Delaware Bayshore Byway Overview
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| Sunset over Broad Dyke north of New Castle, the northern end of the Byway |
Driving the Delaware Bayshore Byway is a great choice if you’re interested in nature, history, natural resource conversation, or simply a quiet getaway.
See and engage with nature. The Delaware Bayshore is defined by estuaries: the intersections of land, fresh water, and the sea water of the Delaware Bay. The Bayshore has the largest preserved coastal marshland on the East Coast. Its coastal and freshwater marshes, tidal wetlands, waterways, sandy shorelines, forests, fields and farmlands provide habitat for hundreds of species of birds and other wildlife. It is the world’s largest spawning ground for horseshoe crabs. It is the second largest migration stopover in the Western hemisphere for shorebirds and waterfowl, some of whom are attracted by the horseshoe crab’s eggs. In short, the Delaware Bayshore is an internationally recognized ecological treasure, and the Delaware Bayshore Byway is the best way to experience it.
Most people who visit the Delaware Bayshore Byway are ecotourists who visit for:
• Wildlife viewing, including birdwatching (serious birdwatchers call this “birding”)
• Walking and hiking (Delaware is flat, so all hikes along the Delaware Bayshore are easy)
• Fishing and crabbing*
• Canoeing, kayaking, and boating*
• Hunting*
• Biking*
*I’m not particularly into these things, so this blog doesn’t discuss them.
See and learn about natural resource conservation. In the middle of the 20th century, there were some moves to turn the Delaware Bayshore into the premier supertanker port and industrial center of the East Coast. Fortunately, private citizens and the Delaware state government recognized the potential for huge ecological damage. They saved the Bayshore by turning most of it into an assortment of national, state, and private wildlife refuges and preserves. Today over 100,000 acres of the Delaware Bayshore—most of the land between the Byway and the shore—are protected in some form.
See and learn about local history and culture. For centuries, especially in the 1800s, the people of the Delaware Bayshore made their living off the water: fishing, crabbing and oystering, maritime shipping, shipbuilding, watermills, and operating waterfront resorts, often accessed by boats from nearby cities such as Philadelphia. Delaware had an enormous peach industry until a blight wiped out the orchards in the late 1800s, as I discuss in my blog post on the town of Magnolia. Many of those peaches were shipped by water.
This way of life ended for many in the first half of the 20th century. Overfishing and pollution from urban areas upstream ended the fishing industry. An oyster disease wiped out most of the oysters. Shipping moved from water to railroads and highways. Automobiles let people travel elsewhere for holidays and made the resorts obsolete. Some towns are increasingly prone to flooding, thanks to a combination of sea level rise and something called land subsidence—a gradual sinking of land that’s common in this region. With land subsidence, the brackish water of the Delaware Bay estuary moved inland, making some farms no longer viable. And some tributary rivers have silted up, making them no longer navigable by boat. Employment opportunities moved inland, away from the marshes, and people moved with them in search of work.
Because of all these forces, by the middle of the 20th century the small towns of the Delaware Bayshore went to sleep economically. Progress and improvements stopped. A trip on the Delaware Bayshore Byway today is a journey back in time, an opportunity to experience living history and learn about how people made their living off the water hundreds of years ago. The Byway includes over a dozen national historic districts and wonderful examples of 17th, 18th, and 19th century architecture.
Today local residents continue to value the land for its natural resources and location on the Delaware River and Bay, and many still derive their livelihood from it. While fishing and farming are not on the scale of 150 years ago, you can still see these activities in action.
Experience a quiet getaway. The Delaware Bayshore Byway is truly the road less taken. Driving less than two hours from several major metropolitan areas takes you to another world, with undeveloped back roads, little traffic, stunning scenery, and a sense of quiet. There are plenty of opportunities for walks and short hikes on peaceful nature trails and for beachcombing.
But the Delaware Bayshore Byway isn’t for everyone. If you want a stereotypical day at the beach, go elsewhere. Beaches on the Delaware Bay don’t have typical tourist amenities. Few have public restrooms. There’s no miniature golf, volleyball nets, or boardwalk pizza. Some of the beaches have a lot of stones, shells, and mud from the river, so while they’re great for beachcombing, they’re not good for walking in bare feet or swimming. In late summer, when breezes die down or come from the west, the beaches can be “buggy” with mosquitoes and biting black flies that aren't dissuaded by insect repellent or clothing. (A new app called "Damn Fly Meter" predicts how bad the flies will be and can help you decide when to visit.) Most important, many of the beaches have eroded to the point that, at high tide, there's no beach at all, so you'll need to check tide schedules before planning a visit.
If you're looking for a scenic waterfront drive right along a shoreline, again go elsewhere. Much of the Delaware Bayshore is coastal marshes, not solid land good for building roads. The Byway map is basically a set of “E”s, repeatedly driving from a road several miles inland to a shore point and back.
If you'd like to tour beautifully restored historic properties, the Byway is hit-or-miss. There are some wonderful examples of historic restoration, and some important historic buildings along the Byway are museums that can be toured. But historic preservation is not a priority along much of the Byway. Many wonderful historic buildings sit vacant and in rapidly deteriorating condition, with no plans to restore them or even stem the decay.
