We follow that hallowed American tradition of going to the beach every summer. We do not, however, follow the normal route to the beach by heading to a comfortable, air-conditioned house or condominium with soft beds, running water, and electricity. For the past six years we have camped in a tent at Cape Henlopen State Park in Lewes, Del.

We head to Cape Henlopen because it is filled with wildlife (not the same wildlife that you might find in Dewey Beach). Cape Henlopen has beautiful beaches, and the seaside habitat includes a wide variety of birds, fish, mammals, and amphibians. We particularly like the 4.5 miles of bike trails; we bring our bikes and leave our car parked for most of the week.

On this visit we saw not one but two hognose snakes—named for their up-turned snout which they use to dig in sandy soils. We were sitting enjoying the sound of birds in the pine trees when suddenly a hognose shimmered by on the sand about 30 feet in front of us. It was headed to the tall grass surrounding a water faucet. This first hognose was medium brown, banded, and about three feet long.

The hognose is an unusual snake. When it feels threatened, it firsts hisses and flattens its skin on the back of its neck. This produces a look similar to that of a cobra. Now, if you didn’t know any better, this is very scary and should deter most people and predators from bothering the snake. But I had seen this act before from a different snake in West Virginia, and though I was impressed, I was not so scared that I didn’t stay and watch the show a little longer. If this bluffing doesn’t work, then the hognose will roll over and play dead. It is assumed, like the possum defense, that a predator would rather have a live meal than a dead one.

After sharing the sighting with our neighbor, we left the snake alone to return to his beach combing. The wet area around the water faucet provides a good habitat for toads, one of the hognose’s favorite meals.

In addition to the snakes, our campsite was filled with friendly birds, mainly robins, crows, and nuthatches, birds not that different from those living in Jefferson County. But it was still fun to have so many visitors in our campsite. Through the trees we watched great blue herons, pelicans and sea gulls fly by.

The beach is a five-minute bike ride from the campground along a paved bike path. At the beach we were fortunate enough to see osprey each day. The osprey is a large fish-eating bird that scans the ocean from above. When it spots a fish, it will dive at great speed and attempt to grab its prey with its razor-sharp talons. We viewed osprey from the beach, while bike riding, and even when in the water.

While in the water on a boogie board, I was able to float out from shore and watch an osprey directly overhead as he scanned the water for fish. One did make a dive nearby and hit the water with a great explosion, but this time the fish eagle was not lucky.

I have developed a keener eye for the many mollusks in our world (see August Observer). At the beach this meant clams, specifically bean clams. The neat thing about these clams is that they migrate up and down the beach with the tide. At low tide they wait until they hear a wave coming, then jump out of the sand so that the wave carries them up the beach. They burrow quickly before the backwash carries them down. It was nice knowing that I was sharing the beach with some mollusks.

Our nine-year-old daughter discovered sand crabs this year. Sand crabs are the small crabs you find by digging in the sand at water’s edge. They typically stay buried in the sand and use their antennae to filter little bits of food from the water. Unlike the popular blue crab, they do not have pincers, and they always move backwards as opposed to the sideways movement of most other crabs. Alice dug small holes in the sand to create little pools for her many sand crab friends.

Cape Henlopen State Park includes over 5,000 acres, with many different natural and cultural areas to explore and enjoy. There are a variety of habitats in addition to the beautiful bay and ocean beaches, including the Great Dune, the walking dunes, pine forests, Holland Glade marsh, and a unique brackish pond, Gordon’s Pond. At Gordon’s Pond there is a huge wooden deck for viewing the marsh birds. Another attraction is Fort Miles, an abandoned fort used during World War II, including old bunkers and a restored observation tower that provides excellent views of the park and the surrounding bay and ocean.

The Seaside Nature Center at Cape Henlopen has interpretive exhibits with aquariums holding some of the fish that live in the water around the state park. The nature center is also where the various nature programs begin, including different guided walks, and interpretive programs for kids and adults.

Cape Henlopen is filled with so many different sights to see and activities to explore. It’s hard to do everything that the park has to offer—which is fine with us; sometimes it’s fun to just sit in camp and watch the hognose snakes slither by.

Cape Henlopen State Park is located on the Delaware shore. The north entrance is in Lewes; the south is just north of Rehoboth. The entrance fee is $4, Delaware vehicles; $8, out-of-state cars and trucks. Walkers and cyclists enter for free. For information, www.destateparks.com/chsp/chsp.htm.