A kiss for me in Chatham.
Day three of our Cape Cod vacation we drove to the lower cape to tour Chatham. Referred to as the Nantucket Island of the cape, it's a bit more blue-blood than the rest of the quaint towns along the cape.
Our first stop was at Chatham Light which is a operated by the US Coast Guard and sits on a busy stretch of road, overlooking the harbor and a wide swath of beach just across the street.
Chatham light.
Just up the road from the Chatham Light was the Chatham Bars Inn. It was Sunday morning, and it looked so inviting we decided to stop and have a bloody mary on the shaded front porch that looked over the ocean. Upon being seated on the veranda and ordering our drinks, we were told, no alcohol could be served on a Sunday before noon. Hmmm...I guess blue-bloods don't drink in the morning like us not so blue-blooded folk...so, instead we toured the hotel. It was breathtaking in a New England, old money sort of way. I told Eric, if we ever come back to the cape, I want to stay here, even if for just one night..considering rooms run between $500 and $900 a night...I'm probably just dreaming, but you never know, right honey?
The front entrance of the Chatham Bars Inn.
The lobby of the Chatham Bars Inn. Gorgeous!
Next we walked down to the fish pier to watch the fisherman unload their boats. The boats were still out, so we didn't see any, but I did get a photo of this hungry guy patiently waiting for the boats to return.
We strolled through town looking through shops, having lunch, stopping for tea.
Piper and Eric at one of the many cuter than cute shops in Chatham.
After lunch we headed up the cape, stopping along the way to take a few photos. Piper and I climbed out on a pier to take photos only to discover it was someone's private pier. The owner watched us climbing around , and just patiently waited while we took photos, saying hello and waving when we were done. In spite of (or maybe because of) all that blue-blood...the people in Chatham were super friendly and amazingly patient with us tourists.
Next we visited the Captain Edward Penniman House. Built in 1868 by the whaling captain for his growing family, it boasts a whale jawbone entrance gate and beautiful period details.
Piper and Eric in the whale jawbone front gate of the Captain Edward Penniman House.
On the porch of the Captian Edward Penniman House. You can't see them in this photo, but were were getting swarmed by mosquitos...little buggers!
Also in Eastham, we came across the Eastham Windmill. The cape was once covered with windmills, used to local mills. The one in Eastham is the oldest on the cape, built in the early 1680's. You couldn't go inside but it was interesting to see it there on the side of the road.
Eastham windmill, built in the 1680's.
It was getting late in the day, and the weather was iffy...but we decided to drive a little further north to see Coast Guard Beach. By the time we got there the wind was howling and rain was sputtering, so we skipped the beach, but just admired the views of the salt marshes and the Coast Guard Station.
By this point, our feet were tired and we were ready to just relax over a nice dinner. Our first two dinners on the cape were dissappointing. The food was overpriced for the quality...and the dusty plastic flowers in an equally dusty vase on the table was a real turn-off. Trying to save us a little money, I had had coupons for both places, so Eric said on night three "No coupon restaurants". Well...I had another coupon for Winslow Tavern, which was way off the beaten path in Wellfleet, but my research showed it got excellent reviews. So Eric agreed to try it and we were rewarded with an amazing meal and a real flower on our table, in a beautiful Federal-style captain's house built in 1805.
Not a great photo...but you get the idea. We had a beautiful Father's Day dinner at Winslow's Tavern in Wellfleet.
Full and happily tired after dinner, we strolled through town (which took about four minutes) and then got in the car to head back to our hotel. The next day, we planned on driving to Provincetown, known for it's flamboyant and fun atmosphere....I wanted to be well rested for what lay ahead.
Beautiful photos Nancy!!!
Posted by: Patty Stephens | August 03, 2010 at 07:14 PM
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