Road Trip: Day 1 – Monday March 28:
We left home at a leisurely pace, stopping first at the post office and a local gas station. We were finally on the road at 11:30 AM. It was 34 degrees and sunny with a cloudless bright blue sky. During the first hour, it was an easy drive south along the traffic-free Garden State Parkway.
The Garden State Parkway – Southbound
We planned to leave New York City and “terra cognito” as quickly as possible before taking the slow coastal route. After a couple of hours we left the parkway at the exit to Asbury Park. The road led through a poor neighborhood and past relics of former glory days to the boardwalk along the Atlantic Ocean.
The Boardwalk in Asbury Park
It was our first view of the ocean on this trip. The outside temperature was 42 degrees and there was a stiff west wind blowing. We drove a short distance along the shore road looking for sheltered park benches. Because it was so cold outside, we parked and ate our picnic lunch in the car.
The Atlantic Ocean
Afterwards we took a short ride to the former casino and took a few photographs of the old derelict buildings and then continued south on Route 9.
Circular Building in Asbury Park, NJ
Once we left Asbury Park, the neighborhoods improved. The houses were large and very well maintained. We drove past many miles of beautiful “beach houses” adorned with bright white 3-story porches. The road continued in and out of lovely summer colony ghost towns. There were very few cars along the streets, no people outside, and mostly closed commercial shops. It was amazing to see hundreds of summer colonies along the Jersey shore abandoned for the winter. Somewhere along the road we crossed a bridge and went westward back to the Garden State Parkway to make up some time. We took the Atlantic City exit and drove eastward toward the ocean again. We noted the ugly commercial billboards and tacky hotels before heading south along Ocean Drive.
Gateway to Atlantic City
After a while, we arrived in Margate, the home of Lucy the Elephant. She is a six-story building in the shape of an elephant! It was built in the 1880s by a real estate developer who wanted to attract customers to the community. There were a couple of people looking down from the cupola on her back. Lucy looked freshly painted and ready for a new season. We took a few photos and continued south.
Lucy In Margate
All day, there were few cars and fewer people along the road. There seemed to be an endless ribbon of bright gray and white beach houses. We drove into North Wildwood and then past Wildwood, NJ. There were more stores, bars, motels, and restaurants which were closed for the season. They seemed to be silently waiting for the warm weather of summer and the flocks of city-people. We decided to continue to Cape May.
We arrived in Cape May about 7:15 PM. The sun was setting and it was still cold and windy. This was our second time in this lovely Victorian village. We drove to the beach, parked the car, and turned to our iPhones to find a place to stay for the night. Trip Advisor recommended The Victorian Motel as its #1 hotel in Cape May, so we drove around the corner to see if it had a room for the night!
The man in the old-fashioned office was friendly and courteous. He said he thought he could accommodate us with a room with two double beds for $50. I think we were his only customers and that was their off-season rate! It was an old fashioned motel-type room, but spotlessly clean. We happily checked in, unloaded our bags, and walked down to Washington Street for dinner.
On the corner was The Ugly Mug Pub and we decided to have “pub grub” for dinner. Their $10.99 special turned out to be delicious and so much food that we couldn’t finish. Jeff had clam chowder followed by a gigantic kielbasa sandwich on Italian hero bread with sauerkraut, coleslaw, and fries. I had chicken soup and a Maryland crab cake with apple sauce and a fresh green salad. Yummm.
It was very cold and windy during the short walk back to the motel. The village was deserted and we were the only people on the quiet dark streets. Like all of us, the village of Cape May was waiting for spring. Perhaps this was the last frigid blast of north winds before a warm sultry summer and the happy buzz of summer vacationers?