Things To DoEastham, with its vast town conservation areas including The Cape Cod National Seashore Park and the Massachusetts Audubon Wildlife Sanctuary, has some of the best, most diverse, and most accessible nature spots in the East. Eastham has it all, including wooded trails, salt marshes, open ocean, protected bays and fresh water ponds. Sunsets that defy description, but will be kept in your heart forever, can be enjoyed from any of our beautiful bay beaches. Beaches | Kayaking & Canoeing | Biking | Hiking | Fishing Museums | Landmarks | Special Events Related Businesses:
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Beaches
Cape Cod National Seashore
Approximately 27,000 acres of uplands from the southern tip of Monomoy Island off Chatham to Provincetown comprise the Cape Cod National Seashore. A bill, signed by President John F. Kennedy in 1961 ensured the conservation and preservation of some of the area's most beautiful natural surroundings as well as approximately 30 miles of the finest seashore on the Atlantic Coast. Eastham is considered the "Gateway to the National Seashore" with the Salt Pond Visitors Center, the Nauset Marsh hiking trails and two beaches, Coast Guard and Nauset Light.
2009 beach rates apply daily from late June through Labor Day and on weekends from Memorial Day through Columbus Day. Rates are $15 per day per vehicle or $45 for a Cape Cod National Seashore Season Pass. Parking lots for both Nauset Light and the Coast Guard shuttle lot tend to fill between 10:00am and 1:00pm.
Cape Cod Bay Beaches
The western border of Eastham is lined with six miles of beautiful beaches overlooking Cape Cod Bay. Just as magical as the National Seashore, Cape Cod Bay offers calmer and warmer waters, amazing flats at low tide and breathtaking sunsets. The most notable and largest Eastham bay beach is First Encounter, the location where the native Indians first encountered the pilgrims in 1620.
Swim Instruction
Pre-School swim program for beginners, intermediates & advanced plus certified American Red Cross courses for Junior and Senior Life Saving. Each program requires registration fee.
- Registration: Early June
- Location: Wiley Park
- Time: Monday-Friday, 9am - 12pm
- Contact: (508) 240-5974
Photos courtesy of the Cape Cod National Seashore and Joe Realbuto
Kayaking / Canoeing
The marshes and open waters surrounding Eastham provides some of the
best kayaking and canoeing on the Cape and the East Coast. The preserved
areas allow for complete escape and intimate exposure to the incredible
wildlife that inhabits Cape Cod.
Photo courtesy of Marcia Duggan
Biking
Eastham boasts two bike paths and several walking trails that travel through remarkably picturesque scenery. Both bike paths are paved and provide an opportunity for bicyclists and hikers to enjoy a very special encounter with Cape Cod's charm and beauty. Within and around the trails are heavily wooded forests, lakes and quiet kettle ponds, salt marshes, bogs, winding creeks and sandy beaches.
The Cape Cod Rail Trail
The Cape Cod Rail Trail ("the Bike Path") is a twenty-four mile path that starts on Route 134 in Dennis and ends at LeCount Hollow in Wellfleet, having traveled the entire length of Eastham. The trail follows the old Penn Central Railway tracks. Today the tracks are gone, but the convenience to all of Eastham is easily accessible. Just off the path, side trips offer ocean beaches and fishing piers, country stores and quaint villages, parks, picnic areas, and places to lodge and dine.
Nauset Bike Trail
Nauset Bike Trail starts at the National Seashore's Visitor Center and only two and one quarter miles later, ends at Coast Guard Beach. Magnificent vistas of the salt marsh and the great Atlantic Ocean are not to be missed. This trail is wheelchair accessible, and can be shortened by starting at the Doane Rock picnic area.
Photo courtesy of Doreen Cahill and The Department of Environmental
Management
Hiking
Nauset Marsh Trail
Nauset Marsh Trail is a half-mile loop that skirts Salt Pond and Nauset Marsh and returns through transitional forest and fields. The area is well suited for studies of salt marsh ecosystems and upland succession. It also offers excellent bird watching opportunities.
