Cape May- Lewes Ferry

 

“People don’t take trips. Trips take people.”

John Steinbeck

The Cape May-Lewes Ferry is a great way to travel, either for a nice day trip or to save time on a long distance trip. This ferry can save a lot of time if you are heading to the New Jersey Shore from Delaware or heading south to the Delaware beaches or to the Virginia Beach area from New Jersey.

On your journey across the bay, you will have the pleasure of seeing historic lighthouses, picturesque harbors, sea vessels, and great wildlife. You may even be lucky enough to see a dolphin or two. It is a 17 mile cruise that takes you on a very nice ride across the Delaware Bay. The trip take about 85 minutes on way.

After we spent a lovely day in Lewes, Delaware, we headed to the Cape May-Lewes Ferry Terminal for our scheduled crossing. We showed our ticket at the entrance to the Lewes Terminal. They lined us up with all the other vehicles heading to Cape May. We noticed there were a couple tractor trailers as well as numerous cars and campers. This was going to be a big load.

We got out of the car and explored the terminal still decorated for the holidays. In front of the terminal is a complete mini replica of the vessels they use at this terminal. There was also a plaque stating The Legacy of Ted Freeman who was a local boy who became an aviator, went to the US Naval Academy, and was later selected for NASA to be an astronaut. He lost his life while making up a routine flight in Houston, Texas when a flock of snow geese flew into both engines. Both engines died and his plane was heading right towards a housing area where all the astronauts were staying. He stayed with his plane and veered away from the populated area saving many lives but taking his own. May he rest in peace.

Behind the terminal, the waterfront area looked beautiful that day with the sun shining and clear blue skies. There is a nice patio area with Adirondack seating and fire pits facing the waterfront. During the good weather, there is a patio bar/snack bar they open. There is also an Unknown Sailors Cemetery for all the sailors whose unidentified remains had washed ashore. From the shore you can look out over the water and see both the Breakwater Light House and the Harbor of Refuge Lighthouse. It is a pretty place to sit and look at the views of the water.

The Breakwater – a reddish lighthouse and can be seen from the shore and is the first lighthouse you spot when you leave Lewes. It was formerly known as the East End Lighthouse and was built in 1885 of cast iron.

The Harbor of Refuge Lighthouse is painted white and is a bit further out in the bay. This lighthouse was built to protect the National Harbor of Refuge and was built in 1926. They built it to stand up to the harshest of storms and has proved to be a strong lighthouse making it through several hurricanes.

Over the loud speaker they announced that it was time to go back to your vehicles. We did and prepared to be loaded up on the ferry. A lot more vehicles had lined up to get on the ferry since we arrived and we were shocked to see how many actually fit on the ferry. They sure know how to pack them in.

After the cars all stopped moving on the ferry, we got out and headed upstairs to the lounge. It is a huge lounge with TV's, comfortable seats with tables, and great places to relax and watch the day go by. There is also a small cafeteria and gift shop and two bars on board. We sat in a booth with a table where we could see the amazing views and enjoyed our time watching the beautiful scenery. I got up and took pictures of the lighthouses outside of Lewes. The sunset was glorious that day. The captain of the ferry came on to announce for everyone to look to the port side of the boat to see Samuel B. Roberts (FFG-58), a US Navy guided missile  frigate, aka “Sammie B,” being towed to Texas to be scrapped. This boat was commissioned in 1986 and was later damaged in the Persian Gulf. That was quite the site with the sun setting appropriately behind it.

 

Pulling into Cape May, we could see the Cape May Lighthouse in the distance. The Cape May Lighthouse was built in 1859 and is the oldest and tallest of the three lighthouses that we saw on this trip. As we pulled into Cape May, the ferry crew got busy with letting all the cars off in a particular order which appeared to be like a puzzle. We were one of the first off. A shuttle runs during the summer months, that will take you into Cape May from the Ferry terminal.

This ferry system was first planned in 1926. They initially planned to use an old WWI military ship but the idea was soon left behind. In October, 1962 they tried a dry run with the Pocahontas ferry which they borrowed from the Chesapeake Bay Ferry Commission. It was a success so they began this service on July 1, 1964. These ships were replaced in the 1970’s.

There are now three ferry vessels, MV Delaware, MV New Jersey, and MV Cape Henlopen which are operated by the Delaware River and Bay Authority and two terminals. The ferries are based at North Cape May on the north shore of the Cape May Canal. All three vessels carry both cars, buses, RV’s, tractor trailers, motorcycles, and bicycles and foot passengers. They can fit about 100 cars about 800 passengers. The ferry runs 16 hours a day.

It was a great day to enjoy this ferry ride and we hope to do it again soon. Till next time. Bye for now.