Park Archives: Cape Cod National Seashore

Mention Cape Cod and people think of different things—swimming and sunbathing, fishing and whaling, clams and cranberries, writers and artists, cottages and shops, Pilgrims and American Indians. All are part of the ambience and charm that attract thousands of visitors to the Cape each year. To help protect the qualities of this environment, the national seashore was established in 1961. It contains 44,000 acres along a 40-mile section between Chatham and Provincetown. Each of the National Park Service sites within this area tells a part of the Cape Cod story.

The Cape is a glacial deposit that is constantly undergoing natural changes as winds and water move sand along the shorelines, tearing away one place and building up another. You can get a good sense of how quickly the land is diminishing at the Marconi Station Site at Wellfleet, where the peninsula is only a mile wide. Much of the high cliff has eroded since Guglielmo Marconi first built his towers there in 1901.

Changing, too, though not so perceptibly, is the Cape Cod Bay shoreline. Great Island, where whalers used to congregate, is now connected to the peninsula; you can explore it via a trail.

American Indians began living on the Outer Cape about 10,000 years ago. Oral tradition and a vast archeological record tell us of their history here. The Pilgrims arrived in 1620 and stayed briefly before sailing across the bay to Plymouth. Later, residents constructed buildings that reflected the sea's influence on their lives: the Old Harbor Life-Saving Station built in 1897-98 was moved from Chatham to Race Point near Provincetown in 1977; Captain Edward Penniman's 1868 house in Eastham is atypically ornate and denotes the once-profitable whaling business; Nauset Light is one of five lighthouses in the national seashore; and the Atwood-Higgins House, built about 1730, represents the typical Cape Cod dwelling. Ask at the visitor centers about building tours.

While you are here take time to try something different, whether it is bicycling, hiking, or just sitting by the ocean watching the waves. Activity schedules are available at the visitor centers.

Swimming Seasonal lifeguard services and other related facilities are at these National Park Service beaches: Coast Guard, Nauset Light, Marconi, Head of the Meadow, Race Point, and Herring Cove. Many towns have public beaches; all charge seasonal fees. Please observe water safety practices at all times.

Surfing and Windsurfing Within the national seashore surfing and windsurfing are permitted in waters outside lifeguarded beaches.

Walking The seashore has a number of short self-guiding trails. We invite you to walk them to relax and to gain an insight into the Cape's natural and human history. Perhaps their descriptive names will entice you: Fort Hill, Red Maple Swamp, Nauset Marsh, Atlantic White Cedar Swamp, Great Island, Pamet Area, Small's Swamp, Pilgrim Spring, and Beech Forest. You can obtain brochures about the trails at the visitor centers. Buttonbush Trail, with features for visitors who are blind, starts at Salt Pond Visitor Center.

Bicycling, Skating, and More The seashore maintains three bicycle trails ranging from 1.6 to 7.3 miles long. Roller blades, skates, and skateboards are permitted. Motorized vehicles, including mopeds, are prohibited on these paved trails. Safety Note • The speed limit on all bicycle trails is 10 MPH. • Ride single file. Stay to the right, except when passing. • Helmets are required for ages 16 and under and strongly advised for all. • Yield right of way to horses and pedestrians.

Fishing Try surf-fishing from the beaches, but stay away from swimmers. No license is required for saltwater fishing, but a state license is required for freshwater fishing. Town licenses for shellfishing are required. Regulations and fees vary among the towns.

Hunting Upland game and migratory waterfowl may be hunted in certain areas in the specified season. There is no open season on non-game species. Ask for a brochure about hunting opportunities and restrictions. All federal, state, and local laws apply.

Travel Services Cape Cod National Seashore has no overnight facilities. Sleeping and camping accommodations, restaurants, gift shops, grocery and other stores, and gas stations are found in nearby towns. Reservations at motels, hotels, and private campgrounds are essential in summer. For information and reservations write: Cape Cod Chamber of Commerce, Hyannis, MA 02601.

Camping The National Park Service does not operate a campground here. Camping is available at nearby private and state-operated facilities. Overnight camping and parking are prohibited.

More Information Headquarters is near the Marconi Station Site in Wellfleet (no public facilities).

National Park Service rangers are here to help you and to enforce regulations established to protect you and the national seashore. To see a full set of regulations, ask at headquarters or the visitor centers. Observe the following:

• Do not disturb natural or cultural features; all are protected by federal law.
• Keep trails, roadsides, and other areas clean. Use trash receptacles, or take trash with you.
• Over-sand vehicles must be used only on designated sand routes. A permit is required.
• Open fires are not allowed except when authorized by a permit; get one at visitor centers. Permits are not required for stoves using manufactured fuels or for charcoal grills when used in designated picnic areas at Doane Rock, Great Island, Pilgrim Heights, and Beech Forest, or on sandy or rocky beaches bordering tidewater.
• Pets must be physically restrained. Leashes must not exceed six feet. Pets are not permitted in public buildings, in picnic areas, on protected beaches, or on self-guiding trails.
• Public nudity is prohibited.
• Sand collapses easily. Climbing slopes or digging deep holes is hazardous.
• At the ocean be alert for riptides and underwater obstacles. Keep children within reach. Beaches with lifeguards are
marked with signs. For your safety, obey the directions of lifeguards. • Drive carefully and observe posted speed limits. Wear seatbelts; it's the law. Report all traffic accidents immediately.
• Avoid too much sun exposure. Be aware that ticks and poison ivy are prevalent.
• Do not take glass containers, rafts, rubber tubes, snorkels, and masks to any beach.
• In summer be alert for heavy traffic, bicycles, and pedestrians on narrow roads.

