⛴Trip to Cape Cod

September 22, 2012

My daughter and I rode from Newington, Connecticut, to Cape Cod, Mass.

We stopped at Dunkin' Donuts for breakfast and ordered 8 Munchkins.

We rode across the Sagamore Bridge, and facing us was the Rotary sign that said, "Welcome to Cape Cod."

We visited the white-and-red Bass River Lighthouse, which sits among the townhouses in West Dennis. 

Bass River Lighthouse

We visited the Lighthouse Inn, which now sits atop the Lighthouse Inn in West Dennis.

Behind the Inn was a rock wall that made a circle in the Bass River. We walked along the wall, stopping to take several pictures. It was a beautiful place for a wedding. 

Light House Inn Lighthouse

Rock Wall 

We ate lunch at Kreme and Kone's, a family-owned clam shack in West Dennis, where we were served the best seafood on Cape Cod.

We split a plate of grilled Halibut on a bed of rice with coleslaw and a vanilla ice cream cone for dessert. 

We stopped at the Salt Pond Visitor Center in Easth, where we used the restrooms and toured the museum.

The museum featured artifacts, photos, and art from the Mashpee Wampanoag and Aquinnah tribes.

The Visitor Center also featured pictures and articles highlighting the natural and cultural forces that shaped Cape Cod's beaches. 

I bought a couple of postcards, Nauset Lighthouse and Three Sisters. 

 Salt Pond Visitor Center in Eastham 

 Salt Pond Visitor Center in Eastham 

We also stopped in Eastham to take pictures of the Georgian, Late Victorian-style Eastham Windmill.  

It is the oldest windmill on Cape Cod. It was constructed in 1680 by Thomas Paine in Plymouth. 

We visited the 18th-century Judith Baker Windmill in South Yarmouth. The windmill faces west to Bass River, and nearby is a small boardwalk and beach. 

Judith Baker Windmill

In the town of Orleans, we walked along Nauset Beach, where we saw the Three Sister Lighthouses, & Nauset Lighthouse.

Three Sisters Lighthouses 

Nauset Beach 

Nauset Lighthouse

We saw the historic markers: Three Sisters lit the Way; The Nauset Lights, Pushed back by the sea; & The Long, Black Cable. 

The sun was going down behind the large sand dunes when we reached Provincetown, MA. My cell phone was about dead, so I did not take many pictures in Provincetown.

We stopped at Far Land Provisions, located at 150 Bradford Street, Provincetown, MA 02657.

We saw the Pilgrim monument, founded in 1892, that overlooks the town. It was said that the Pilgrims spent five weeks exploring the tip of Cape Cod. 

 Pilgrim Monument

We walked several blocks, taking in the sights. We saw people sitting on the benches in front of Town Hall watching the world go by. 

We saw drag queens along the street, inviting us into the drag shows; one had a southern accent. I asked the drag queen where he was from, and he said Georgia. Imagine a southern in Provincetown.

We walked along MacMillan Wharf and back through Commercial Street, where we saw shops, galleries, and a Portuguese bakery. 

We spent the night at South Wellfleet Motel. 

September 23, 2012:

We ate a hot breakfast of bacon and eggs in the Motel's restaurant.

We walked barefoot along the sandy beaches of Chatham Harbor.

We saw the black-and-white Chatham Lighthouse.  

Chatham Lighthouse

Chatham Beach 

We saw a white, two-story house with three chimneys and a red roof sitting next to the lighthouse. It was enclosed inside a wire fence. In front of the wall was the historical marker about the History of Chatham Light. We also saw the historic marker of The Mayflower Story and The Rescue of the Pendleton. 

Nearby was the Chatham Beach-Tennis Clubhouse. 

We rode past the White building of the First Congregational Church, United Church of Chris,  established in 1720.

The two-decker steeple had a clock face on three sides of the church.

In Chatham on Seaview, we saw an antique building, and in the downtown area, we saw a Corner Toy Store. 

At 3 Rivers Road, Orleans, we visited the Jonathan Young Windmill, where we saw the interior workings of a windmill. The wind shaft in the interior is attached to the brake wheel/bull wheel (wooden gears).

Jonathan Young Windmill

We walked along the beaches of Marconi, located six miles north of the Salt Pond Visitor Center. 

The waves were high, and we saw men wearing rubber suits and surfing. It was too cold for swimming, but not for the dogs, who happily jumped into the splashing waves. 

The next morning, we bought ferry tickets to Vineyard Haven.

We parked the car and rode the bus to the ferry at Oak Bluff.  

On the bus, we met a couple.. They asked where we were from, and they said they had family living in Florence on Robins Lane.

ferryboat 

Everyone got off the bus and loaded onto the ferry.

The ferry took us to Martha's Vineyard. 

In Martha's Vineyard, we walked to Ocean Park, where we saw a flock of geese.

In the park, we saw a bandstand, some markers, and a statue. September is the offseason, and it was getting late, so most stores were closing or had already closed. 

We stopped in The Good Ship Lollipop Store, where I bought some animal cookies and Diet Pepsi. 

The store owner's wife named the store The Good Ship Lollipop.  

We saw many store signs as we walked through the town. We saw Ben & Bill's Chocolate, Ice Cream, and Candies, Skinn & Fat sandwiches, Bite on the Go, Pirate Jack's burgers, Sharkey's Cantina, Oldies Memorial Fountain, Laughing Bear, It's me, Murdock fudge, and Boat skipper. 

Vineyard and Vines 

We did not want to miss our ride back to the main island, so we hurriedly walked back to the ferry station, but the last ferry left at 6:30 P.M.

We were told to take bus 13 to Vineyard Haven; it was the only ferry back to the mainland.  

We hurriedly walked toward bus 13, but it was going the wrong way. We had to wait for bus 13, which would take us to Oak Bluffs, where we could catch the next ferry.

The couple we met earlier was on bus 13.

On the ferry ride, we met two women who lived in Johnston, RI.

Riding the ferry 

Riding the ferry 

Riding the Ferry 

One of the women said she worked in the Art and Drama Department at the local college in Johnston, and that her husband owned a business.

The other woman said her husband was an angler. 

The two women were on vacation together, and my daughter talked their heads off. 

We rode the bus to the parking area, where everyone got off and went to their cars. 

We rode to Val's house; he was watching the Patriots play the Baltimore Ravens. The Patriots lost by one point, 30-31. We spent the night in Johnston.