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My lifetime ambition of visiting all 50 states became a reality in the middle of the Delaware River. ...... I jest, of course, about that lifetime ambition part --- it just happened --- except for tiny Delaware which I had to go out of my way to bag.
Bagging State #50 would have been the single highlight of my day except, after settling in at my lodgings, I drove to “Historic New Castle” just south of Wilmington. Not surprisingly, it’s smack on the Delaware River:
Wandering around this old town was a pleasing experience and educational, too. Old New Castle seemed to exude history at every turn. Though now a quiet backwater of a village, it has a lively history. I was surprised to learn that the Dutchman Peter Stuyvesant founded the settlement in 1651. Besides the Dutch flag, that of Sweden and Great Britain have flown over it in the past.
William Penn gained the rights to Delaware in 1682 and so, for awhile, controlled both Pennsylvania and Delaware. Naturally, he wanted to inspect his new property in person and take proper title:
New Castle became the capital of Penn’s Delaware province and remained so from 1732-1777. While the town was the capital, the old Courthouse built in 1732 served as the effective Capitol Building:
While most of the colonial-era buildings in town are original, some have been extensively refurbished, such as this Episcopal Church:
Built 1703. Burned 1980. Rebuilt as original. That spire surely does look like an afterthought though.
The shady neighborhood streets of New Castle were very welcoming on the warm sunny afternoon of my visit:
Some of the streets are still cobblestone; the sidewalks, mostly of brick, tilt at all kinds of crazy angles:
In contrast, I did not find Wilmington, Delaware, a very attractive city --- although, maybe, someday it will be. Let’s just say it is a work in progress. To be honest, on the hot humid day of my visit, I saw not much more than the oldest part, the downtown area. Here’s a sample of ongoing restoration work:
The city takes rightful pride in its restored Opera House (although my camera could not do it justice):
If this is an example of what other restored buildings will be like someday, Wilmington may be worth a return visit --- but it will be a long way off.
Dover, I liked. The capital city itself was not at all what I expected after seeing Wilmington. Approaching Dover by a scenic byway, the near proximity of a large city was undetectable until almost upon it. No Harrisburg or Sacramento, this city is low key with very few government buildings --- well spaced out --- and a fair bit of park land for its size. With so many wide and nearly deserted streets near the Capitol, I felt empowered to bike about:
No doubt the fact that this was a Saturday accounted for the few moving cars. Parking was actually no problem at all. In fact, I easily parked on the oval street surrounding “The Green”, which is the site of the state’s ratification of the constitution in 1787:
This dolled up house around the corner begged for a photo so I obliged:
In the southwest corner of Delaware is Trap Pond State Park. What drew me to the park were the canoe rentals and the northernmost natural stand of bald cypress trees in the US.
As you can see, the lake is quite large and the cypress trees are way around the corner on the left side of the lake. It took over 20 minutes of paddling across open water to reach the trees. The breeze felt refreshing but it also greatly affected where the canoe wanted to go --- and it was usually not where I intended. “Good exercise though,” I kept telling myself.
The trees really are a pretty sight. It’s amazing how the bald cypress is able to grow in the water when most trees would die in such circumstances:
The water may appear deep and mysterious but, in fact, it is shallow here; several times my canoe touched bottom. Still, I would not have been keen to wade around in it.
The distinctive bald cypress “knobs” close up. These knobs are thought to help with air absorption into the roots:
An hour and a half was more than enough water-time for me. Fortunately, it was an overcast day with temperatures in the low 70’s. It is still a puzzle to me why some folks like stewing unprotected in a boat for hours under a blazing sun.
The park also has a nearly level trail around the lake, purportedly 3.5 miles long. After lunch, I rode that trail and found it rather fun with hardly anyone else on it. About a third of it weaves wonderfully through the trees:
Along the trail was this old Methodist Episcopal Church. It appeared to be in the process of acquiring a new foundation:
For the life of me, I could never figure out exactly what year this church was built. Perhaps, some wiser reader can figure it out:
On my atlas map there is a notation of a “Mason-Dixon Monument” at the southwestern corner of Delaware. That intrigued me enough to drive there to see it. (It doesn’t take much, does it?) My puzzlement stemmed from the mistaken notion that the Mason-Dixon Line was a STRAIGHT line between Pennsylvania and Maryland. Delaware’s southern boundary is much farther south. Well, I found the roadside monument (not far from Trap Pond) and photographed it but there was absolutely no information at the site as to what I was seeing:
Inside the iron grill were four stones:
From the Internet, I later learned that the Mason-Dixon Line is actually a SERIES of lines, two of which define the western and southern boundaries of Delaware --- we have the surveyors Mason and Dixon to thank for that. Why there are four stones here, I’m still not sure. The large one is called a “crownstone”. These were shipped from England and placed every five miles.
Rehoboth Beach is a small Delaware town with thousands of visitors who come to enjoy its fine beach. It has a one mile long boardwalk --- made of wood, actually --- which I walked from one end to the other to get the flavor of the place. On this Monday, the beach and boardwalk were well-used but not frantic. The place struck me as a laid-back kind of beach resort; that is, there were many small hotels --- the highest being 9 stories --- many small amusements and numerous eateries:
At the end of the commercial strip and adjacent to the boardwalk were some handsome homes:
Residential areas farther inland were more modest but quiet and pleasant.
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Well, Delaware, for your diminutive size, you do have a number of attractions --- maybe even enough to return one day and sample again. For now, though, I’ve run out of reasons to be here. It’s time to mosey on down the road.