If you want to go somewhere with a well-developed tourism infrastructure, again go elsewhere. Taking the road less traveled means you may have to drive 20 minutes off the Byway to reach a public restroom, hotel, fast-food restaurant, gas station, or convenience store. This is not the Blue Ridge Parkway; some scenic stretches of the Byway have no shoulders or pull-off spots to pause and appreciate the wildlife and views.
Will the Byway’s tourism infrastructure get measurably better in the foreseeable future? It's hard to tell. On one hand, there have already been some improvements to help visitors engage with nature, mostly signage, trails, viewing platforms, and information kiosks. On the other hand, an ongoing challenge is that no one’s really in charge of the Byway. While there’s a coordinating committee, various bits and pieces are the responsibilities of an assortment of state and local government agencies and private groups. Getting things done is a bit like herding cats.
But perhaps the main reason for limited tourism services and amenities--and why they're not likely to change measurably in the foreseeable future--is that some people in the region want it that way. For many who live here, preserving and protecting the Delaware Bayshore’s assets is more important than tourism. The people who have fought so hard to preserve the Bayshore don’t want tourism to adversely impact its lands, water, and wildlife. In a sense, the lack of visitor information and amenities is part and parcel of traveling the road less taken, part of the get-away-from-it-all experience, part of what makes the Delaware Bayshore Byway special.
When is the best time to visit?
If you enjoy wildlife, the best and most popular times to visit are mid-May to mid-June. This is when thousands of horseshoe crabs come ashore to spawn at several Delaware Bay beaches. Some are flipped over by waves, and residents and visitors alike get involved flipping them right side up. There’s an adorable video on how to do this. Horseshoe crab spawning season is also one of the best times to see migrating birds, because many come to feast on horseshoe crab eggs washed to the surface by waves.
While mid-May to mid-June is ideal, the rest of spring through early summer is a great time to visit. You’ll still see some horseshoe crabs and many migrating birds.
Fall is another great time to visit as migrating birds make a stopover on their way south. Just avoid wildlife and conservation areas, as hunting is permitted in most of them.
Several towns along the Byway have signature annual events designed to attract visitors. If you don’t mind crowds, these are great times to visit these towns and experience something fun and special.
Even winter can be an interesting time to visit. Some birds such as snow geese spend winters here. The phragmites (reeds) aren't as tall as they are in summer, making it possible to see more from the road.
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| Thousands of snow geese near Slaughter Beach in January |
Probably the least appealing time of year to visit is late summer, when it’s hot and humid and the beaches can be buggy and smelly and attract biting horseflies.
And don’t visit right after a storm. Some roads and towns will be flooded, and you don’t want to find yourself stranded.
Can the Delaware Bayshore Byway be biked or hiked?
Not really. Some stretches of the Delaware Bayshore Byway have no shoulders, or shoulders in poor condition, making the roadway dangerous for bikers and hikers. Take your bike and hiking boots or walking shoes, but plan to use them in nature reserves/preserves and small towns along the route.
Are there admission fees?
The Byway itself is free.
Delaware state parks, state wildlife areas, and Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge all charge a modest fee for a vehicle to enter the park, even if you just want to take a quick in-and-out look around. Some museums also charge modest fees.
For Delaware state parks, click here for more information and to buy an annual pass. (Daily passes must be purchased at the park you are visiting.)
For state wildlife areas, you'll need to buy a Conservation Access Pass. You can get information here and buy a 3-day or annual (July 1-June 30) pass here. (The same online system is used to buy hunting, fishing, and trapping permits, so some of the questions may seem odd when all you want to do is drive and walk, but just hang in there as you work your way through the online application.)
For Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge, click here for information on daily and annual passes. If you have an annual or lifetime Federal Interagency Pass that you use to access National Parks, you can use it here. Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge is free.
Are historic buildings open to the public?
Generally no. Most of the historic buildings along the Delaware Bayshore Byway are privately owned and not open to the public. In many cases people are now living in them. Please be respectful and do not trespass on private property!
Where can I stay overnight?
A few towns along the Delaware Bayshore Byway have bed-and-breakfasts and some restaurants, but traditional hotels are scarce. (This is the road less traveled, after all.) Dover is centrally located near the Byway and has a good selection of hotels, restaurants, and other traveler services. Other options are Middletown, Smyrna, and Milford.
Are there any discount programs?
Kind of. Byway Bucks offers discounts at independent shops along all of Delaware’s byways. Unfortunately, along the Delaware Bayshore Byway only New Castle and Odessa have participating businesses. For more information on Byway Bucks, click here and scroll down to the Byway Bucks information at the bottom of the page. The list of participating businesses is unfortunately a few years out of date, and some of the listed businesses are now permanently closed.
I love the Delaware Bayshore Byway experience! Are there any other road trips nearby?
Yes! At the southern end of the Delaware Bayshore Byway, take the Historic Lewes Byway into Lewes, then take the Cape May-Lewes Ferry to Cape May, New Jersey, then take New Jersey’s Bayshore Heritage Scenic Byway along the New Jersey side of the Delaware Bay. This lets you complete a loop around the entire Delaware Bay.
If you’re interested in history, another option is the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Byway, which runs from Philadelphia through Wilmington to New Castle, then from New Castle to Odessa on the Delaware Bayshore Byway route, then through Dover and into Maryland, ending with some loops south of Cambridge.
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