The Lady Slipper Trail
The Lady Slipper Trail in the Wiley Park Conservation Area is a walking trail through the woods on Great Pond and Bridge Pond. There is also a beach at Wiley Park with parking and restroom facilities.
Red Maple Swamp Trail
Red Maple Swamp Trail with its serpentine boardwalk gives yet another dimension to Cape Cod that is totally unexpected compared to the Outer Cape's general landscape. This quarter mile walk is most colorful in the fall. A portion of this trail is wheelchair accessible via Hemenway Landing.
Fort Hill Trail
Fort Hill Trail is a one and one-half mile trail with some log steps on slopes. This walking trail offers spectacular view of Nauset Marsh, the Nauset Spit and the Atlantic Ocean. Bring your binoculars for some wonderful birding opportunities.
South Eastham Conservation Area - SECA
This area is home to a rich variety of habitats surrounding three small ponds, boasting some unusual tree species. Park on the trailhead on Peach Orchard Lane. Abutting the SECA is Upper Boat Meadow, which has magnificent walking trails and woodlands. Parking and access are available at the trailhead on Smith Lane as well as the bike path on Rock Harbor Road.
The Nickerson Property
25 acres of Conservation land that has walking trails along Bridge Pond, Great Pond, as well as Widow Harding Pond. This is where Eastham's Herring Run flows into Bridge Pond and on to Great Pond. It is located on Herringbrook Road, with parking at the Cole Road Herring Run.
Cottontail Acres
Cottontail Acres is more of Eastham's conservation land with hiking trails trough the meadows peppered with wildflowers along Herring and Jemina Ponds. Enter at Samoset Road.
Cedar Banks Trail
Cedar Banks Trail is a one and one-half mile hiking path that connects to the Nauset Marsh Trail and continues on to Coast Guard Beach.
Buttonbush Trail
Buttonbush Trail is a short quarter mile multi-sensory loop designed for the blind with a rope guide, and interpretive text panels in Braille and large lettering.
The Massachusetts Audubon Society Wildlife Sanctuary
The Massachusetts Audubon Society Wildlife Sanctuary in Eastham and Wellfleet has five very unique walking trails, all starting at their Nature Center and cross through forests, meadows, and marshes, including a boardwalk out to Cape Cod Bay.
Scenic Overlooks
Scenic Overlooks can be found at several points, but can best be enjoyed from Fort Hill, Salt Pond Visitor Center, Skiff Hill Pavilion, and Nauset Light Beach.
Photos courtesy of The Cape Cod National Seashore and Joe Realbuto
Fishing
The flats and rips around Rock Harbor, Wellfleet Harbor, Chatham Harbor and the Monomoy Islands offer some of the best and most challenging salt water fishing in the world. To really get the best Cape Cod fishing, you may want to take advantage of a fishing charter that will help you plan the best trip, explain the fish you'll catch and point out other wildlife along the way.
Fresh water fishing requires a Massachusetts Fishing License for all 15 years old and up. Eastham also offers fresh water fishing in one of its many kettle ponds throughout the area. The Eastham ponds include:
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Depot Pond
(25 Acres, bass & pickerel) -
Great Pond
(109 Acres, bass & pickerel) -
Herring Pond
(43 Acres, stocked trout, bass, pickerel & white perch) -
Minister Pond
(21 Acres, bass & pickerel)
Shellfishing
Phone: 508-240-5976Shellfishing is a classic activity on the Outer Cape. For an introduction to this favorite pastime, Salt Pond is available on Sundays throughout the year and is stocked with quahogs, littlenecks and steamers -- oysters are also available in the fall. Bring your shellfish permit, rake, basket and sneakers and have some fun. Permits are required and available at the Natural Resources Facility at 555 Old Orchard Road, Eastham.
Photo courtesy of Henry Lind and Joe Realbuto
Museums
Schoolhouse Museum
Eastham Historical SocietyPhone: 508-240-0871
Located on Nauset and Schoolhouse Roads, across from the Salt Pond Visitors Center, this museum is a one-room schoolhouse built in 1869. Exhibits depict the area's history and include a model schoolroom, farming and household implements, shipwreck treasures, old paper currency, information on the Life Saving Service, Native American artifacts, and a 13-foot jawbone from a 65-foot finback whale. Listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
Open in July and August on Tuesday & Wednesday 1 - 4pm and Thursday & Friday 10am - 4pm. Open in September Saturday 1 - 4pm. Bus tours in June, September & October by appointment, (508) 255-6896.
