Boardwalks and Marshes

January 14, 2013

Town Neck Boardwalk, Sandwich, Cape Cod, – ETSY

On Cape Cod we have a lot of marsh. One thing we have to go with the marsh is Boardwalk. Two of our more famous boardwalks are “Town Neck Beach Boardwalk” in Sandwich and “Gray’s Beach Boardwalk” in Yarmouthport. The boardwalks are so lovely because they give you an opportunity to walk across expanses of water that normally you could not traverse. During summertime the Sandwich Boardwalk bridge is very popular with kids and teens. They love to jump off at high tide into the water below. It’s certainly deep enough at high tide. Another past time is people take raw chicken drumsticks and tie them to strings. They drop the chicken into the water and lure the crabs out of the marsh/muck with them. I have seen families catch buckets full of crab in this manner. Small children love to do this! On a warm summer night there is barely enough room to squeeze through all the people lining either side of the Sandwich Boardwalk bridge. Between the kids jumping and the families crabbing it can get very tight.

Last weekend I happened to be down at the Sandwich Boardwalk during an astronomically high tide. The Boardwalk was almost completely covered in water. It was really surreal to be standing on wooden planks surrounded by nothing but ocean. It really was kind of creepy to be honest.

Town Neck Boardwalk during an astronomical high tide

Gray’s Beach Boardwalk is a little different from Sandwich Boardwalk. Sandwich Boardwalk leaves the center of Town extends across the marsh and takes you out to Town Neck Beach. You can also get to the beach in a round about way via car. Gray’s Beach Boardwalk leads to no-where. It just stretches far out into the marsh and ends with some benches perched facing towards the mouth of an inlet to the ocean. It’s an entirely different experience all together. Both yield amazing views of wild life. Hubby and I saw some amazing birds up close while we were out on the Gray’s Beach boardwalk.

Both Boardwalks’ really are a gem. They offer incredible experiences and wonderful photo opportunities. I can certainly tell you many wedding parties have been photographed on both including my daughter’s.