Touring Cape Cod

From Touring Cape Cod

Home for the next several days is beautiful Cape Cod, actually Peter's Pond, in Sandwich. The following photos show the amenities at Peter's Pond.

From Touring Cape Cod

From Touring Cape Cod

From Touring Cape Cod

There is much to see and do here, and we are anxious to visit Cape Cod National Seashore.

From Touring Cape Cod

From Touring Cape Cod

From Touring Cape Cod

Resplendent with sea grass and sand dunes, the Atlantic Coast is so different from the Pacific. The beautiful Province Lands Visitor's Center located near the end of the Cape, allows for breathtaking views out to the Atlantic Ocean and to Provincetown Harbor.

From Touring Cape Cod

From Touring Cape Cod

From Touring Cape Cod

When I went to school, we were taught the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth Rock. I'm sure they did, but only after arriving in what is now Provincetown.

From Touring Cape Cod

From Touring Cape Cod

From Touring Cape Cod

This marker designates the place near where the Pilgrims first landed, and has a museum. Since we arrived after closing hours, we were not able to see the exhibit.

From Touring Cape Cod

From Touring Cape Cod

From Touring Cape Cod

Sunset finds us driving down the narrow streets of Provincetown with it's many interesting shops, people, and traffic! Here is a glimpse of what we see.

From Touring Cape Cod

From Touring Cape Cod

From Touring Cape Cod

From Touring Cape Cod

The buildings are equally as fascinating as the glorious views, and the light is perfect to capture views on the bay.

From Touring Cape Cod

From Touring Cape Cod

From Touring Cape Cod

From Touring Cape Cod

With night rapidly approaching, Bob drives slowly as I jump out onto the street and take what pictures I can grab. It's such an interesting place, and I'm only sorry we didn't spend the entire day out here!

From Touring Cape Cod

From Touring Cape Cod

From Touring Cape Cod

From Touring Cape Cod

From Touring Cape Cod

For further information: Cape Cod National Seashore and Provincetown

Visiting Martha's Vineyard

From Visiting Martha's Vineyard

Martha's Vineyard is a place we had always romanticized, and today we're actually on a ferry out to the island. Regrettably it is a rainy overcast day, so we leave the SLR camera back in Popeye and head off with our little Point & Shoot.

From Visiting Martha's Vineyard

From Visiting Martha's Vineyard

From Visiting Martha's Vineyard

Hardly any of the 260+ pictures we take today are usable, but at least we have a few to show coming into Harbor and a few on the island itself.

From Visiting Martha's Vineyard

From Visiting Martha's Vineyard

From Visiting Martha's Vineyard

We opt for a guided bus tour of the island, hoping to learn some of the history. Instead, we get a who's who tour of hidden celebrity and trophy homes which were not only out of sight, (except for a roof or two) but not all that interesting.

From Visiting Martha's Vineyard

From Visiting Martha's Vineyard

From Visiting Martha's Vineyard

Our only stop on this trip was at the Gay Head Cliffs and Lighthouse. They even charge $1 to use the restroom here!

From Visiting Martha's Vineyard

From Visiting Martha's Vineyard

From Visiting Martha's Vineyard

In total, we are disappointed with both the tour and the island. It seems old and tired to us. It hardly matters; the movers and shakers of Martha's Vineyard love to flaunt their wealth here.

From Visiting Martha's Vineyard

From Visiting Martha's Vineyard

From Visiting Martha's Vineyard

From Visiting Martha's Vineyard

From Visiting Martha's Vineyard

The island is known for their gingerbread houses, and they are abundant. Shown above are some of the only decent photos we were able to capture. Note the detail of the weather wane. A few more are shown in the slideshow which follows:

Saint Croix Island International Historic Site, ME

From Saint Croix Island

Next stop on this long day is a visit to the Saint Croix Island International Historic Site. Although you cannot actually go out to the island, a Visitor's Center and interesting displays sit on the shore of the St. Croix River.

From Saint Croix Island

From Saint Croix Island

From Saint Croix Island

I am, however, getting a little ahead of myself. The US Customs let us back in, and we found the West Quoddy Lighthouse. I know there are a few of you out there that love light house pictures! Incidentally, the lighthouse at the top of this post is located at Calais, ME.

Now turning north on Hwy 1, we head up to St. Croix Island, but first, stop for lunch at Uncle Kippy's.

From Saint Croix Island

Now along the shore of the St. Croix River, we finally come to the site. Our experience has shown that GPS navigation, at least when it comes to finding historic sites, leaves much to be desired. After a trial or two, we finally find it!

From Saint Croix Island

From Saint Croix Island

From Saint Croix Island

From Saint Croix Island

The yellow house on top of the hill is the visitor's center, and we get to meet the great Park Ranger and, more importantly, Bob gets to stamp his National Passport Book!

From Saint Croix Island

From Saint Croix Island

From Saint Croix Island

There are many displays and very beautiful bronze statues. Basically the French wanted to convert the local Indian's to Christianity, cultivate and settle the lands, explore and find precious metals. Finding a Northwest Passage to the Orient was still one of the goals. Champlain had his work cut out for him!

From Saint Croix Island

From Saint Croix Island

From Saint Croix Island

From Saint Croix Island

From Saint Croix Island

From Saint Croix Island

From Saint Croix Island

From Saint Croix Island

The choice for this island as a Fort proved tragic. The French had no idea how severe the winters were, and many men died of starvation. So close to the shore, they had no way to reach it, and their food supply consisted only of salted meat and vegetables.

From Saint Croix Island

From Saint Croix Island

Because the river is narrow at this point, it is difficult to see this small island with the mainland in the background. The model shows what the village may have looked like.

The Ranger, Meg Scheid, told us it was a shame we didn't have time to visit the rural area's of Maine. Bob and I pretty much thought we were out in the middle of nowhere! Can't imagine what the "rural" areas looked like! Meg also said she saw a beautiful bull Moose on the way to work. We haven't seen any moose yet, but are really anxious to see one.

From Saint Croix Island

A short drive takes us to Calais, the end of the road for us. It turned out to have a great little pizza place, and they told us of the Moose Preserve right at the end of town. Unfortunately for us, it is dark by the time we finish our pizza, and no respectable moose is showing himself tonight!

From Saint Croix Island

For further information: Saint Croix Island