Take a captivating trip through the Cape Cod National Seashore
with miles of white sandy beaches, trails and hikes to take your
breath away, and majestic dunes. Just keep reading and you can
visit all those places right now.

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The Cape Cod National Seashore is a 4,308-acre park set aside by
an act of congress in 1961 to preserve and protect a unique
geological area and wild life habitat of New England. Cape Cod
is about 60 miles south of Boston, Massachusetts. It was formed
when the last glaciers to visit the region melted about
12,000-years ago leaving a large lake. Because of special
features and material surrounding the glacial lake, the water
drained out exposing the sediment and deposits left by the
glaciers from earlier times. With the rising sea level and the
protection from the battering ocean provided by Georges Bank
gone, nature started to reshape the whole of Cape Cod --
especially the Atlantic facing National Seashore area. The
relentless shaping of the Cape continues even today. But this is
the place to come to escape. This is the place to come to
experience nature.

So let's take a brief Cape Cod vacations trip together. Are you
ready?

Nauset Beach

The first stop on your trip is Nauset Beach in the town of
Orleans.

The entrance to Nauset beach is located in East Orleans at the
end of Beach Road, where there's a large parking lot. The lot is
about 2 miles from Routes 6/6A. During the summer months you'll
pay to use the lot. Protection is the name of the game at Nauset
not just for the dunes, but the birds nesting in the spring.
Always pay close attention to beach erosion and bird nesting
protection signs anywhere during your Cape Cod vacations.
Heeding the signs means the area could still be here next time
you visit.

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At the entrance to the beach you can turn left and walk North,
or take the South walk by turning right. Both walks offer
spectacular views and hidden areas of the Cape even many
residents haven't discovered. Time your walks to be at low tide
so you'll be walking on exposed sand bars on the North walk, or
have a dry crossing to Pochet Island on the South walk. In the
summer Nauset beach is very popular with vacationers, but there
always seems to be room even at the busiest times. Swimming is
good -- but stay close to the shore. It's the Atlantic Ocean so
it'll be a little cooler than on the Cape Cod Bay side or the
Nantucket Sound beaches. National Seashore Eastham Visitors
Center

The Salt Pond Visitor Center in Eastham is your next Cape Cod
vacations stop. It'll orientate you to the park, and provides
short films, a museum, and free maps for hiking and biking
trails. Note: The Salt Pond Visitor Center building has been
closed for renovations since 2003. It's due to reopen in 2005-
in fact right about now!

Starting from the visitor center is the short and easy 1-mile
loop Nauset Marsh Trail that follows a path around the salt pond
and Nauset Marsh before returning to the visitor center. It's a
varied terrain of salt marsh grasses, juniper and bayberry
bushes, and a great place for bird watching due to the proximity
of the marsh. The salt pond itself is a glacial kettle pond that
was once freshwater but the ocean has seeped through.

The Lighthouse Beaches

Two wonderful beaches to visit in the Eastham area are Coast
Guard Beach and Nauset Light Beach. Coast Guard Beach can be
reached by bike from the bike trail from the Salt Pond Visitor
Center, or by car from Nauset Road off Route 6 directly after
the Visitor Center -- just follow the signs to the lot on Doane
Road. This beach is a favorite walk of mine at low tide, and was
the area where Henry Beston wrote "The Outermost House." Sadly
the blizzard of 1978 washed the cottage where he lived while
writing the book -- out to sea. Yet another example of the
awesome forces continually sculpturing the Cape Cod National
Seashore. But here's another gem of a beach for you... Nauset
Light Beach can be reached from Brackett Road also off Route 6,
and then Cable Road and Ocean View Drive. The parking lot is
small and fills up quickly in the summer. Close by the beach is
Nauset Lighthouse. Originally built in Chatham in the late 19th
century, it was moved here shortly after, and moved again in
1996 when erosion of the cliff threatened to collapse the
lighthouse. The beach is popular for the imposing and towering
cliffs and clean white-sand, and walks that create memorable
Cape Cod vacations.

Great Island Hike in Wellfleet...

The Great Island hike in Wellfleet is a 6-mile hike, so allow
yourself at least half-a-day to explore this wonderful area.

Located on the Cape Cod Bay side of the Cape in Wellfleet, drive
to the trailhead off Chequesset Neck Road, and prepare yourself
-- and camera -- for an exhilarating hike. The area is pretty
open and so take sunscreen and a hat. What will you see?
Marvelous views of Wellfleet Harbor and Cape Cod Bay await you
once on the island (hint: it's not really an island anymore).
Another hint: this is a real nature hike. There's no sandwich
bar or coke machine waiting for you at the end, so take your own
snacks and drinks. Of all the trails in the Cape Cod National
Seashore Park, this is perhaps the most remote -- and I like
that! Out on the Island itself there used to be a secluded
Tavern used by Whalers and the like. Nothing remains of it today
except for a sign to mark the spot where it was.

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National Seashore Province Lands Visitors Center

The visitor center in Province Lands is off Route 6 and on Race
Point Road. This is the northern tip of the park, and marks our
final stop together on this Cape Cod vacations trip.

The Visitor Center itself has an observation deck where you can
view the majestic surroundings of ocean, forest, and the
omnipresent towering dunes. The area includes two swimming
beaches -- Race Point and Herring Cove -- a bike trail, and a
walking trail. There's also a beautiful lighthouse at Race
Point. The bike trail is a challenging 5.25-mile loop that you
can start from the visitor center. I'd describe it as undulating
bordering on hilly. There's also a fair amount of hairpin turns,
and so helmets and a safe speed are a must. Believe me the
downhill stretches are so exhilarating, but you can easily
forget and misjudge bike traffic coming the other way. I've seen
many a tangled mess -- Ouch!

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And that's the end of this brief trip.

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Wow! You did a lot in a few minutes from your chair. But now
it's time to do the real thing. Are you ready?

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About the author:
Cliff Calderwood is the owner and contributing writer of
www.new-england-vacations-guide.com.