Swift-Daley House
Eastham Historical SocietyPhone: 508-240-0871
Located on Route 6 next to the Post Office, the Swift-Daley House was built in 1741 by Joshua Knowles. Its bowed roof, wide board floors, deep kitchen fireplace and narrow stairways are typical of early houses built by ship's carpenters. The house is completely furnished; its collections include examples of period furniture, clothing, china, and quilts. The Swift-Daley House is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
Set behind the Swift-Daley House are The Tool Museum and The Olde Shop. The Tool Museum displays hundreds of tools and implements from the area, including a wooden crankshaft from the old saltworks, a foot-operated grindstone, cranberry sorters and doorposts from the First Eastham Meeting House. The Olde Shop is a gift shop filled with fascinating treasures from antiques to hand-crafted items from local artisans. The Dill Beach Shack, which survived the storm of 1978 that ravaged the coast, is also on these grounds.
All buildings on the site are open Monday through Friday in July and August; Saturdays only in September. Hours are 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. Admission is free, but donations are appreciated.
Captain Penniman House
Phone: 508-255-3421Located on Fort Hill Road, just 1/2 mile off Route 6. This historic house was built in the mid-nineteenth century by an affluent whaling captain; now refurbished, the house is open to tours and features many original period items. Tour hours are limited and vary, so it is best to call to get details.
Salt Pond Visitor Center
Phone: 508-255-3421Located 2.8 miles from the Orleans rotary on Route 6 eastbound at the second traffic light. Along with a popular recreation of a Native American village, this museum and visitor center also features exhibits that elucidate the varied array of natural and cultural characteristics that are central to the history and nature of the Cape Cod region. There is a bookstore and a theater, showing four different short films on local history and the environment of the area.
Open All Year 9 - 4:30 pm daily, extended hours in the summer
Cape Cod National Seashore Park Map
Photos courtesy of The Eastham Historical Society and The Cape Cod National Seashore
Landmarks
Nauset Light
Phone: 508-255-3421Located within the Cape Cod National Seashore, Nauset Light is one of the most famous lighthouses on the east coast. Originally built in 1877, it was moved to Eastham from Chatham in 1923 to replace the remaining Three Sisters Light. The upper portion of the beacon was painted red in 1940, to distinguish it from Highland and Chatham Lights. Nauset Light was in danger of being lost to erosion and in 1993, the Coast Guard proposed decommissioning the light. The light was saved, however, by the Nauset Light Preservation Society, which financed a project to move the light farther inland. The move was finally completed in 1996. This working lighthouse is visible 17 miles out to sea. On Sundays during Spring, Summer, and Fall, and on Wednesdays in July, you can tour inside the lighthouse and climb to the top. For more information please visit www.nausetlight.org.
Old Eastham Windmill
Phone: 508-240-5900Located on the Town Green at Route 6 and Samoset Road (across from Town Hall), the Eastham Windmill was originally constructed by Thomas Paine in Plymouth in 1680. The structure was moved to Eastham in 1793, this windmill is the oldest working historical windmill on Cape Cod, and is still occasionally used to grind corn. Tour hours are limited and vary, so it is best to call to get details.
Old Coast Guard Station
Phone: 508-255-3421Since the early years of the Pilgrims, the Outer Beach of Cape Cod was known as the notorious "graveyard of ships" In 1871, the United States Congress appropriated funds for 9 life saving stations along the outer shores. The Nauset Station was built in 1937 and currently stands overlooking the Atlantic Ocean, being used as an education center.
Three Sisters Lighthouses
Phone: 508-255-3421Located 1/2 mile from Nauset Light Beach on Cable Road. In 1837, a lighthouse station was established at Nauset Beach - halfway between the single light at Highland, and the twins at Chatham. To distinguish the Nauset Station, a keeper's house and three small towers of brick were constructed 150 feet apart. Two towers were taken out of service in 1911 and the third was replaced in 1923 with the "New Nauset Light". In 1975, the National Park Service purchased all of the Three Sisters Lights and conducted a $510,000 restoration that was completed on September 7, 1989. The Three Sisters now rest together and can be viewed with a short walk from Nauset Light Beach.
