanendael Maritime Museum (it's quick to walk through and very interesting) and then go around the corner to King's for ice cream. Around the corner from King's is a local attraction called The Cannonball House, which your daughter might get a kick out of looking at while she's eating her ice cream - it was hit by a cannonball from a British ship in 1813, and the cannonball is still there, in the foundation. It's much smaller than expected.
posted by iconomy at 7:57 PM on July 1, 2007

Just in case you're at all interested in any of the things I mentioned, here's a little map to show you where they are. You'd be coming from the right, as Cape Henlopen is just south of Lewes.

A - museum
B - King's
C - Cannonball House
posted by iconomy at 8:31 PM on July 1, 2007

Rappa Scrapple processing plant in Bridgeville. I don't know if they give tours, but it's like standing next to God.
posted by corpse at 9:08 PM on July 1, 2007

Dogfish Head Brewery Tour
posted by Otis at 6:22 AM on July 2, 2007

Seconding Dogfish Head. And envious of your trip to Cape Henlopen. It was one of the best things about my two years living in DE. The last time I was there, a school of dolphins was swimming near the shore all day, and one swam within 10 feet of me. It was the coolest thing ever.
posted by kimdog at 7:37 AM on July 2, 2007

Response by poster: Oh, yes, kimdog, I was going there specifically for the dolphins. This time, I got only as close as 20 or so feet, but I've had one come up about 6 feet away and pause to check me out--I could smell his breath. In fact, I have an old picture of one of the enounters.

So, yeah, we're back, and had a blast. We didn't get there until around 11, so we didn't have a chance to do any of the local activities, except for stopping by King's on the way out. We did have some excellent coffee at Mountain Mudd, a little drive-through shack about a half hour this side of the beach.

Overall, it was a long day trip, but one we'll repeat. We left DC around 8 am, and got back around 11 pm, tired but happy.
posted by MrMoonPie at 9:36 AM on July 3, 2007