She Says: Spring in New England

May 30

May 30 She Says: Spring in New England

The week before Memorial Day benefits from the relatively warm weather and clear days… without hordes of holiday makers. Therefore, we got to enjoy the quaint villages and empty beaches of Cape Cod all to ourselves for a few days!

We stayed at Eastham, about mid-way along the cape which meant we had easy access to everything the peninsula has to offer. We had initially planned to camp at Nickerson State Park, but due to the chilly evenings we decided to book an airbnb instead. We still wanted to visit the Park, so we decided to try the Big Cliff Pond trail. Due to the snow melt and higher than normal water levels in the lake, the trail was washed out about a third of the way around. So we thought we’d try the neighbouring Little Cliff Pond trail… which we got about half-way around before I jumped over a pond that had a fricken water snake in it so I freaked the f*** out and made a bee-line back to the car. That was enough nature for one day.

The other notable trail was the Fort Hill Loop that had lovely views over the Nauset Marshlands. Truly spectacular - and with a boardwalk the likelihood of disturbing a water snake was minimized.

We did a day trip to Provincetown - the quintessential holiday resort town, full of cute gift shops, lobster shacks and waterfront bars and cafes. We rented bikes and completed the Province Lands Bike Loop through beech forest and sand dunes. An 8-mile loop with more than a few undulations, but it was a great experience on a moody overcast day. It also took us to our first beach (!!) @ Racepoint for a chilly toe dip in the Atlantic Ocean.

The famous Provincetown Lobster Pot; beach @ Ptown Harbour; cycling in the Province Lands

And of course, as much beach-hopping as possible:

Sunset at Skaket Beach; Nauset Marshlands; Lighthouse Beach - so many beaches!!

Following Cape Cod we went to Portland, Maine, and enjoyed wandering around the coastline and the Old Port. It’s a very beautiful wee city. We had perhaps the very best Clam Chowder at Gilbert’s Chowderhouse, served in a bread bowl. Oh my.

Our final stop in New England was Barrington, New Hampshire to stay with cousin Tim and his family. By this point in the trip we needed to catch up on life admin and laundry, so it was great to have a quiet couple of days hanging out. Thanks for having us to stay!