February 18 was an awesome day sunshine and 50 degrees. It felt like 75 since the days before that were in the 20’s. I headed to Wellfleet to see how I would do walking up the steep sandy dunes that surround the beaches. I was almost out of gas and so was Wellfleet. Not one station was open so I turned back, wondering if I would be doing my daily walk on Rte 6 with a gas can. I made it to an open station in Eastham and saw a sign that said beaches with an arrow pointing south. I had never been down that road so I went there instead of going back to Wellfleet.
I followed the signs to Coat Guard Beach. Surprisingly I had never gone there even though it is regularly ranked as one of the top ten beaches in the United States. It is where the Mayflower first sighted land on November 9, 1620 after 65 days at sea. I was just going to walk the beach when I saw a couple coming out of the wooded area next to the parking lot. A TRAIL - Awesome!!
I went into the woods and down a hill to a bike path with a bridge that crossed the marsh. I had no idea where I was headed (normal day for me) so I followed the bike path until I saw a path that led into the woods. I saw signs for a visitor center so I stayed on that trail instead of going back on the bike path. The trail was narrow and hilly at times and eventually brought me back to the water and had some spectacular views. The tide was high and I still didn’t know exactly where I was so I turned around before I got to Salt Pond.
When I got home I researched the area and found out I had been walking on Doane Trail and Nauset Marsh Trail. I had wanted to go back on another nice day but I didn’t have a chance until I hiked Fort Hill which is on the opposite side of the marsh. After doing Fort Hill I decided to park at the Salt Pond Visitor Center and start there. The Nauset Bike Path and two hiking trails start here, one is Buttonbush Trail, a short braille trail that is part boardwalk and the rest in the woods. The second is Nauset Marsh which loops around Salt Pond goes into the woods and comes back up to Buttonbush And also has a connecting trail that leads to Doane and Coast Guard beach. That day I did Buttonwood ,connected to Nauset Marsh and looped back to the Visitor Center.
I was determined to start at the Visitor Center which boasts a comprehensive museum, a book store and frequent orientation movies in its indoor theatre. The other day I started at the beginning of Nauset Marsh Trail and connected to Doane Rock, Doane Memorial and Coast Guard Beach. All together over 6 miles. Some hills with steps either man made or roots. Sometimes walking beside the marsh, other times on the pavement of the bike path, and eventually walking the sandy beach. Just like Fort Hill these trails move into the top five. I Can’t wait to go back..
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Ratings 1- the cellar 2- shoddy 3- tolerable 4- worthy 5- wicked good
Accessibility - 5 - Off Rte 6 - look for National Seashore sign
Parking - 5 - More than enough
Length- 5 Can do as much as you would like
Degree of Difficulty- 4- easy with a few hills
Extras- 5 - Visitor Center, Bike Path, Coast Guard Beach, Kayaking
Trail Markings- 5 - plenty of signs
Trail Maintenance- 5 No problems
Variation - 5- The marsh, the woods, the beach, bike path
Scenic - 5 - Fantastic when you aren’t in woods
Worth Returning - 5 Over and over
Surface - Grass, pavement, pine needles, sand, boardwalk
Beach - yes
Facilities - yes
Rating 49 out of 50
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