NYC via National Basketball Hall of Fame Springfield, MA

Mileage 350

I took a few photos as we left Nickerson State Park today. This is a photo of the pond near our campsite in area 1.

The Cape Cod Rail Trail (CCRT) was amazing. There are times it crosses streets (road Xing), but it was really beautiful with scenic overlooks. Here is a shot below.

We stopped at the National Basketball Hall of Fame. It was a nice exhibit and a large store (which needed a little more merchandise) and some fun games for the kids. It wasn't crowded, so we got to do some activities more than once. All of the employees were very professional. I appreciated the positive spin on all the coaches and players.

We definitely drove through the city again. I thought I would stay in Staton Island, so I wouldn't have to drive through New York. We will be riding the ferry to Manhatten tomorrow.

Provincetown, Massachusetts

Sunday

Mileage 17

Bike Mileage 15.4

Provincetown is located at the "fingertips" of the arm hook of Massachusetts. Here is a shot of the town from the beach. We are driving to Nickerson State park, which is 17 miles from our hotel in Dennisport to camp for a night. This park has a nice bike path. I don't think we will have internet today, so I am uploading two photos from earlier.

Hydranga is one of my favorite flowering bushes. Hydranga is abundant here on the Cape. The bushes are old and larger than any I have seen. These must have been trimmed because the large blooms are all sticking out like bobbing boats or a sea of people.

Dennis Port to Chatham

Mileage 46

Bike Mileage 10.81
It has been my personal goal to learn "how to bike" and then bike cape cod. We did it today. We rode to Harwich Port today to purchase a kite. It was a nice ride. I took photographs many times on our ride. The yards are quaint and well-cared for. Here is one image. More tomorrow.

Plymouth and Cape Cod Bay

Family members have traced John Howland to our tree, and he was one of the 102 people to travel to America on the Mayflower. We visited Massachusetts every year when I was a young girl. But, I don't remember the ocean, which makes the biggest impression on me today.

I do remember being with my grandfather and grandmother the most. She taught us to love coffee ice cream and clam rolls. He took us for rides on the tractor and walked in the yard. We had marvelous clam bakes in the yard at the stone fireplace. I smelled the trees of their yard in Connecticut on our bike ride, and it took me back there walking from their garage to house. She could sew and he garden. I love both of these activities now. My grandparents have passed, but I can conjure a bit of them, which lives on in me.

Here is a photo I took last night of Cape Cod Bay near the Mayflower II, a reproduction of the original ship. We arrived just before a late closing night and got to step on board. But, Plymouth Rock is now inside a monument so we cannot touch it. It bears the famous 1620 mark and I know I have personally sat on it in the past. I'll look for the photo.

Boston Harbor -- It's Magnificent

I love how our country is connected by rivers. The Charles River empties into Boston Harbor. We did not start the car today!

Instead we took a ferry to Georges Island one of the 34 islands and peninsulas in the Boston Harbor. Georges Island hosts Fort Warren. While on the island, I photographed many sparrows darting about, two cormorants and various flowers. Cormorants are very common birds with a huge population across the globe in different varieties. It looks like they may have an over population from quick Internet research. We stayed on the Georges for one hour and that was plenty of time to explore the island. Park rangers are a plenty, so this is a nice segue.

It did not rain until our return trip, but it did rain for a lot of the day. Hilton provided an umbrella, which was a much appreciated amenity. But the view of Boston from the boat was so cool. Take a look...