<p>If not too hard to do, I’d like to pack a visit to Cape Cod in-between our visit to Wesleyan and Brown on a Friday and our arrival in the Cambridge area on Sat evening, in August. I visited the Cape a long time ago so I can’t remember any details of what’s where, but I’d like to take my daughter to a beautiful dune-ful beach that’s not tacky, not overly crowded, and possible to visit within that time frame. More interested in nature/birds, etc than sun-bathing. We’ll have a car. Is this possible and if so, what beach? TIA</p>
<p>Our favorite beach that meets all requirements (spectacular dune view)except that it’s at the far end of the Cape is Longnook Beach in Truro. The ocean becahes in Wellfleet may be similar but closer.</p>
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<p>That sounds like Mission Impossible, given your time constraints. No way. You’d be much better advised to spend some time exploring Newport/Jamestown Island in RI, since you’ll already be in the area. It’s incredibly beautiful. Oh my, I can’t even imagine attempting to get on the Cape on a Saturday in August just to look around on my way to Cambridge. You owe me big-time for this advice! 
Huge. You have no idea what wailing and gnashing of teeth you have been spared!</p>
<p>IF you have the time, take the ferry from Boston to Provincetown. That’s a fun trip.</p>
<p>For my monet Cape Cod is to beaches what Cleveland is to cities.</p>
<p>Rhode Island however is a surprisingly pretty state.</p>
<p>Agree with mom55 that the Outer Cape beaches on the National Seashore are sublime; unspoiled and with miles of dunes, they are my favorite beaches. However, you can’t possibly get there in the time you have. I’d recommend the beach in Westport on the mainland side in MA, just lovely, with dunes and a Cape sort of feel, and easy to get to (right next to Little Compton, RI). Or do as driver says and go to Rhode Island. Otherwise, consider going to Block Island from Point Judith (RI) or New London (CT) or to Martha’s Vineyard from New Bedford.</p>
<p>Thanks, everyone, for the information and reality check! I guess it was wishful thinking on my part, based on far too impressionistic and distant memories of the Cape, to think this was possible. I’ll store your recommendations for some future leisure travel rather than this college tour trip.</p>
<p>mom55-
I thought Truro was known for having the nude beaches…</p>
<p>Saturday is the big rental switchover day on the Cape; therefore, there’ll be lots of traffic as vacationers head to/exit the Cape. Plus, they’ve just begun the removal of the Sagamore rotary which could mean even more traffic.</p>
<p>I’d agree with Driver that your time might be better spent doing the beaches in Rhode Island or even near Wareham. You’ll spend more time in the sun and less in the car.</p>
<p>Have fun!</p>
<p>Once you arrive in Cambridge, will you have time to hang out there? I see that you are planning to arrive Sat evening. Are you planning to allow all day on Sunday for Cambridge. If not, you might want to just use Saturday as a “Cambridge Day” as it is full of things to do. </p>
<p>aparent noted that you can reach Martha’s Vineyard from New Bedford. There is a fast ferry that will get you to MV in an hour. If you can get to New Bedford to overnight there on FRIDAY evening, you can get up early, ferry over to MV for a day at their uncrowded beaches, and then ferry back after dinner for a Sat evening drive up to Cambridge. That way, you avoid Saturday morning travel. </p>
<p>Whatever you decide, I would travel from place to place in the evening, rather than the morning. </p>
<p>Don’t feel badly about deciding to change your plans mid-stream. The tours/info sessions/driving can be exhausting and you might just want to get to your hotel and take a dip in the pool and/or relax for a drink/dinner (and make notes for your trip/visit reports to us when you return!)</p>
<p>Are you visiting Yale? Tufts is very close to Harvard, so consider at least driving by to take a look.</p>
<p>I agree - if feasible - a ferry trip over to Block island for the day would be great…but also concur that Westpost has a great beach (and also reasonable prices for fresh lobster)</p>
<p>pft…you people are silly. I live on the south shore and have made plenty of day trips to the cape. It is possible, you know. And they’re changing the bourne bridge to ease traffic</p>
