Retracing the Steps of Henry Beston's Walk From Coast Guard Beach to the Cape Cod Bay
"I devoted the entire day yesterday to an adventure I have long had in mind, a walk across the Cape from outer ocean to Cape Cod Bay." (Beston, The Outermost House, p. 148)
When Henry Beston arrived at Coast Guard Beach (or, as it was known at that time, Eastham Beach) in the waning summer of 1925, he had only intended to stay a short time; two weeks to be precise. He had purchased some land just off of the water, behind the barrier dunes, and had a small house built there which he dubbed the "Fo'castle". He writes,
Beston remained in his Fo'castle for the entire year, documenting his observations of the natural world in a meticuluous and sumptiously poetic ode to the Great Beach of Cape Cod which he entitled "The Outermost House". The beauty of Beston's prose and the tranquility of his narrative as he describes one of the great natural treasures of the United States has won the heart of many a reader, the present author being no exception.
In Chapter 7 of the book, Beston describes a walk he took from his little home on the wild shores of Coast Guard Beach to the more tranquil shores of the Cape Cod Bay. Beston relates,
"As the crow flies , the distance from the Fo'castle to the west shore is about four and a half miles; afoot and by the road, it is nearer seven and a half, for one must follow roads lying north of the great lagoon." (Beston, p. 148)
In this entry of the Wisdom To Simplicity blog, we decided to re-create Beston's walk and document the same sights he would have seen on his way. To be sure the landscape has changed since Beston first set eyes upon this area. Storms have altered the dunes, and the area has been developed and grown in population. The Fo'Castle is no more, having fallen to the ravages of the sea during the great Blizzard of '78. Nevertheless, there is much about this area that still maintains the pristine and awe inspiring beauty that once so captivated Beston that he was willing to spend a year of his life doing nothing but observing it in relative solitude.
While Beston's walk was taken in the spring, we have taken ours in mid-September, the season that captured Beston's attention and caused him to remain through the rest of his year there.
The first stop along our journey is the Great Beach itself where Beston would have started his walk. While the exact location is not reachable by foot any longer from Coast Guard Beach, due to the alterations of the coastline from past storms, the video below shows a scene that would have been quite similar to Beston's view as he begain his sojurn that day...
A seal seen from the shore.
There were several in the water, following me curiously
and with some suspicion as I walked.
and with some suspicion as I walked.
After leaving his home and describing the day as "pleasant" and observing that "cool, easterly winds blew across the moors", Beston writes,
"I walked to Nauset Station close along the landward edge of the dunes, out of sight and sound of the sea" (Beston, p. 149)
The dunes of Coast Guard beach are large, and do indeed shield the traveller on the landward side of them from the roar and crash of the wind and waves. This scene below is probably quite similar to what Beston would have seen along this part of his journey. You can see the Coast Guard station at the top of the hill in the distance.
Dusty Miller plants
The moors behind the dunes
Slightly right of center in this photo, one can see the
Coast Guard station at the top of the darker hill.
"Desolate and half desert as it is, this borderland of the Cape has an extraordinary beauty, and for me the double attraction of mystery and wide horizons" (Beston, p. 150)
Walking from the Coast Guard Station toward Windmill Park in Eastham, one has two options today. One may walk along the paved road that leads past the entry to the National Seashore Visitor's Center, or one may take the bike trail which originates at the parking lot of the Coast Guard station, and from there follow dirt side trails which meander along the coastline of the inlet. If one chooses the more bucolic shoreline route, one will encounter scenes similar to what Beston would have observed during his walk.
"There I left the road and walked east into the moors to enjoy the incomparable view of the great Eastham marshes and the dunes... So beautiful was the spacious and elemental scene that I lingered a while on the top of the moor cliff shelving to the marsh. " (Beston, p. 155)
"The road to the bay leads off at the town hall, passing an old windmill which still has its grinding machinery in place." (Beston, p. 161)
The windmill Beston describes in this section is still there, though I was not able to enter as he did and see if the machinery is still present and operable. It is located between Depot Road and Samoset Road where both roads meet Rt. 6.
"Beyond the mill, the road passes a scatter of houses, crosses the railroad track, winds between the ponds of Eastham, and then comes ot an open mile of sandy fields and pitch pine country extending to the bay." (Beston, p. 162)
From the Windmill, we then follow Samoset road to the place where it ends at First Encounter beach. The railroad tracks have since been converted to a bike path called "The Cape Cod Rail Trail", which stretches a total length of 22 miles through the middle of Cape Cod. Passing Depot Pond and the entrance to the Rail Trail, we encounter Jemima Pond on the left and Great Pond on the right.
^ Jemima Pond v
Great Pond
Depot Pond
The next several photos and videos show the "open mile of sandy fields and pitch pine country extending to the bay"
^ First Encounter Beach v
"The quiet of the bay, the subdued easterly blowing across the fields, the belt of winter weed, the glint and warmth of the sun, the solitary bird - there was a sense of old times dead and new times beginning - recurrence, life, the turn of the sun's wheel, always the imperative, bright sun." (Beston, p. 162)
"I walked along the beach to the mouth of the 'herring brook'. The stream is but a clogged gully of clean water running down to the sea through the sandy open meadows. Arriving at the shore it spills over the beach and trickles down to the bay." (Beston, p. 163)
Unfortunately the tide was high when I arrived at First Encounter beach, which prevented me from making the walk up the beach to the herring brook Beston describes, but a google map search reveals that it is still there at the junction of Cole Road and Bowline Road. Perhaps in the spring I will return and try to time my walk so that I can get some good photos of that brook as well. If so, I will update this post with the additional photos and footage.
The total round trip for me on this walk ended up being about 11 miles. For Beston fans out there who wish to re-create the journey themselves, the most beautiful and least crowded time of year to do so is in mid- to late September.
Beston's "The Outermost House" is fast becoming one of my essential summer reading excursions. It is a veritable vacation in print, and provides a great reprieve from the general rush and noise of modern life. If you haven't read it yet, get yourself a copy, sit down for a few nights in a row with some ocean sounds playing in the background, and be prepared for a transformative reminder of the value of engaging mindfully with the wonders of God's handiwork.
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