Train excursion a side trip to Cape Cod vacation
Q. First I'd like to thank you for your wonderful suggestion for the golf outing to Callaway Gardens last year. I read your article every Sunday and find your suggestions very helpful for planning trips.
My friends and I enjoyed our stay in Georgia with the golf, accommodations and nearby attractions very much. Now we want to plan our next vacation to Cape Cod. We would like to golf, visit the beach, visit nearby attractions and dine on seafood. We prefer to stay together in a three-bedroom, three-bath townhouse, villa or some similar accommodation. Could you give us some suggestions? We are planning an early summer vacation for next year.
Thank you in advance for any suggestions you might have.
A. The 70-mile stretch along U.S. Route 6 or the more scenic Route 6A provides access to all the towns on Cape Cod, beginning at Sagamore Bridge and ending at Provincetown. The peninsula is so loaded with things to see and do I scarcely know where to begin.
The Cape is a mecca for artists and each town is more lovely than the last, with quaint shops and typical New England architecture. Many restaurants serve seafood fresh from the waters surrounding the Cape and the way of life of its permanent residents reflects its history as a whaling and fishing area. Wealthy sea captains left their legacy in the elaborate homes they built and furnished with objects from their world travels. Some have been restored and today function as museums.
Recreation abounds with 27 public golf courses, water sports, fishing or just sitting and watching the sun set over the ocean.
Car and passenger ferries operate from Woods Hole to Martha's Vineyard year-round and from Hyannis Port to Nantucket Island as well as Martha's Vineyard. Island tours are available.
While in Hyannis, you can visit the John F. Kennedy Museum, take a cruise of Hyannis Harbor and view the Kennedy family's summer homes, or go on a whale-watching cruise.
An interesting side trip can be taken on the Cape Cod Scenic Railroad that runs between Hyannis and the Cape Cod Canal at Sagamore. Trains of first-class parlor cars and restored coaches ply the line past cranberry bogs, the Great Salt Marsh and Cape Cod Bay. Dinner trips of three hours are available throughout the year.
In November 1620, the Mayflower landed at the tip of the Cape near what is now Provincetown. A monument to the Pilgrims stands on High Pole Hill. On your way to Provincetown you can stop off at Cape Cod National Seashore, a 44,000-acre area of dunes, marshland, glacial cliffs and dense forests that runs for 40 miles along the Cape's eastern coast.
You should have no problem finding a fully equipped three-bedroom three-bath accommodation with an ocean view. It's just a matter of selecting where you want to locate. To help you with that, I suggest you go to www.capecodchamber.org where you can download a guidebook, or you can call (888) 332-2732 and have one sent to you.
Send your questions at leastsixweeks prior to travel toMadelynMerwin in care ofTravel,Daily Herald, P.O.Box280, Arlington Heights, IL60006, or e-maildpmerwin@sbcglobal.net.