I asked family and friends for help with my caregiving responsibilities, booked a flight, took my camera, and headed to places I hadn’t seen. I was a caregiver unplugged. My respite was a photography tour. The first stop – Cape Cod, Massachusetts.
It was a fly by the seat of my pants kind of tour. A tight budget meant this was a sightseeing trip with no intricate itinerary. Because of my commitment to caregiving, this could be my only chance to go on a tour of New England. Main goal – see as much landscape as possible. I liked the freedom of taking things one day at a time and seeing where it led me – pretty much like my everyday life.
A New Sunrise on a New Adventure
Saying I don’t like flying is an understatement – it terrifies me. My first flight was when I was a child. My dad was the pilot. The plane was small, maybe a four seater. The memory I conjure up is the small space around me; seat in front of me, window beside me, tension, and a terrible headache. I didn’t even look out the window.
When I fly now, a ritual helps me cope. It includes stress, then getting all my finances in order and telling Hannah how to find my life insurance policies if I die. Then, I feel ever so slightly better that at least something is taken care of. The second part of the ritual includes a prayer after I have gotten into my seat, then another as we take off. Then, truly, it is out of my hands and I feel better.
I knew the airport was in the middle of the city, but I’m glad I didn’t see this picture prior to flying. I didn’t know that it was also practically surrounded by water.
I lucked out and was seated next to a nice gentleman who was trying to get home in time for his son’s hockey game. He engaged me in pleasant conversation which helped me not be focused on my worries. As we neared the destination, he gave a narrative to what I was seeing out the window, and told me what to expect on our approach to the airport.
Yes, I am proudly a nerd. Something I learned to embrace. I love brochures, maps and scientific kinds of info. I didn’t realize how much of Cape Cod is part of the National Park Service.
The entire great Outer Beach is protected within Cape Cod National Seashore. The information I gathered on this first stop helped steer the rest of my tour of Cape Cod. Salt Pond Visitor Center has views of Salt Pond, Nauset Marsh, and the Atlantic, and has a museum. Theater films include:
The Sands of Time – formation of Cape Cod by ice, wind, and waves, and processes that continue to shape the Cape.
Wooden Ships and Men of Iron – maritime history, including whaling and lifesaving service.
Voice of Cape Cod – Guglielmo Marconi’s history-making trans-Atlantic wireless communication in 1903.
Thoreau’s Cape Cod – Henry David Thoreau’s 19th-century adventures, discoveries, and writings
Return of the Tides – the Herring River estuary in Wellfleet and the planned tidal restoration project to re-establish native salt-marsh habitat in the area. (What is a Salt Marsh? ReadHERE)
This 1850-era hay barge was a common sight among the working dories, skiffs, and catboats of the area. Wide and flat-bottomed, it was rowed, poled, and sailed throughout the shallow marshes. Salt marsh hay was gathered from the water’s edge for livestock, bedding and feed. Many local residents still remember the taste of salty milk. Today it is the last remaining hay barge on Cape Cod, perhaps in all New England.
A hands-on display of shore lifeSHORE LIFE OF CAPE COD
Exhibits show the Outer Cape’s location in the Gulf of Maine ecosystem, and Wampanoag culture and history. Nauset Marsh, Buttonbush trails, and the Nauset Bicycle Trail are nearby.
Nauset Marsh Trail(click HERE for Google map)includes a view of the Salt Pond, a dike originally built to “impound brackish water”, Nauset Marsh Overlook, the red cedars of the Cape, and an old farmstead. (National Park Brochure you can view HERE– it presents with 2nd page first.)
Salt Pond – A Kettle of Sea Water
SALT POND
Salt Pond was originally a freshwater kettle, formed by depressions left by receding glaciers of the Ice Age. Eventually, the ocean broke through and formed a narrow channel connecting it to Nauset Marsh. Twice daily it is enriched by tidal action, and Salt Pond has become a diverse community of marine life. Quahogs (pronounced ˈkō-ˌhȯg – aka – large edible clams), oysters, mussels, fish, shorebirds, plants of the marine environment, and animals all mark the change from fresh to saltwater. (about Quahogs…)
Permits can be obtained to shellfish in Salt Pond. For quahogs (hard shell) a long-handled tool with curved tines allows the digger to scratch to a depth of six inches – where the animals are found. For Steamer clams (soft shell) the tool is a short-handled hoe with tines of about 12 inches in length to dig a 10 inches deep trench to uncover the clams.
As I watched the people digging for clams, I was struck by what back-breaking work it looks like. Before I left the area, I saw a couple of older ladies walking up these stairs. They were carrying a bucket hanging from a pole. It was full of quahogs and looked very heavy. The park ranger said those ladies came every Sunday.
For this southern girl, it was time to move on – there was so much more to see. I now knew what was next on my agenda. Quahogs. It was time to go find a good spot to try out some of those clams.
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Kaye
What an interesting post! It makes me want to sightsee at Cape Cod. Looking forward to reading about the rest of your respite trip.
What an interesting post! It makes me want to sightsee at Cape Cod. Looking forward to reading about the rest of your respite trip.
Thank you! It was really interesting and I definitely want to go back. Please do stay tuned… I’ve got lots more ground to cover…lol.