Massachusetts 2011

On our way to Humarock, MA, a village of Scituate, instead of taking the highway we drove on the scenic route along Route 6 through New Bedford and Fairhaven until we reached the Sagamore Bridge near Sandwich MA in Cape Cod.

From there we took Route 3 up to our destination, an Air Force Recreation area that was right on Fourth Cliff at the end of a peninsula overlooking the Atlantic Ocean on one side and the scenic North River on the other side. We had a great site overlooking the Atlantic Ocean.

Here is a short story of this area and how it came to be.

We set up and decided to take a ride to Marshfield where we found a great little place called Charlies Too for dinner. We had Haddock Fish and chips and I had some awesome Sweet Potatoe Fries instead of regular fries. The price was very reasonable too, not something I expected. I asked the waitress where the first Charlies was and she said it was originally downtown but it got flooded during one of the hurricanes and they decided not to stay there and moved to higher ground.

The next day we just stayed around Fourth Cliff and walked along the beach and enjoyed the area.



Looking out from the gated area of Fourth Cliff







Marsh area at Fourth Cliff

Wednesday June 15th we headed down towards North Falmouth to have lunch at a restaurant Bill said he used to go to when he lived in Cape Cod over 25 years ago and said the food was really good. It was the Silver Lounge Restaurant and was opened the year we were born…1956.

We then drove through Woods Hole and some quaint towns with nices beaches, shops and harbours.

 We arrived at Air Station Cape Cod where Bill had been stationed and lived for about six months at the end of his time there in 1985. The house he had rented was gone and it was just an empty lot now…he said the weird thing was all the other buildings were still there.

We found a nice boardwalk to the beach in Sandwich and walked it with Ty. We then drove through Sandwich and the Marina, a really nice town that I wanted to come back to and see the Glass Museum

We then headed back to the campground arriving after 8 pm, just in time to see the sunset.

On Thursday we headed out to Cape Cod National Seashore which was over two hours away from the campground. We got off Route 6 at Marstons Mills where Bill had owned a house while he was stationed in Cape Cod. It was nicely landscaped but a high wooden fence hid the property and many others around it.

We continued on to the Seashore and arrived to a hot sunny day on the beach.

There was the Old Harbour Museum which was a replica of a Life Saving Staton in the late 1800’s. Bill enjoyed talking to the volunteer Park Rangers about his days in the Coast Guard and found the Museum very interesting.

We  continued to drive along the Seashore Drive until we reached Provincetown, a very colorful and busy tourist town.

I liked the narrow streets with a mix of businesses and residences.

 We were looking for a place to eat but it was too busy here and we continued to drive until we reached downtown Truro. There was an ice cream shop Bill had said was the best he ever had, Emack & Bolio’s but it was closed due to renovations and he was very disappointed that I could not try it.

It is also listed as the best ice cream in America by the top magazines, Cuisine, Food and Wine and others.

We did come across the Higland Light but it cost money to take a tour and we decided to get something to eat.

We then found a place on the show “The best thing I ever ate” called PJ’s Seafood, it was even on the sign....so we stopped and order from the window and ate outside at the benches. I had my first Lobster Roll and it was delicious, expensive but really cold and tasty.

We then continued on the Chatham, another nice seaport town and also the location of a small Coast Guard base and Lighthouse.

The beach was right across from there and the sight of the Rescue of the Pendleton in 1952, a tanker that broke in half during a fierce Nor’easter Storm with blinding rain and sixty foot seas. The Coast Guard rescued 32 crew members in total darkness and without a compass that had washed overboard.

We drove through downtown Hyannis and took a short walk in the Kennedy Memorial Park, then drove down to the beach.

It was late in the day but there was a wind surfer and in the distance we could see a cruise ship turning to come into port.

We headed back to the campground as it was already past 8 pm.

The following day we stayed at Fourth Cliff for most of the day talking to neighbors who had come in the day before and enjoying the weather. Late afternoon we decided to drive to Scituate and to a community park Bill had found to walk along the bay.

 It was a protected peninsula and you could see Boston from there. There were very few other people around so it was a quiet hike. It took us over two hours and we got back just in time for closing at 7:00 pm. Ty had dozens of ticks on him from the woods so we removed them before we got back in the car. It was a horrible tick season all the way from South Carolina up through New England and we had to check him every time we went on any hikes. Since we put Advantix on him every 30 days sometimes they would jump off him and get on us…..not fun!

On Saturday we drove down to Sandwich to go to the Glass Museum.

They had a demonstration on glass blowing and it does not seem easy at all. The girl that was demonstrating said she gets something like one out of four right. They recycle the glass though and use it again.

 The displays in the museum were beautiful, such colorful items throughout the Museum. Very interesting history behind all the different pieces and who donated them.

On our way back to Humarock we stopped in Plymouth Rock as I needed to at least say I had been there being so close! It was nothing to write home about but it is part of history and there were a lot of tourists around.

On the way back we drove through an old graveyard which was one of many in New England.

We arrived back at the campground just in time for another beautiful sunset.

The campground and cabins were full for the weekend and people were outside and on the beach in front of campfires.


Sunday we enjoyed our last day at the campground on Fourth Cliff. The weather was perfect and we walked on the beach in the morning with our coffee and Ty of course. 

 Then at sunset when the tide was low, we went down to the other side of the beach.  There were lots of mussels clinging to the rocks but Bill said not the best to eat.

Ty loved running in the water and sniffing the sea life. The water was cold and I froze my toes but it was such a nice evening and everyone else was out walking along the shoreline and enjoying the night.