Cape Cod and Boston
Before
, we decided that we'd save New York City for a later visit. (Interestingly, I learned there is an affordable campground in Brooklyn that we'll eventually explore!) So we worked a route around the city, and headed for Plymouth and Cape Cod.
When I was in fourth grade, we had a social studies textbook that caused me to fall in love with the world and with the idea of exploring the whole world. In that book, I learned about Plymouth and Cape Cod and had longed to visit there ever since.
On the way, we stopped in the town of Mystic.
And then the Cape Cod seashore!
I loved discovering these mats that make the beach much more accessible for those with limited mobility or in wheelchairs.
The town of Plymouth was a delight. I've vowed to return one day to just hang out for a few days.
And yes, the rain moved in on us again.
When we started this east coast journey, our plan was to get to Boston by July 4, so we could picnic on the lawn and listen to the Boston Pops. My mom had always tuned into their celebration each year, and the idea of enjoying the music and fireworks up close and personal had always been a desire. But reality finally sunk in - to get a seat on the lawn, we would have to arrive early in the morning and stay until after midnight, then fight traffic back to wherever we planned to stay. After checking campgrounds and hotels online, and admitting that I don't enjoy driving at night anymore - in traffic - in an unfamiliar town - well, that just changed all our plans and we decided to visit before the crowds arrived.
And I'm so glad we did. As we were circling round and round in town, I kept thinking I'd never complain about Atlanta traffic again. At least most of our roads and signs seem to make sense - Boston's didn't seem to make any at all. Ha!
We were excited to discover we could visit and explore the USS Constitution. Parking was easy (in the garage across the street) and the site wasn't terribly crowded.
Affordable camping options weren't available in the area, so we sped through and didn't give the area the time it so richly deserves. But we will be back. We're already planning return visits to several locations.
For now, we continue our trek north.