Cape Cod
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| Chatham Train Museum/old depot |
Chatham
We used Chatham, MA as our base for our week in Cape Cod. I had wanted a town around the "elbow" of the Cape since that seemed to me like an area where we would be able to easily explore. I was right on the ability to get around and got lucky in that I think I picked the best of the small towns in that part of the cape! Chatham has a cute downtown that is several blocks long so plenty of window shopping and a good collection of eateries. We stayed in a bed and breakfast for the week - The Queen Anne Inn Chatham, MA. We had a tasty breakfast each morning and really enjoyed dinner there one night. One of the joys of staying at a B&B is talking with the other guests, but that got difficult with covid. However, with a firepit that was usually lit at night we could sit around it and comfortably talk with anyone else who came to enjoy it.
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| a local road sign |
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| main street Chatham |
Cape Cod National Seashore
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| 2 of the 3 sisters lighthouses. |
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| Nauset Lighthouse |
We learned that there were 3 locations of lighthouses on the cape each with a distinct light. We noticed that the Nauset lighthouse alternated red and white lights. We found down the road 3 lighthouses that had been in one location almost like a single lighthouse. The three were called the 3 sisters.
While we were driving along the beach we also saw where the original transatlantic telegraph cable came across. There was a hut there. The area was aptly called Marconi Beach. After that it was still drizzly and we had hit the end of the car road in this area so we headed back. Guess that means we left some of the seashore for another visit.
Whale watching
Whale watching was high on our list of "to dos", but we were both skeptical of how much whale we would really see. We had gone on tours in other places and had been lucky to see a whale from a distance. Our fears were unfounded. We saw three different whales - yes 3 not 3 times of the same whale. Our first whale hung around for about a half hour or so. He would come up for a minute or two and then lazily go back under for a few minutes and then pop up on the other side of the boat. We then moved to another area and found 2 separate whales. I called the first whale a "he" because there was a naturalist on our boat who could identify the whales for us. The first one was a juvenile who only has a number not a name yet. One of the 2 whales we saw the second time is a 37 year old female who has had 7 calves. The tails of the whales are all unique which is how they are identified.
Cape Cod Rail Trail
We went bike riding twice. The first time we started right down the road from our inn which was great in our minds. We were on a spur of the trail and when we got to the intersection with the main trail we ran into a truly Massachusetts solution - a roundabout! It is pictured below. The path had a lot of woody areas - we pretty much rode to one end of the trail. On our way back - right before the roundabout, I saw a sign for a winery. We decided it was time for a stop. We did a couple of wine tastings and liked it so much we bought 2 bottles- the most we could fit on the bikes! One was an early Father's Day present for Jeff. We even drove back another day and visited First Crush the winery again for a glass of chardonnay each.
Our second bike ride required a short drive to Harwich a neighboring town. The bike ride started out great. We saw some ponds with beaches early on and knew there were places to stop and eat and drink along the way. The weather forecast was for a sunny day. The weatherman was wrong. We hit a good stopping/turn around spot and started to think about where we wanted to stop for something to eat. While we considering one spot, we noticed it was looking like rain and there was no place to get out from the rain if it did come. We kept biking. We weren't fast enough. It started to drizzle - well okay we can live with that. Then it POURED , lightened up only to pour again. We were soaked. We saw a small business with a porch harboring several other bikers - we joined them and waited. It stopped after a little bit and we rode back to our car. We were soaked and cold. We stopped at an A and W afterwards and ate in our warm car - not sure if we were that hungry or what but the chicken fingers and root beer were great!
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| Bike trail roundabout |
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| First Crush winery - great cookies and wine |
Chatham Bars Inn
This is a well known resort in Chatham. We had met a second cousin of Jeff and his wife who had suggested we visit it. They were right. Nice view and nice food in a nice building.
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| idea for a future planter at our condo? |
Miscellaneous
We visited Provincetown as part of our whale watching trip. It is the very end of the cape and is known for good art and good food. It was a Friday evening when we were exploring the town which was good since it meant the galleries were open later than usual. We were able to talk with several gallery owners and saw several very nice pieces. There was also a store that sold tiles with artist approved copies of their artwork where Jeff found one as a souvenir. By chance, the day we took the whale watching trip was the day the lobster diver was eaten by a whale. When a gallery owner first told me the story, I thought he was pulling the tourist's tail. Only to have him assure me he had heard the story a couple of times that day and it appeared real.
Another day we went to Falmouth where the second cousin of Jeff's lives. Jeff had become friends with him on Facebook but they had never met in person. We decided since we were going to be in the area he should reach out. We met up with him, his wife and their dogs at their house and then went to their yacht club for dinner. It was a very nice evening and now Jeff knows more of his relatives! Also we now have plan to meet another cousin in Maine.
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| lavender farm |
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| Plymouth Rock |
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| Mayflower replica The end of our time in Cape Cod. |
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