Photos courtesy of Helen Strong and The Cape Cod National Seashore
Special Events
Hands on the Arts Festival
Saturday June 20 and Sunday June 21, 2009 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM on Windmill GreenThe Eastham Cultural Council presents this This FREE festival is celebrating its 11th year. HANDS ON THE ARTS means a chance for adults and children to explore jewelry making, Japanese brush painting, fiber arts, printmaking and other art media, with professional artists. There will also be the ever popular found art sculpture. All activities and instruction will take place under the big tent on the Green from noon to 4 PM.
Enjoy a variety of live entertainment including storytelling, puppetry, country, swing and jazz bands.
The juried arts and craft show and sale will showcase original works for sale by more than 50 local artists. Your support of these artists helps us to provide free activities, instruction and entertainment.
For more information and schedule updates or to send e-mail, log on to www.handsonthearts.com. Our automated phone number is 508-240-5915.
Windmill Weekend
September 11-13, 2009Theme for 2009 - “By the Sea, By the Sea, By the Beautiful Sea”
Eastham's Windmill Weekend is an annual community festival, a fair, and a family party all rolled into one and is held on the weekend following Labor Day.
Windmill Weekend is a series of events held on Windmill Green and other locations around town. Activities include a sand art competition, road races, band concerts, arts and craft show, tricycle race, chowder contest and square dancing. Continuous entertainment is held on the Green both Saturday and Sunday. Freddie and the Maybellines performs on Saturday.
A highlight of the weekend is the public recognition, as Windmill Honorees, of one or more Eastham citizens, who have demonstrated unusual dedication to the town through volunteer activities. Excitement peaks with Sunday’s Parade developed around the year’s theme.
For info and updates: www.easthamwindmillweekend.com.
Eastham Golf Tournament
September 24, 2009Captains Golf Course, 1 p.m. Shotgun
Orleans-Eastham Elks, 6 p.m.
Tee off to help benefit the Eastham Chamber of Commerce Philanthropic and Scholarship Trust Fund. Get your foursome together or we can pair you up for a day on the links, and a great community event, followed by a complete Lobster and Prime Rib Awards Banquet, raffles, prizes, and cash awards. Every level of golfer qualifies.
For the non-golfer that’s community spirited you can also purchase tickets for just the Awards Banquet and Raffle. For more info and registration call the Chamber (508) 240-7211.
Eastham Holiday Festival & Toy Drive
December 5, 2009, 10 a.m. - 2 p.m.Gift Barn, Santa arrives at 10 a.m.
Orleans-Eastham Elks
Sponsored by the Eastham Chamber of Commerce, this free event draws hundreds of children every year to help kick off the holiday season. This festive day includes a visit with Santa at the Gift Barn 10 – 2 . Tell him about your Christmas list, jump on the moonbounce and get some free goodies! Then ride the free trolley to the Orleans-Eastham Elks to create holiday crafts, get your face painted, complete in the inflatable pony races and run the obstacle course. Refreshments, gifts, and more.
To brighten the spirits of those less fortunate, we ask of those who wish to help, to bring a new unwrapped toy of any
value to the Elks Lodge. For more information on how to get involved in this event as a sponsor or participant, contact
the Eastham Chamber info@easthamchamber.com
(508) 240-7211
Eastham Painters Guild
Schoolhouse MuseumFine art in a full spectrum of mediums are displayed on the grounds of the Schoolhouse Museum. This historic site is directly across the road from the Salt Pond Visitor Center. The fine art displays will be presented from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on the following dates:
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2009 Eastham Painters Guild Fine Arts Presentation
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| May 23 & 24 | July 2 & 3 | July 29 & 30 | September 5 & 6 | |
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July 9 & 10 | August 6 & 7 | ||
| July 15 & 16 | August 13 & 14 | |||
| July 23 & 24 | August 26 - 28 | |||
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