More US 6 – Part 6 - A Trip to Provincetown

/

Just 118 Miles in Massachusetts to reach the eastern terminus of US-6. We still have a chunk to complete in the middle, though, between Sandusky, Ohio and Des Moines, Iowa.

While we were visiting my sister and family for the holidays, we decided to take a day trip along US-6 in Massachusetts to the tip of Cape Cod and the blue highway's eastern terminus. Though there are only 118 miles of US-6 in Massachusetts, it's a slow, circuitous roadway through dozens of little towns and villages. Though cloudy skies had been forecast, we were blessed with clear, blue skies on a very crisp, cold New England day.

Cape Cod was one of my teenage stomping grounds during summertime in New England. I spent many a summer weekend at the beach swimming, tanning, and partying with friends on the Cape. Visiting in wintertime, however, is a totally different experience. The summertime stop-and-go traffic along the Cape highways was thankfully absent. The thought of David and me sitting on the beach never entered our minds.

We headed out from Pawtucket, RI and picked up US-6 in Seekonk, Massachusetts, where we picked up at the point we'd left it in Providence a few days before. A lackluster green and white 'Welcome to Massachusetts' sign stood at the state line. Multiple posted warnings of road work, delays and detours did not deter us. We were on a mission. We stopped at Dunkin Donuts (one on every corner in New England), to fortify ourselves for the arduous 118-mile drive with hot coffee and a bagel. Dunkin coffee is 'wicked good'.

Very Blah Welcome sign!

Instead of a direct route, US-6 does its usual meandering. We passed through cities like Fall River known as the Spindle City for its textile industry heritage, its Portuguese culture, and home of the notorious axe wielder, Lizzie Borden.

New Bedford Fishing Fleet

Next came New Bedford noted for its whaling and maritime history and home of the fabulous New Bedford Whaling Museum which we've visited in the past. Businesses with names like Melville Towers and Moby Dick Motel reflected the significant amount of time Herman Melville spent in the city in the mid-1800s.

The weathervane atop the whaling Museum

Passing through Mattapoisset, we couldn't resist a photo of an oversized seahorse welcoming us to town.

Mattapoisett’s Giant Seahorse

Small towns and islands on the Cape and throughout Massachusetts bear names like Mashpee, Mattapoisett, Nantucket, Hyannis and Chappaquiddick exhibit the Native American influence in the area. In fact, the commonwealth name, Massachusetts, is the name of a tribe that inhabited the area around today's city of Boston. Some trivia: Massachusetts is not a state, but technically one of four commonwealths in the U.S. The other three are Virginia, Pennsylvania and Kentucky.

Cranberry bogs

The official entrance to the Cape is the crossing of the Cape Cod Canal in Buzzards Bay via the Bourne or Sagamore Bridge. We stopped at a pull-off for views of the Cape Cod Canal. We whizzed through the Canal on Nine of Cups a couple of times, carefully timing our transit with the tides. US-6 crosses the Bourne Bridge, and though narrow, it's a much easier way to cross into the Cape proper than it was in colonial times. David will regale you with more Cape Cod Canal info in an upcoming blog.

The Bourne Bridge

Cape Cod style houses with unpainted, weathered, silver-gray wooden shingles are a common sight.

Clam bars, lobster shacks and summer only restaurants were all closed for the season.

Following the Mid-Cape Highway, US-6's name on the Cape, we finally, we arrived in Provincetown... P-town to locals and Massachusettsans.

We followed the road to its eastern terminus. A sign depicted the end although the eastern terminus and the western terminus are not in sync. The Massachusetts sign still showed Long Beach, California as the western route end, but the actual end is now Bishop, CA.

Sand dunes lined the road.

The road ends at a roundabout. We stopped to take in a view of the Wood End Light in the distance.

Wood End Light, Cape Cod

We worked our way back to the downtown area. Blanche barely fit as we edged our way along one way streets with cars parked haphazardly along the curb. We found free parking just off Commercial Street at the MacMillan Pier. A sign with a big golden cod fish welcomed us to town.

Welcome to P-town

Walking through through Lopes Square we spotted the Lobster Pot Tree, a P-town traditional holiday decoration comprised of ~120 lobster pots (traps) stacked high in a pyramid. Decorated with lights, buoys and nautical ornaments, the tree is a tribute to P-town's local fishing and maritime heritage. A local woman offered to take our photo and we were happy to take her up on her offer. The P-town lobster pot tree, by the way, has been around since 2004 making the the oldest one around though many other cities and towns now have similar trees.

P-town’s Lobster Pot Tree

We walked along the uneven brick sidewalks of narrow Commercial Street, buildings packed in tightly to take advantage of every inch of commercial space along the town's main street. Noted for its artist scene, galleries, boutiques, cabarets and vibrant LGBTQ+ community, the town was pretty quiet during our mid-week winter visit.

Narrow P-town streets and brick sidewalks

Most shops were closed as were many restaurants, but we found Tin Pan Alley open, warm and inviting. A bowl of steaming clam chowder accompanied by a loaf of homemade bread was just perfect for a late lunch.

Tin Pan Alley credit photo: Tin Pan Alley FB page

P-town is a historical colonial seaside town. It was here that the Pilgrims first made landfall back in 1620. The 252-foot (77m) Pilgrim Monument is an all granite structure that sits on a hill overlooking the town and rises above all other town structures. It was President Teddy Roosevelt that laid the cornerstone in 1907 and President Taft that dedicated it at its completion in 1910. It is still the tallest all-granite structure in the USA. During the summer months, visitors can climb to the top for great views of the town and seashore below. As suspected, the monument and museum were closed for the season when we visited, opening again in April.

Pilgrim Monument

P-town’s town hall and giant Adirondack Chair with Pilgrim Monument rising in the background.

By the time we finished lunch and a walk around town, the day was waning. Daylight fades quickly this far north and this late in the year. By 4:15, the day was done and we headed back to Lin's in Pawtucket.

What's left of US-6 to complete? The chunk between Sandusky, Ohio and Des Moines, Iowa awaits us on our return trip to Las Vegas. Stay tuned.