BEACHES
CAHOON HOLLOW
Dunes and Great Whites. Arguably the best beach in Mass. where misty mornings turn into hazy nights. After acquiring provisions at the Superette, be sure to arrive early or risk being banished to the lots of White Crest. Your morning cardio will begin with a trek down the 80 foot dunes - and you'll want to be in shape to fight off great whites that feast just offshore. Adjacency to the famous Beachcomber brings crowds but allows for a safe harbor to nurse a sunburn.
Cell service: Non-existent.
nauset
4x4s and Solitude. To see a nearly pristine open-ocean Cape beach, pack up the SUV (or even better, a camper) and head to the Nauset ORV trail. Without a town sticker and 4x4, you'll only make it to Liam's Clam Shack - though you could find yourself in worse predicaments. Once your knobby tires are deflated to 10PSI, head a few miles past the gatehouse, open the lift gate, and the beach is yours (to be shared with any wayward and salty Golden Retrievers).
Cell service: Spotty
RED RIVER
For the Kids. Minutes from town and on Nantucket Sound, Red River is your classic Cape family-day beach. Drag your coolers and chairs a few yards to the daily-raked sand. The residential feel and relative calm seas bring out the kids and provide profits to the perenial hot dog stand. Because the lot is "pay to park," you'll have to fight off Lahey family offers to drop you off and, when ready, pick you up - a tradition of savings spanning nearly two decades.
Cell service: 4G LTE
CAPE CULTURE
Chatham stroll
Main Street of America. Chatham is known for its shops and restaurants on Main Street and handsome homes on Shore Road. Start at Chatham Lighthouse - the beacon of town for two hundred years. After taking in the view across Pleasant Bay toward marooned homes on ever-shifting North Beach Island, intercept a fresh, but startled, crustacean at the fish pier or tour (and taste) the working local oyster nursury at Chatham Shellfish Co. Later, wear out your boat shoes traipsing in and out of the quaint shops and galleries in town before settling onto a well-worn stool and into a well-earned cup of chowder with locals and tourists alike.
Radio Station: WFCC 107.5
history in hyannis
Kennedys, Coiffes, and Coffee. Head Mid Cape to Hyannis, summer residence of our 35th President and year-round Doherty domicile. To get a glimpse of the famous Kennedy Compound take a ride (or for a village best discovered on foot - a jog) down Scudder Ave. Afterward, head the JFK Museum on Main Street, then learn about shipbuilding and seafaring at the Maritime Museum. On the casual back deck of Baxter's, grab a swordfish sandwich and enjoy the harbor view of the Grey Lady embarking to Nantucket. Take an unsanctioned pool swim and then recharge with a Lahey (and South Shore) coffee favorite before returning Down Cape.
Radio Station: WEII 96.3
p-town and the nat'l seashore
Pilgrims, Painters, Pride. As described by Thoreau, stand here and put all America behind you. The 40 mile National Seashore, running from Chatham to Provincetown, was set aside by JFK in 1961. Travel north past iconic Nauset Light, a Chatham transplant, to the picturesque dunes painted by Hopper. At the Cape's tip is Pilgrim Monument, marking the Mayflower landing, towering over Provincetown - a more festive village than Truro. After taking in P'Town's inviting, artsy, and eclectic scene, take new friends to share a buttery chardonnay at the Outer Cape's winery and distillery accompanied by a dozen Wellfleets.
Radio Station: WCAI (NPR) 94.3
BITES AND SIPS
a few of our favorite spots
harwichport
In walkable Harwichport, enjoy local seafood at The Port with their lively patio. Next door is the best new addition to town, Perks beer garden. Though a coffeeshop by day, beware the BoomSauce. Across the street George's provides a fine example of take-out New England Greek pizza (and check out the adjacent Nines gallery). Enjoy a nightcap with outdoor live music next to the fire pit at Ember, or take home some homemade ice cream from Schoolhouse.
chatham
A venerable pre-beach lunch spot, the Corner Store slings both sandwiches and surprisingly good burritos. The Beach House at CBI is a picturesque spot for a beachside, and well-reviewed, mudslide. For a high-end but cozy meal, try a reservation at the Impudent Oyster. For relaxed bar-food, try the Red Nun. But no trip to Chatham would be complete without a visit to the Squire. Whether you go for lunch or brave the line at night, the jukebox plays hits year-round.
orleans and beyond
Hog Island Brewery is a new outdoor spot to relax playing some yard games, with Jailhouse Tavern is next door for pub grub. In town, Land Ho is a no-frills fried seafood hang-out. For bistro fare in a historic Colonial House, try Barley Neck Inn with live music later at night. Beyond Orleans in Wellfleet is the legendary Beachcomber. Unlike anywhere else, enjoy your view from the historic lifesaving station next to one of the freshest raw bars anywhere.
NOTE: Pictured above is the pinnacle of South Shore bar-style pizza, Lynwood Cafe. Well worth the extra time for those traveling through The Hub, Lynwood is Off Cape just outside Boston. Bar pizza is best found in its natural habitat behind a dated facade, amongst the sound of thick accents and NESN, fresh out of the oven with an ice cold beverage. If Lynwood is too far, a suitable second place contender is a bit closer to The Cape (off Route 3) to satisfy your bar pizza cravings.
Just remember - cash-only!
APPENDIX: WHERE ARE YOU - On cape? up cape? down cape?
Local Cape nuances include unpronounceable roads, impromptu rotaries, and illogical routes - including Route. 28 South, an entirely east-west roadway between Hyannis and Chatham. Even more, The Cape has actually been an island since at least 1914.
When traveling to Cape Cod, proper vernacular is that you will be "on The Cape." The area closer to Boston, near the canal and bridges to the mainland, is the "Upper Cape."
Eastward brings you "Down Cape" - first through the "Mid Cape," including Hyannis and surrounding environs, to the "Lower Cape," including Chatham, Orleans, and points north to P-Town. As if there were not enough descriptors to confuse, the "Lower Cape" is also synonymous with the "Outer Cape." But please note, there is no "Inner Cape."
Perhaps the terminology is historically nautical, with ships traveling downwind from west to east along The Cape's shores. Regardless, know that it can be easy to get lost on Cape Cod whether by wrong direction or wrong turn of a phrase.
