Wellfleet Short Walks on Cape Cod
Duck Pond
You will pass several of these forks with
rail fences (004). Stay
on the main track as it curves toward the north. It is a
pretty
walk in the woods, well-shaded in the summer. You will come to
the utility right of way (005). Walk north on it until a distinct
woods
road appears to your right, in another 0.2 mile (006). Follow it
north
to Duck Pond.
The road curves to the
left and ends in a parking area.
Just beyond
Is a little brown sign with regulations regarding use
of ponds.
Follow the foot path to the shore of Duck Pond (007).
Enjoy
the view!
NOTICE! At this point, the previous guide is revised!
We
have always followed a route around the north shore of the pond,
passing through private property to proceed to trailhead 2.
The
landowners object to that route, and we must comply with their
wishes.
Reverse to return to the utility right of way.
Follow it to
the west
for about 0.5 mile to a sandy track heading northeast (008).
Walk
northeast on it for another 0.5 mile to Cahoon Hollow Road (009).
Walk to Cahoon Hollow Road,
passing by Trailhead 2 on your
left. Walk east on Cahoon Hollow Road about 0.3 mile to a
point
just opposite the east edge of little Southeast Pond (010). Across
the
road to the south is a well-worn foot trail next to a rail fence.
Walk east and south on it, heading for Trailhead 1.
You are now about to enjoy a wilderness
adventure. Be prepared,
as the Boy Scouts say. Have your compass out and refer to
it at every
trail junction. The area is obviously well-known to local
residents;
it has evidence of frequent use on a multitude of paths.
You are in
a one mile square area bounded by Cahoon Hollow Road to the north,
Ocean View Drive to the east, the original woods road to the south,
and the utility right of way to the west.
Long Pond in Wellfleet
From the parking
lot for Great Pond on Cahoon Hollow Road
(01), look for an opening in the fence
at the northwest corner of the
parking lot. Walk out to a
deeply rutted woods road (05) and follow
it to the northwest past Turtle
Pond on your right until you come
to a second distinct fork (06).
Bear left, walking west, then northwest..
Shortly,
Dyer Pond appears on your left. Stay on the main
woods road as it passes by summer
houses, then curves to the
right, heading in a more northerly
direction. You will walk past
"fire road" cables along the way,
and also past summer houses on
Long Pond on your right.
Come back
to the parking area and look for a foot path
heading
northeast, around the fence.
You will come out on Ocean
View Drive.
Cross Ocean View
Drive (13) and follow the foot path north to a
woods road that heads east
out to the cliff and a view of the
ocean (14)..
Reverse
to walk west on the woods road to Ocean View Drive, then
cross over to the woods road continuing
on the other side. Walk west
on the woods road for almost one-quarter
mile. At the utility pole (16),
walk southeast on the woods road
that passes by Kinnacum Pond (17).
Where it intersects the road to
Spectacle Pond (18), turn right and walk
southwest to the fork (20).
Bear left at the fork, walking south and then southeast to
Long Pond
Road (21). Cross Long
Pond Road and pick up the dirt road heading
south and southwest around Long
Pond. It is an access road for summer
houses (22), first to Long Pond on your
right, then to Great Pond on your left.
When you come to an intersection of woods roads
with a "fire road"
sign cabled across (07), you may either turn left and retrace the route
to the parking lot, or walk around Dyer Pond (27,28,29) and return.
The shorter walk is 5.3 miles. The loop around Dyer Pond adds an
additional mile.
Griffin Island
Park
at the National Seashore lot for Great Island at the end of
Chequesset Neck road (001). Follow
the signs to Great Island from
the east
side of the parking lot.
At the bottom of the hill, about 200
yards (002), walk left on the sandy track
to Chequesset Neck Road
(003).
Cross the
road and walk northeast on the dirt road. You will
quickly lose sight of the sand flat
to your right because of the
heavy vegetation. Continue
on this road for about 1.0 miles until
it bends to the west (005), running along
the edge of Duck Harbor
marsh.
You passed (004) which leads to Bound Brook Island Road.
Bound Brook Island
Walk south on the path past the houses to a sand road which heads
south. At (009), where the road heads east, walk west on the foot
path out to the beach (010). Walk south on the beach to return to
(002) and the parking lot. 4.6 miles.
Great Island
From the parking lot (001), walk southeast on
the gravel path leading
down the hill. Pause to read the signs. At the bottom
of the hill (002),
turn right, as the sign indicates, to follow the sandy road west,
then
south for about 0.6 mile to the north edge of Great Island (003), plainly
visible ahead.
When you reach the trail fork (004), walk east
on the track that follows
the north edge of the island (005). Continue along the edge of the cliff
to (006), then make a sharp right turn at (007).
Walk south to Great Beach Hill, then
follow the sign which directs
you up the hill to the southeast. The woods road you are
on curves to
the southwest and brings you to the marsh at the south edge of
Great
Beach Hill. Walk to the sign which warns you that Jeremy
Point beyond
is submerged at high tide.
If you have timed your hike correctly,
that is, around low tide,
walk south as far as you wish. Toward the end, Billingsgate
Island will
appear at low tide. The brick foundation of the lighthouse
may be
visible. If it is high tide, or you only want to walk six
miles,
reverse at the sign.
Walk over to the marsh side of the dunes,
then pick up the footpath
heading north up Great Beach Hill. Just before you get to
the top, walk
the left hand trail at the fork. Soon you will be in a little
sheltered
hollow, which also has a view! That's a rare combination.
It's a good
place for lunch.
The Short Walk resumes:
Walk north on the beach to a gap in the dunes at (013). Then
walk on the inland path to (014). Up the boardwalk and paved road
to (015) and a little trail leading to the parking lot (001). The short
walk is from four to five miles. If you walk out to Jeremy Point below
Great Beach Hill, the long walk can be ten miles, eight if you omit
this leg.
