Although Memorial Day Weekend officially jumpstarts the Summer ’07 Season, the merry month of May in Cape May is chuck full of activities for lovers of all kinds be you  nature lovers, music lovers or literary lovers – and you could be all three, which means you have to stay here all month.

  To begin, for the sports minded – the 6th Annual South Jersey/ASA Spring Striper Tournament will be held May 4-6. Presented by South Jersey Marina and the American Striper Association Tournament Headquarters, the entry fee is $300 per boat, if received by mar 2^nd and $325 at the Captains Meeting Friday, May 4. One cash prize will be paid for each ten boats entered. For more information on this popular sport fishing tourney contact South Jersey Marina at 609-884-2400 or visit www.sjmarina.com.

  For competitive birders, it doesn’t get any better than the 24th Annual World Series of Birding, May 12. Last year, the event raised over $500,000 for conservation causes. Want to be part of a team, but worried that your birding skills need sharpening? The Cape May Century Run Team is just the solution! Join a host of excellent leaders, led by Team Captain Don Friday, and bird at a leisurely pace south of the Cape May Canal all day long, at the peak of migration. Enjoy lengthy looks at cooperative birds. We’re out between 5:00 a.m. and 8:30 p.m. (though you’ll have the option to begin at 7:00 a.m. and drop out by 3:00 or 5:00 p.m.). Previous events have tallied between 134 and 166 species. Consider signing up for the next day’s World Series Sunday Brunch where teams gather, tales are told, and camaraderie is shared! Call CMBO at (609) 884-2736 or (609) 861-0700 or visit www.njaudubon.org/WSB. Hurry spots are limited.

  If you can’t make that weekend, the NJ Audubon Society is also offering Cape May Spring Audubon Weekend, May 18-20. Held at the peak of the spring migration, when big flocks of northbound shorebirds stop to feed on the shores of Delaware Bay and many other birds are heading north, the event includes three full days of workshops, field trips, boat trips, and other programs focusing on birds and more. All are welcome; interested nonmembers should call CMBO at (609) 884-2736 or (609) 861-0700 for a brochure and details or visit www.njaudubon.org/Centers/CMBO/SpringWeekend.

  Enough with the nature already, where’s the shopping? When you finish your spring cleaning and clear out those closets come on over to the Washington Street Mall’s spring Sidewalk Sale, May 17-20, and buy more stuff at a discount prices. The Sidewalk Sale always attracts a crowd and while you are there, you can still pop down at Convention Hall for the Spring Weekend activities AND have time to channel Jane Austen.

  The Jane Austen Conference, May 18-20, is being sponsored by The Greater New York Region of the Jane Austen Society of North America, or JASNA will be held at Congress Hall. JASNA is offering three days of insightful lectures, a comic playlet, and provocative discussions involving the artistic legacy and enduring influence of the perennially popular English novelist, Jane Austen. Billed as "A Regency Event in a Cape May Setting," the weekend also offers ample opportunities for Austen enthusiasts to chat with and challenge each other. Seating is limited and tickets must be reserved in advance by contacting Jerry Vetowich at 1-212-666-9170.

  For the athletically minded, mark your calendar for May 19. The 28th Great Cape May Footrace (10k & 5k) starts at 8 a.m. at Convention Hall. You can run, and still have time to channel Jane Austen, pick up a bargain at the Sidewalk Sale and learn more about birds back at Convention Hall. Whew – that’s a lot to do in one weekend. Good luck.

  But wait – the merry month of May is just getting into high gear. Music lovers take note. The 18^th Annual Cape May Music Festival kicks off May 20 and runs through June 14. It is four weeks of classical and classic music, including orchestra, chamber and world traditions performances.

  The Makem and Spain Brothers open the festival May 20 at Convention Hall. Who are the Makem and Spain Brothers? According to one press account, “Every generation has a few acts that define where a musical genre is going, performers so confident in their chosen field that they are able to completely embrace the genre and yet introduce something new to it. In Irish folk music today, that act is the Makem and Spain Brothers.”

  Concerts are on Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday nights and take place at either Convention Hall or the Episcopal Church of the Advent at the corner of Washington and Franklin Streets. Other performers include the Bay-Atlantic Symphony with guest soloists, the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra Chamber Players and Cape May’s very own George Mesterhazy. Composer/arranger/jazz pianist Mesterhazy won a Grammy nomination for his work with Shirley Horn on her album "Loving You." He's also recorded with jazz vocalists Melanie Rice and Rebecca Parris. He brings his trio and two vocalists to the Cape May Music Festival with a program of music from the movies. It is sponsored by the Mid-Atlantic Center for the Arts (MAC). For more information, call 609-884-5404 or 800-275-4278 or visit www.capemaymac.org.

