After Labor Day, the "Outer" or "Lower" part of Cape Cod--the upward-raised part of the Cape's arm--becomes a mellow, rural paradise. There's nothing much to do then: you can bicycle, kayak, hike, walk on the beach. But just being there is something to do--something to be.

First Encounter Beach is in Eastham. The Bay-side beaches in the Lower Cape face west and have spectacular sunsets, made even nicer some days by the way that the water's edge moves so far out in the shallow Bay when the tide goes out.








Fort Hill is on the other side of Eastham, looking out over the Cove-side salt marshes to Nauset Beach and the Coast Guard Beach. It's a fine hike, starting at a 19th Century sea-captain's house, going across open fields, and returning through a red maple swamp.




Some may not feel that Brewster is in the Outer Cape, being inside the Orleans Rotary, but it's an amazingly lovely town. These fields are on the Wing Trail, just next to the beach at the Cape Cod Museum of Natural History.




One of the treasures of the Cape is the Massachusetts Audubon Society's Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary. The afternoon sunlight on the row of houses next to it shows that Edward Hopper is still alive and well.








Provincetown is an always amazing and fun mixture of art, tourism, and fishing. This is the harbor at night.




All photos herein © 2001 by William P. Coleman.


####


William P. Coleman is a man of many talents. His independent production company Winter Solstice Films is at work on a script by RLB Hartmann. He has five screenplays of his own completed and is working on a new one at the moment.

Bill is a an accomplished essayist, short story writer and photographer, as well as being knowledgeable and conversant in most areas of the fine arts, computer arts and many other subjects. When asked for a biography, the modest Mr. Coleman offered the following:

"William P. Coleman is a writer and photographer who lives with his wife, Joan, in Annapolis, MD. They’ve spent as much time as possible in Cape Cod for the last few years."

He is also the Photography & Graphics Editor of The Pacific Northwest Literary Potpourri.

You can reach Bill at wpc@wpcmath.com.

***