Last week Al passed 50% completion of the Massachusetts town high points list. I had recently passed 25% and was enjoying looking at maps and planning out ways to visit some more of the 351 towns/cities in MA. With the long weekend looming we made plans to meet on Monday. I got in some decent runs over the weekend despite snow and mixed in a lot of shoveling (not fun) and got my first ski of the year! So much fun! Last year I’d only gotten out once due to poor ski conditions and reasonable conditions to bike outside (with biking being the better choice for alternative exercise).
Originally, we’d planned on working on some high points around the New Bedford area, but Al called an audible on Saturday that it might be better to hit the Cape. Since it is the best time of year to visit the Cape (traffic) and would also make visiting some private property a bit easier (seasonal dwellings) I agreed that the plan was sound. I was up at 3 a.m. and out the door to shovel the 3 or 4 inches of snow we’d gotten overnight. Depending on the location the Cape got 1-6 inches, and it would still be snowing for the drive down. I then threw in 6 laps on Ferry Road to get some miles (6) in the bank before Al arrived.
The drive wasn’t terrible, and we stopped quickly in Yarmouth for a THP that was right at the highway exit. It was tough getting out of the car after 2 hours and stepping into a slushy mess. We then drove to nearly the end of the Cape (Truro) for our furthest out town. From there we’d work our way back getting 8 more high points and breaking that up with a run in Nickerson State Park after bagging the fire tower and Brewster town high point. The roads were in decent shape, just a little slush, and very little traffic. It was hilly and my sore ankles were feeling it on the downhill parts. We added in another 1 mile of running at the next high point which was on the very hilly and snowy Cape Cod Golf Course. That was our longest climb of the day. That was also one of the nicer locations along with North Green Hill which had fantastic views of the ocean and Barnstable which had the deepest snow on our power line hike.
The high points:
1 Yarmouth (German Hill) Drive up to the water tower and a basically step out of the car for the highest point.
2 North Green Hill (Truro) Parked between the two houses at the end of the road. Both appeared to be boarded up for the season. Walked up the dunes along the house and a narrow strip to the high point. The road heading up was a bit rough and I ended up dislodging the skid plate. We went to the nearby beach parking lot and Al jacked up my car and did a quick repair.
3 Wellfleet - Lights were on but no one home when we knocked.
4 Eastham - Parked at the end of the road (160 Nauset Light Beach Rd) and walked up the driveway.
5 Orleans (Mill Hill) Parked behind the Toyota dealership and whacked up the hill.
6 Deer Park Hill (Brewster) Parked next to the fire tower, walked a bit down the road then whacked into the thick and sometimes thorny woods.
7 Harwich (Cape Cod Golf Course) Likely this one could only be done in winter (or very stealthy). Very nice golf course, but maybe 4 inches of snow and slush everywhere. Very wet run out and back with a LOT of turkey tracks in the snow.
8 Great Hill (Chatham) This one could be accessed from the south or north. We parked at 189 North Skyline drive and bushwacked through the open woods to the summit. Close to the house but nothing posted.
9 Barnstable - Parked on Great hill rd and hiked up the power line in 6 inches of fresh snow. Turned on the aptly named Town Line Trail and sauntered over to the high point. Good view to the south. Ran back down the powerline to the car and the slushy parking lot
10 Mashpee - Parked at the TH and walked SW into the woods. A big Coast Guard plane came in a we were hiking. Pretty cool!
Totals for the day = 315 miles driven, 10 town high points, three fire towers, a bunch of lighthouses, and a couple of runs. LONG day.