  Throughout the month, and please feel free to check out CapeMay.com’s Events Calendar for a more complete listing of activities, there are any number of interesting things to do like Spirited Cape May Weekend, May 4-6. Triple your enjoyment by combining a Wine Tasting Dinner, Winery Cellar Tour, and Wine Tasting Class for a weekend of total indulgence. The weekend begins 6 p.m., Friday, May 4 with a four-course dinner at the Washington Inn, 801 Washington St., with wines themed to the Sunday Wine School Class (Fantastic Wines from the Islands). Guests will be treated to individual attention from the wine steward. At 3 p.m., Saturday, May 5, you can visit the award-winning Cape May Winery for a tour of the vineyard and an introduction to the winemaker’s art, with a barrel-tasting with cheese and fruit to top it off. At 1 p.m., Sunday, May 6, you’ll attend the Wine School Class at the Washington Inn. The event is sponsored by MAC. For more information, call 609-884-5404 or 800-275-4278 or visit www.capemaymac.org. And if you don’t want to commit that much time to a single event, sign up for Cape May Wine School. The theme for this May 6^th even is Cruise the Island. Great wines from Corsica, Sardinia, Sicily, Greece, Crete, New Zealand. Learn to discern and appreciate fine wines in this informative class, 1-3 p.m., Sunday, May 6, also being held at the Washington Inn.

  There are also some very unique events like the Dancefest, May 11-12, at Convention Hall. For details call 301-320-7099. For those of you who are lovers of crafts and antiques, there are plenty to choose from throughout the month beginning with the Spring Festival Antiques & Collectibles Show, May 5, at the Emlen Physick Estate, 1048 Washington St. On Saturday, May 19 the Spring Arts & Crafts Festival comes to town from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Convention Hall and the following Saturday, May 26 is Memorial Day Crafts Show, also at Convention Hall from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. followed by the Memorial Day Antiques Show May 27. Off the island, Historic Cold Spring Village is holding a craft show May 26-27. Although the buildings will still be closed, the grounds are quite lovely and admission is free. Please call 609-898-2300 or visit www.hcsv.org.

  For nature lovers, the Nature Center of Cape May on Delaware Ave, (near the U.S. Coast Guard Training Center), is conducting Cape May Spring Weekend Saturday Specials. Please call the Nature Center of Cape May for more information 609-898-8848 or visit the Nature Center's website. In addition, on May 5, they are sponsoring The Natural Garden: A Landscape Design Workshop from 9:00 a.m. to noon at the Nature Center. Plan and design your very own backyard wildlife refuge. Landscape design professionals will be on hand during this practical workshop on how to create a backyard haven for our wildlife friends. This program will focus on design principles and how to put your ideas on paper. A discussion of the homeowner’s grant program, called Wildlife Habitat Incentive Program (WHIP), will be offered so that participants can learn how to apply. Participants will leave the day with a plan in hand and a tote bag full of valuable resources. Weather permitting, the workshop will also include tours of several gardens to observe various design elements. Again, contact the Nature Center for details.

  The artistically inclined will want to check out the exhibitions going on at the Mad Batter Restaurant on Jackson Street and at the Magnolia Room at the historic Chalfonte Hotel on Howard Street. Cape May local artist Marie Natale and nephew Mark Natale exhibit their coast-inspired works of watercolor and oil at the Chalfonte Hotel. "Costal Connections: A Family Perspective" will be on display from mid-May until the end of June from 11am-4pm. A reception will be held Sunday May 27 from 2-4 p.m. in the Magnolia Room. For more information, call 609-884-8409.

  The Mad Batter is hosting many different artists this spring, including the paintings of Rita Sweeny and Terri Armig which will be on display through May 23. Or enjoy photographs by Tina Giaimo and Don Merwin May 23 through June 27 with the opening reception Sunday, June 3.  Art shows are in the main dining room and the smaller gallery room. You can visit the shows daily while enjoying breakfast, lunch or dinner at the Mad Batter. Or, better yet, pop in during their Happy Hour every day from 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.

  And for something truly different, try to stop by the Carriage House at the Emlen Physick Estate sometime this summer to see “Here Comes the Bride: Weddings in America.” This exhibit from the Rogers Historical Museum, Rogers, AK, explores marriage in Victorian America from courtships to engagements, wedding attire to honeymoons. Times vary. Sponsored by MAC, it will run from May 25-September 3.

  Finally, try to attend the Memorial Day Ceremony, May 28 at 11:15 a.m. at Convention Hall. Don’t forget, we also a have a beach which is quite lovely and makes for a very nice walk, run or sit.