Beautiful Cape Cod and Martha’s Vineyard

Our armchair travels have taken us to the U.S. state of Massachusetts. Our first stops will be Cape Cod and Martha’s Vineyard.

Massachusetts is one of the New England states and is known for its significance in Colonial history.

Cape Cod is a hook-shaped peninsula and has become a popular summer destination. There are quaint villages, lighthouses, ponds and bay and ocean beaches.

Cape Cod National Seashore stretches along the east coast of Cape Cod. There are lovely beaches, beautiful woodlands with Atlantic white cedar and other conifers, bird nesting grounds, and many miles of hiking trails.

Nantucket was founded by colonists in 1659. It became the center of the world’s whaling industry with over 125 whaling ships. Visitors enjoy the beaches and cycling paths. In April you can delight in the bright daffodils which are celebrated with a colorful festival. No moving vehicles here everything is on foot or by bike.

Maria Mitchell Assoc. Aquarium

You can see the home of Maria Mitchell America’s first female professional astronomer.

The Nantucket Life Saving Museum has a collection of marine artifacts. The Hinchman House Natural History Museum offers Nantucket’s flora and fauna with bird, wildflower, and marine ecology walks.

The Nantucket Whaling Museum has displays of ship models, scrimshaw, whaling equipment, portraits, logbooks, and the skeleton of a 43-foot sperm whale. It is housed in a restored 1847 candle factory with a rooftop observation deck.

The Nantucket Historical Association offers guided walking tours from late May through October. Among the attractions you can see are a 19th-century firehouse, the 1845 Hadwen House, the 1745 Macy Christian House, the Old Gaul,

the oldest working windmill in the country, the 1686 Saltbox,

and Jethro Coffin House the island’s oldest residence and only surviving structure from the original English settlement.

Provincetown has a thriving art and music scene. This was the place that the pilgrims landed in 1620 on the Mayflower before they moved on the Plymouth. Here you’ll find many beaches, walking and cycling paths, kayaking, and boat excursions.

The Provincetown Heritage Museum shows the history of this whaling and fishing port, with a 66-foot model of a Grand Bank schooner and racing yacht. There is a collection of paintings by notable Provincetown artists.

Here is the 252-foot Pilgrim Monument which is the tallest granite structure in the U.S. and the museum at the base displays ship models, whaling equipment, and maritime artifacts. You can climb to the top for awesome views.

Whale watching is a great activity on Cape Cod. Various boat tours are available for whale watching excursions. Stellwagen Bank Marine Sanctuary has whale watching excursions from mid-April through October. Trained naturalists help passengers spot finback, humpback, and minke whales.

Sandwich is a charming little town at the west end of Cape Cod. In the 19^th century, it was a major glass-making center. There are lovely beaches here.

Visitors can see Dexter’s Grist Mill built between 1640 and 1646 that grinds corn flour using authentic grindstone’s that are powered by a water wheel. Cornmeal can be purchased.

Take a look at history at the 1669 Nye Family Homestead, a saltbox house furnished with period furnishings.

Heritage Museums & Gardens are a complex of Americana museums set in a 100-acre garden. The automobile museum is housed in a reproduction Shaker Round Stone Barn with about 35 antique cars. At the art museum, you can see American folk art. The gardens are lovely.

Sandwich Glass Museum features over 5,000 pieces of glassware produced in the 19^th century.

There are glass blowing demonstrations, a multi-media theater, and a gallery of contemporary glass works. The museum shop sells reproductions of Sandwich glass.

Chatham is a beautiful beach town with white sand beaches, a lighthouse, summer band concerts, and its own baseball team.

Take a look at the Atwood House built in 1752 furnished with 18^th and 19th-century furniture, paintings, glassware, china, and tools.

Hyannis is a ferry port on the south coast. There are always many yachts and boats here during the annual Harbor Festival in early June.

Here you can board the Cape Cod Central Railroad for excursions past cranberry bogs, woodlands, the Great Salt Marsh, and charming villages.

Near Lewis Bay, a monument commemorates the 35^th President of the U.S. John F. Kennedy.

The Kennedy retreat is here.

The John F. Kennedy Museum tells about the family.

Falmouth is a popular beach resort and people enjoy engaging in water sports here. It has a lively music, art, and theater scene as well as its own opera company.

You can rent a kayak to explore the Great Salt Marsh

or bike along the shore on the Shining Sea Bike Path.

The Falmouth Museums on the Green has two 18th century houses that display period furniture, fine art, textiles, and temporary exhibits. There is a lovely colonial-style flower garden and an herb garden. Visitors can picnic in the gazebo.

Martha’s Vineyard is five miles south of Cape Cod. It can be reached by car or passenger ferry. Altogether there are six small towns and miles of beaches. It sits in the Atlantic and is a New England summer colony.

Oak Bluffs was originally a Methodist church camp meeting place on Martha’s Vineyard. Today it is a beach holiday town with gingerbread like cottages that were built in the 19^th century by campers. You can see a collection of Carpenter Gothic Style buildings in various colors.

The Flying Horses Carousel is one of the country’s oldest.

Edgartown is an important whaling center and the site of the oldest European settlement on Martha’s Vineyard. This lovely town has tree-shaded streets with white clapboard houses.

The oldest is Vincent House which is now a museum.

 

https://www.planetware.com/tourist-attractions-/massachusetts-cape-cod-us-ma-ccod.htm

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