<p>I’ve spent many summers on the Cape in Wellfleet. There are wonderful restaurants, art galleries, nature trails and beaches. You can visit the kettle ponds, swim in the bay or visit the “back shore” which is the ocean. There are 3 main ocean beaches in Wellfleet - Lecounts Hollow, Newcombs Hollow and Cahoons Beach. Cahoons is the only one that you don’t need a weekly beach sticker to visit. The others don’t allow you to park for just a day. </p>
<p>For great lobsters stop at Arnold’s on Route 6 in Eastham. </p>
<p>Here is a link to the Wellfleet Audobon Society that you might find interesting.</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.massaudubon.org/Nature_Connection/Sanctuaries/Wellfleet/index.php[/url]”>http://www.massaudubon.org/Nature_Connection/Sanctuaries/Wellfleet/index.php</a></p>
<p>If you can’t open it just to a google search for wellfleet bay wildlife sanctuary.</p>
<p>Feel free to PM me if you want any more info. I am a big fan of the Cape!!!</p>
<p>yup, there is a nude beach in Truro…hard to find…have to go quite a distance through the woods to get there…went there as a college student who in the 70’s would try anything (within reason) once!</p>
<p>I too think it will be too much to drive to the Cape on this trip. Although worth going when you have an extra day or perhaps consider the ferry from Boston for a quick day trip. </p>
<p>What about the Narraganset area of RI? We went there years ago. Don’t know how much it has changed but it was defintely not tacky or touristy.</p>
<p>You will spend way too much time in the car to enjoy what you have proposed. Traffic to the Cape takes forever because of the limited access and the bridges–it would be frustrating, and would defeat your purpose! I agree with Driver about Newport, although it may also be crowded when you are there! But it is only about an hour away from Providence (Brown), is charming, great restaurants and wonderful mansions to visit, rocky walk, and some beaches to check out as well.</p>
<p>Or, just go on to Boston, spend Friday night and try to get tickets to a Red Sox game for Friday night, or possibly a Sat. day game if they are in town. Hard to get tix, but what a great experience. Lots to do in Boston if baseball isn’t your thing. Walking the Freedom Trail takes you to many great places–and you can explore Faneuil Hall too.</p>
<p>Save Cape Cod for another visit, when you have at least a couple of days to explore!!</p>
<p>You folks are great. Thanks for all the ideas - lobster, wildlife sanctuary, islands, etc - they sound wonderful. I’ve decided that squeezing in a one day visit to the Cape isn’t going to give me the warm fuzzies I remember from my previous visit, so it’ll have to wait until we have time to explore and enjoy its nooks and crannies. We can skip visiting a beach altogether on this trip - although I bet if I stripped at the nude beach at Truro, the Cape would empty out pretty quickly and we’d have the whole place to ourselves. We’ll be spending so much time in the car on this trip, we don’t need any extra traffic hassles.</p>
<p>So yes, Momsdream, the plan is to use part of Saturday and all of Sunday poking around Cambridge and Boston before we tour Harvard and Tufts on Monday. We plan to visit Yale the day before we see Wesleyan and Brown. We’ve got a long list of schools on our whirlwind odyssey and I’ve been trying to decide how much flexibility I should build in - balancing saving money (paying for hotel rooms via Priceline) versus not being bound to a rigid schedule. Have just dipped my toe into the Priceline waters for the first time - paid for one night in Providence. The savings are seductive but I feel a bit uneasy…</p>
<p>SV2,</p>
<p>Many schools have discount rates at various Boston Hotels. There is a Tufts rate at the Amerisuites nearby in Somerville or Medford. (forget which town)</p>
<p>jerzeemom, I keep a postcard from Arnold’s on the visor of my car. Kids think I’m nuts, though they always smile when they see it. We stay in Wellfleet but like the National Seashore beaches, too.</p>
<p>Am looking forward to lobster at Arnold’s in a few weeks. My H and I are taking a trip to the Cape for 10 days (with no children!). We’ve been there over the years probably a dozen or more times and always love it. This time we’re staying in Chatham.</p>
<p>SV2-</p>
<p>We made the exact same pilgrimage last August…Yale, Wesleyan, Brown, Tufts, (sort of Harvard- don’t ask)…then on to Amherst. </p>
<p>Cambridge was definitely the highlight of all of the locations…followed by Providence. </p>
<p>Have fun!</p>