Beaches

  • There are two main beaches on the island. Both beaches are on the bay, which means warmer water and little to no tides. At low tide you can walk very far out in both beaches.

    Hidden beach (also called Kayak beach) is the closest. It’s a 4 minute walk down 3rd Ave to the end of the road. You will find lots of kayaks stashed onto the beach. When the tide is high it is a great place to put in and go for a paddle.

    Lt Island beach is the bigger beach at the end of Pond Ave. This is a great place to go looking for crabs and other wildlife at low tide. A little past high tide as the waters go back out into the bay a natural ‘lazy river’ through the marsh is created here that you can enjoy.

  • There are several town ocean beaches, all of which require a Wellfleet beach sticker to park at: White Crest, Cahoon Hollow, Newcomb Hollow and Lecount Hollow are the main ones.

    All these beaches have strong waves, and all of them are accessed by walking down large sandy dunes (that you then need to walk back up). Cahoon Hollow tends to have the most ‘party’ atmosphere and is where the Beachcomber is located. White Crest tends to be quieter.

    Note that Lecount Hollow is closed to non-residents during peak season.

  • The National Seashore ocean beaches are not part of the town of Wellfleet. They are run by the national parks, which means you can go to any in the area. You will need to pay a day parking rate ($25) or a seasonal parking pass rate ($80), which will get you access to all beaches for an entire year. These beaches tend to have easier access (stairs or flat walkways) as compared to the town beaches and they have better bathroom facilities.

    Marconi beach is closest to here and is great for boogie boarding and surfing. Head of the Meadow beach is a quieter and beautiful beach in Truro.

  • First Encounter beach in Eastham ($20-$25 parking) is a popular bay beach popular with families with little kids.

Ponds

  • Duck Pond is one of our favorites. A white sandy beach and warm water. Just look for ‘Duck Pond’ road in your GPS, drive past the Alpaca farms and keep heading down the dirt road to the left. You will see a parking area for Duck Pond. It’s a five minute walk from the parking area to the pond. Wellfleet parking sticker required.

  • Great pond is a beautiful pond with a large swimming area. It is at the bottom of a steep staircase and when the water is high the beach itself can become narrow and you may even have to wade through to get to the beach a bit. Wellfleet parking sticker required.

  • Long pond tends to be one of the more crowded ponds because of its easy access, closeness to the road, and very friendly waters for little kids. Wellfleet parking sticker required.

  • This pond is popular with people wanting to use paddleboards, canoes, and kayaks. A large parking lot and place where you can access the water with a boat make it quite popular. Wellfleet parking sticker required.

  • This is one of our favorite spots. Gull Pond connects through a sluiceway (connecting channel) to Higgins Pond. You can make your way out to the sluiceway and get access to beach area on both ponds — it feels like you found a bit of heaven.

    It’s a little challenging to get there. You follow the single lane dirt road at the base of the Gull Pond parking area down for about 5 minutes and when you see a fork in the road stay to the right. You will see a parking area suitable for 4 cars only. Park there (Wellfleet sticker required) and then find the trail to your right (or you can use GPS) to make your way to the connector.

  • This pond is a little off the beaten path. Your best bet is to park at Long Pond parking area (Wellfleet parking sticker required) and then walk about 10 minutes. You walk across the street past the long pond picnic area and take the first road on your left, called Forest Road. At the end of Forest road stay straight and you will eventually see Dyer pond to your right. Dyer pond is quiet with a small beach area and a rope swing across from the beach that can be used to jump into the water.

Hiking

  • This is a 1.2 mile hike (pictured above) that start from Marconi station, just a 3 minute drive from the cabin. More details here. This happens to be one of our favorite hikes in the area. Once you enter the swamp it is truly magical — you feel like you on a distant planet in a Star Wars movie.

  • This is a longer 4 to 9 mile hike, depending on which you loop you do. It goes along beautiful marsh on one side and bay beach on the other. More details here.

  • A 2.5 mile hike but can be a bit tricky since much of it is on sandy dunes. Details here.

  • An easy, 1.5 mile hike to Coast Guard beach or a loop back. Details here.

Restaurants

  • PB Boulangerie — Amazing French bakery with a great selection of croissants and other pastries. Line gets long so order ahead or go early. Outdoor seating.

    Blue Willow — Small cafe with outdoor tables. Great eggs and other quick breakfast options as well as good coffee.

    Bagel Hound — Great bagels and selection of cream cheeses, as well as smoked fish.

    Flying Fish Cafe — In Wellfleet center. They have a walk up bakery to go window as well as a nice indoor and outdoor seating area. Good for full traditional breakfast options.

  • PJs — Old school fish place. Not fancy but delicious. Has to go and sit-down options.

    Mac’s on the Pier — Has picnic tables outside that overlook the water. Has many options.

    Box Lunch — Mostly wrap sandwiches. To go options. Good when you want to bring a lunch to the beach or a pond.

    The Knack — 15 minute drive to Orleans but this is a great nicer fast food type option. Outdoor seating.

    PB Boulangerie — For lunch options are limited to pre-made sandwiches at the bakery counter, but they are delicious at this French bakery.

  • Caroline's

    Winslow's Tavern

    Block and Tackle

    C Shore

    Macs Shack

    Bookstore

    PB Bistro

  • A Nice Cream Stop — Emac & Bolios in the center of Wellfleet. Cash only.

    Chocolate Sparrow — in Orleans. Great for frozen hot chocolates, lime rickeys and other treats. They also have ice cream, pastries and chocolate.

    PJs — Goog soft serve ice cream and dips.

    Provincetown Fudge Factory - Fudge and other chocolate.

Other Activities

  • Biking the cape cod rail trail is easy from here. You can access the trail just the other side of the street where Lt Island Route crosses Route 6. Full map is here.

    The Nauset bike trail is accessible from the Salt Pond Visitor center in Eastham and goes from there to Coast Guard Beach.

  • From Provincetown, which is a 30 minute drive, you can book tickets on one of the many boats that go out multiple times per day. Details here.

  • Cape Escape Adventure Golf - In Orleans, 20 minutes away.

    Pirate’s Cove - A little bit of a drive but lots of fun.

    Poit’s Lighthouse - Closest mini golf, but not our favorite.

  • Provincetown is just 30 minutes away. There are many shops, restaurants, and sights. Climbing the Pilgrim Monument and walking along Commercial Street are two of the more popular attractions.

  • We don’t know much about fishing or boating unfortunately, but it’s a big thing out here. Here is Trip Advisor’s fishing charter listings.

Essentials