Salt Pond Visitor Center (U.S. 6 in Eastham) and Province Lands Visitor Center (Race Point Road in Provincetown) have publications, information, exhibits, audiovisual programs, and spectacular views of the seashore. Salt Pond is open year-round. Province Lands is open from late-spring through mid-fall. Outdoor exhibits and self-guiding trails are found throughout the national seashore. Ranger-guided activities, such as walks, canoe trips, family programs, and historic home tours, are offered daily in summer and periodically during other seasons.

National Park Service beaches are supervised by lifeguards from late June through Labor Day. Parking at Coast Guard Beach is restricted to park staff and visitors with disabilities between 8:30 a.m. and 5 p.m. daily. The National Park Service provides a shuttle bus to the beach from Little Creek parking area east of Salt Pond Visitor Center. Shuttle bus schedule: weekends only from Memorial Day weekend to late June and after Labor Day through Columbus Day; daily from late June through Labor Day. Entrance fees to beaches are charged; the shuttle bus fare is included in the entrance fee. Access to town beaches is regulated by town residence requirements or by local entrance fees.

U.S. 6 is the main route to and through the national seashore. Buses run from Hyannis to Chatham and Provincetown. Airlines operate between Hyannis and Boston, Providence, and New York, and between Boston and Provincetown. Amtrak provides limited service to Hyannis on weekends in summer. There is seasonal ferry service between Boston and Provincetown.

The contents of brochures, site bulletins and trading cards (denoted with a colored caption) can be viewed by clicking on the cover. Most modern-day brochures, however, are cover only (denoted by a white caption) due to photograph copyrights. These items are historical in scope and are intended for educational purposes only; they are not meant as an aid for travel planning. The dates under each brochure do not reflect the complete range of years that a particular brochure was issued.

1964	1965	1971	1972	1973	1974
1977
1982-1985		cover only 1988-1989		cover only 1990
cover only 1992-2000		cover only 2002-2007		cover only 2010
cover only 2013-2018

General Information Date Unknown (French edition)		General Information Date Unknown (German edition)		General Information Date Unknown (Spanish edition)
Bike trails, safety tips and guidelines 2005		Bike trails, safety tips and guidelines 2008		Bike trails, safety tips and guidelines 2012
Bike trails, safety tips, and guidelines 2020		cover only Bicycle Trails Date Unknown		Scenic Routes and Overlooks Date Unknown
Self-Guiding Nature Trails Date Unknown		Self-Guiding Nature Trails Date Unknown		Self-Guiding Trails 2015
Self-Guiding Trails 2008		Self-Guiding Trails 2012		Self-Guiding Trails 2014
Self-Guiding Trails 2014		Self-Guiding Trails 2015		Atlantic White Ceder Swamp Trail Date Unknown	Beech Forest Trail Date Unknown
Fort Hill Trail 1981	Fort Hill Trail 2014	Fort Hill Trail Date Unknown	Woods Walk at Highlands Center Date Unknown	Nauset Marsh Trail 2020	Nauset Marsh Trail Date Unknown
Pamet Area Trail System Date Unknown	Small's Swamp Trail 2001	Help Keep Them Beautiful Date Unknown	Help Keep Ponds Beautiful 2013	Algal Crusts of the Dunes Date Unknown	Algal Crusts and Dunes Date Unknown
Eastern Spadefoot Toads Date Unknown	Eastern Spadefoot Toads 2009	Hatches Harbor Salt Marsh Restoration Date Unknown	Hatches Harbor Salt Marsh Restoration Date Unknown	Enjoy the Seals, Avoid a Fine Date Unknown	Cape Cod Great White Shark Safety Date Unknown
Be a Junior Ranger! Date Unknown	Be a Junior Ranger! 2015	Lombard-Paradise Hollow Fire Management Research Area Date Unknown	Marconi and his South Wellfleet Wireless Date Unknown	Maritime History Date Unknown	The What and Why of "Mung" Date Unknown
Pets at Cape Cod National Seashore 2015	The Piping Plover 2010	Atlantic Research & Learning Center 2013		Asian shore crab: a benevolent invader? Date Unknown
Atwood-Higgins House 2009		Beach Activities and Fees Date Unknown		Cape Cod Ecosystem Monitoring 2013
Family Activities July-August 2006		Activity Guide July-August 2019		Activity Guide July-August 2024
Cold War History Date Unknown		Wildland Fire Fact Sheet 2012		Centennial Celebration August 25, 2016
Highlands Center Timeline of Events 2011		Hunting Information March 2012		Hunting Information March 2013
Mammals of Cape Cod National Seashore September 2013		Mammals of Cape Cod National Seashore Date Unknown		Guidelines for Public Access to Sensitive Areas in Cape Cod National Seashore Date Unknown
Volunteer Opportunities 2010		Volunteer Opportunities 2012		Volunteer Opportunities 2014
Volunteer Opportunities 2016		Volunteer Opportunities 2017		Salt Marsh Common Plant Guide Date Unknown
Trading Cards
(©Jefferson National Parks Association)

Hatches Harbor: Restoring a Salt Marsh (Norm Farris, John Portnoy, Alan Bennett, Charles Roman, Nels Barrett, Evan Gwilliam, Eleanor Kinney and Kenny Raposa, 1998)

The following visual bibliography is just a sampling of the handbooks and books which have been published for this park. NPSHistory.com does not endorse these, but are merely presenting them for informational purposes only. As most are copyrighted, we are only able to provide the covers, and not contents, of these publications.

Birds of Cape Cod National Seashore and Adjacent Areas
Wallace Bailey
1968

cover only

The Cape Cod National Seashore: A Landmark Alliance
Charles W. Foster
1985

cover only

Handbook #146
Cape Cod: its natural and cultural history : a guide to Cape Cod National Seashore, Massachusetts
1993

cover only

The Greatest Beach: A History of Cape Cod National Seashore
Ethan Carr
2019