Cape Cod

Cape Cod Highlights

The 40-mile seashore boasts some of the world's most beautiful white sand beaches. Buried deep in the New England sand is the story of the Mayflower and America's first settlement at Plymouth, dating back nearly 400 years.
Campgrounds, both public and private, abound on the Cape, but there is no camping at the Cape Cod National Seashore itself. Typically, the private campgrounds offer more amenities, but public campgrounds are more isolated and closer to nature.
Stellwagon Bank, nine miles off Provincetown, is a marine sanctuary for whales. Humpback, finback, and minke whales feed on the rich sources of microscopic plankton found here.
Located on the northeastern tip of Cape Cod, the seashore primarily faces the Atlantic, though parts of it look over Cape Cod Bay. Species include cod, found in deeper waters; flounder, in estuaries and rivers; as well as other species caught from the surf.
There are some 365 freshwater kettles on Cape Cod created by giant blocks of ice left by the last Ice Age. These ponds now nourish Cape Cod's abundant freshwater marshes, and along with saltwater marshes serve as oases for waterfowl and shorebirds. These marshlands shelter swampy forests of red maple and white cedar that are best explored by kayak and canoe.

By Travel Expert: Karen Berger

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