Higbee Beach Wildlife Management Area At A Glance...
- Hunt for Cape May diamonds, quartz pebbles polished smooth by the bay.
- Old sand-mining railroad tracks sometimes reappear on the beach after the tides shift the sand.
- Signal Hill, the big dune, was a lookout for bootleggers during Prohibition.
- Millions of migrating birds stop on the Cape May peninsula every fall.
- Todays Sunrise: 6:43 am, Sunset: 7:03 pm
- New Jersey Southern Shore Region Cape May County
About Higbee Beach Wildlife Management Area
Higbee Beach Wildlife Management Area is state land on the Delaware Bay side of the Cape May peninsula, managed by the New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife to protect endangered, threatened and nongame wildlife. It mixes dunes, forest, scrub-shrub and open fields, and ends in a mile and a half of undeveloped bay beach running from New England Road to Sunset Boulevard.
Nearly two miles of easy nature trails loop through the fields and woods, with two viewing platforms looking out over them, and a dune trail leads to the beach. The area has six named spots: Signal Hill, Davey's Lake, Pond Creek, Sassafras Island, Hidden Valley and the old Magnesite Plant.
The Cape May peninsula sees one of the biggest bird migrations in North America every fall, as millions of birds stop to rest and feed before heading south, and Higbee is one of the most important stopovers. In spring and summer, blue grosbeaks, indigo buntings, yellow-breasted chats and prairie warblers nest here, and dragonflies and butterflies fill the fields. On the beach, look for Cape May diamonds, quartz pebbles rounded and polished by the sea.
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Activities:
- Hiking
- Hunting
- Mountain Bike
- Walking
Amenities:- Beach
- Parking Lot(s)
Trails:- Flat / Easy
- Sandy
Park Type:- Wildlife Management Area (WMA)
Rules/Regulations:- Alcohol Not Permitted
- Swimming Not Permitted
Contact / Location
A Brief History
A tavern stood at the mouth of New England Creek in 1807. Pilot Joseph S. Higbee bought the land in 1823, landed passengers here from Philadelphia, and his family later ran a small hotel on the site until it was sold out of the family. The hotel was torn down in 1940.
The beach has had a busy past. Sand-mining railroad tracks were laid along it in the early 1900s, and these 'ghost tracks' still reappear from the sand now and then. Bethlehem Steel tested artillery shells here during World War I, bootleggers used the big dune called Signal Hill as a lookout during Prohibition, and a magnesite plant operated from 1941 until it was demolished in 1989. Davey's Lake was dug by the Cape May Sand Company in 1910.
Admission & Guidelines
Like all state wildlife management areas, Higbee is carry in, carry out, with no trash cans. Camping, swimming, picnicking, alcohol, fires, metal detecting, geocaching and paddleboarding are not allowed, and nudity is banned by Lower Township ordinance.
Dogs are allowed only from September 1 to April 30. Mountain bikes are allowed on existing trails and woods roads from March 1 to April 15, from June 1 to September 15, and on Sundays. Hunting is allowed from the Monday after the six-day firearm deer season, and the area is closed to hunting from September 1 until then.
Hours / Season of Operation
Open 5 AM to 9 PM, except for people lawfully hunting, fishing or trapping.
Parking
New England Road dead-ends at Higbee Beach, where there is a small gravel lot with free parking. Spaces are limited, especially on fall mornings when the birders arrive.
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Nearby Places
South Cape May Meadows is at the other end of the bay beach on Sunset Boulevard, next to Cape May Point State Park and the Cape May Lighthouse.
Here are 10 places near Higbee Beach Wildlife Management Area
- Higbee Beach Wildlife Management Area (~0 miles)
- World War II Lookout Tower (~1 miles)
- Cape May Migratory Bird Refuge (~1 miles)
- Cape May Point State Park (~1 miles)
- Cape May Lighthouse (~1 miles)
- Cape May Seashore Lines (~2 miles)
- Cape May Winery & Vineyard (~2 miles)
- Historic Cold Springs Village (~3 miles)
- Sun Retreats Seashore (~3 miles)
- Cold Spring Bike Path (~3 miles)
- Lake Laurie Campground / RV Resort (~3 miles)
- Salt Marsh Safari, Cape May (~4 miles)
Cape May, New Jersey 08204