Do It Go

Cape May is such a beautiful city in an amazing environment. It is well known as one of the best birding locations in the nation and reports of over 400 different species of birds have been documented. The population greatly bulges during the summer months when vacationers and bird watcher fill the Cape May resorts and hotels. The beaches become filled with shoppers and café diners who are enjoying the views and local offerings. One of the popular activities many tourists are interested in participating is finding a Cape May Diamond. This is frequently considered to be one of the special souvenirs found there and they make great gifts to bring home to friends and family members.

The diamonds are actually quartz crystals that have arrived on the beaches by courtesy of the Delaware River. These small pebbles begin in the rough and tumbling waters of the river and as they make their journey toward Cape May the are smoothed and softened in the process. However, it is common for finders to take their “diamond” to a polishing shop and really shine it up for jewelry or other display options.

It was originally believed that the diamonds were pieces of glass that were a byproduct of the numerous glass manufacturers in New Jersey. It was thought that the shards and or discarded pieces found their way into the river and turned up on the Cape May shore. This however is incorrect and it is accepted that the diamonds are actually quartz crystals that have been partially smoothed and polished for the eager pebble seekers in Cape May. And while most of them remain in their found state there are a few that are able to be polished to the point of bringing out a brilliant natural shine. Most of these crystals are about the size of a baby’s tooth when they are found though there have been some that are reported to be as big as or even slightly larger than an average sized marble. Whatever size and condition of the quartz crystal you might find on your vacation in Cape May they are certainly exciting to discover in the sand and they make a great souvenir.

Related posts:

1. Bits and Pieces of Cape Town
2. Cape Town Penguins
3. Cape Town’s Gregg Smith
4. Abba Eban Born in Cape Town
5. David Earl Premiers New Work in Cape Town Festival

Tags: Cape May resorts and hotels, Delaware River, quartz crystals

This entry was posted on Wednesday, February 3rd, 2010 at 12:04 pm and is filed under Travel. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.