"In this sticky web that we're all in, behaving decently is no small task." -- Novelist Stacey D'Erasmo

Friday, July 28, 2017

Local Color

     For some reason -- and I don't know what it is -- the hydrangeas on Cape Cod are absolutely spectacular. B and I have a few hydrangeas in our yard at home. And they are fine. But what people grow here is a whole 'nother class of flower.


     Almost everyone, it seems, grows hydrangeas in their yard. The blossoms are lush, colorful and plentiful.

  
     Another popular thing to do on Cape Cod is decorate the mailbox . . .


     with flowers, birds and other designs.

  
     And as you might predict, some people decorate their mailbox with pictures of hydrangeas.


     But, of course, the main reason to come to Cape Cod in the summer is the beach. Here is the beach at the end of our street, which deadends at Nantucket Sound.


     Yesterday B and I drove down to Falmouth and rode our bikes along the Shining Sea Bikeway, which runs some 11 miles from North Falmouth to Woods Hole. We've done this before --- it's one of our favorite rides -- but as usual we only did the section from downtown Falmouth to Woods Hole, about four miles (then four miles back).


     On the way we pedaled past Surf Drive beach, which offers a panoramic view of Martha's Vineyard across Vineyard Sound.


     Then we came into Woods Hole, a tiny little town with one main street featuring shops and restaurants.


     But Woods Hole is also famous for marine research. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has a facility here. The University of Chicago sponsors a marine biological laboratory. There's also the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, the Science Aquarium and a U. S. Coast Guard center.

 
     The Atlantis is one of the research ships.

 
     Woods Hole is also a gateway to Martha's Vineyard. People board the ferry for a 35-minute ride over to the island of rich and famous, where one-percenters buy homes for an average price north of $1 million.


     At the end of the day (being neither rich nor famous) we stacked our bikes on the back of the car, drove home and barbecued some hamburgers. Then we walked down to Main Street in Harwich Port for the music stroll, held once a week during the summer, which features bands playing up and down the street or on a little lawn in front of a shop.


     Alas, even for retirees, vacation must end. Tomorrow we set off on a new journey, driving 530 miles due west for another adventure . . .

12 comments:

Tabor said...

My two hydrangeas do OK but not spectacular. This year our crepe myrtles are the showy ones.

Carole said...

Hydrangeas are my favorite! Especially the blue ones. Beautiful pics!

DJan said...

Hydrangeas are everywhere around here now. They are pretty but not my favorite, but if they looked like these, I might feel differently. :-)

stephen Hayes said...

Thanks for sharing your trip with us. I hope you have a terrific weekend.

Linda Myers said...

Beautiful time of year in New England. We were in Woods Hole for a morning some years ago while visiting friends in Seekonk. The next day we went to Plimouth Plantation, a very interesting living history museum.

Kathy @ SMART Living 365.com said...

Hi Tom! Looks like you are having a great vacation. Thanks for a bit of local color. It looks beautiful--and fun! ~Kathy

Anonymous said...

I love hydrangeas. They grew very well when I lived in Newport, RI and the Hamptons, LI. Must be the sea air, I bet!
Lovely photos.
So nice to hear you and B are having a wonderful time.
Enjoy!

Karen D. Austin said...

Tom, Thank you for taking the time to take pictures, post, and narrate them. I feel as though I just took a mini vacation to the Cape. Enjoy the rest of your time there. Those hydrangeas are quite beautiful.

retirementreflections said...

Gorgeous shots, Tom. I see that I will need to add Cape Cod to my travel list!

Anonymous said...

Pretty flowers and pretty mail boxes. Your camera has been doing a fine job.

Anonymous said...

Hydrangeas are everywhere around here now. They are pretty but not my favorite, but if they looked like these, I might feel differently. :-)



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Colleen@ Looseleaf said...

Having come from the South Shore of Boston, your photos of the Cape make me homesick. When I see hydrangeas all I can think of is how Madonna commented that she didn't like them. I wondered 'who doesn't like a flower?' but I do have my favorites and less favorites. I'll never forget seeing whales off the coast of Provincetown. I biked Martha's Vineyard once, because we were young and it was cheaper than ferrying a car.

Our mutual blog friend is Tabor.