Guys, I'm writing this blog post on the deck of the Inn On The Sound in Falmouth, MA. I'm looking over Vineyard Sound and can see Marth'as Vineyard! The sun rose just to my left. To my right I see a sailboat. Once in awhile, a car drives by this beach side road. But other than that, it's the occasional walker and pack of cyclists. It's early. I have coffee and I am so happy!
Paul and I never stayed at a b&b before. This place is really nice I wasn't quite sure what to expect. Paul and I try to be self sufficient on vacation... bringing our own water, snacks, etc. But this place has it all.
The innkeeper, Howard, greeted us from the porch when we arrived. He showed us the kitchen and common areas. Coffee, tea, water, soft drinks, and seltzer where available all day. There were bananas, scones and lemon poppy seed bread out for snacking. Then he took us to our room. It was beautiful and clean. We had a panoramic window that looked out over Vineyard Sound and we could see Martha's Vineyard in the not too far off distance. We were just giddy with our accommodations! We were especially excited to eat breakfast on the front porch the next morning. Little bistro tables were set up with the best view in town, in my opinion!
Common area
Common area
Come area
Dining area
Dining area
Dining area
Dining area
Guest kitchen
Our room
Our room view
Our room
We were quite tired from traveling when we arrived but I will not complain about that! We stopped on the way in Fall River, MA to tour the Lizzie Borden House, but I will recap that on another day. Today, it's all about our first two days in Cape Cod! Three pictures for a tease...
Quiz: Who was murdered on this couch?
Quiz: Who was murdered RIGHT HERE?
After we settled in, we headed right down to the beach! What a trek... .01 miles away! It was so convenient! (I knew it would be. That's why I picked The Inn On The Sound... none of the hassle of driving to the beach and parking.) Our Inn provided beach chairs, umbrellas, towels, and a beach bag! I felt like a celebrity! Although I guess if I were a celebrity, someone else would have carried my beach chair for me. That's okay, I felt like a butterfly!
The beach here was different than the East Coast beaches we're used to. There were lots of big, smooth rocks on the sand as well as on the floor of the sound. It looked like you could drink on the beach because everyone was enjoying a beverage. Someone made a fire. There were dogs. It wasn't crowded because we were at the part of the beach with no lifeguards. (Don't worry, we only went up to our ankles!)
We opened a bottle of Reisling and just spent some much needed time relaxing and enjoying the sun, wind, and surf. This was meant to be our "chill" vacation. No stress, no plans, no rushy-rushy. So far, so good!
After chilling on the beach, we walked back to our inn and freshened up for dinner. We didn't feel like driving anywhere, so we walked about two blocks along the water down to the British Beer House. It was just pub style food but that was fine with us. Paul had meatloaf and I had a salmon salad. We shared pickle chips for an app. I really want to learn how to beer batter because I think my goal in life is to eat EVERYTHING fried in beer batter! The food was good but the service was slow. It was 16 minutes before we even had waters! And no, it wasn't busy.
Just a few pics from our walk home!
He gets mad when I have to take food pics before we eat!
"I have a blog!!!!"
Just a few pics from our walk home!
We went to bed pretty early, since we had gotten up before sunrise that day to travel. We kept our blinds open so we could fall asleep looking at the lights of Martha's Vineyard!
The next day, I had every intention of sleeping in as long as my little heart desired, but of course I woke up at 5:30! That's okay. I padded out to the kitchen, made myself some coffee, and then took my laptop out to the front porch to relax! Only one other person was up, Fabien, a man from Philly! He told me he has been staying at this inn with his wife for 15 years! I asked if all b&bs are this nice and he said he didn't know, this is the only one he ever stayed at!
The next day, I had every intention of sleeping in as long as my little heart desired, but of course I woke up at 5:30! That's okay. I padded out to the kitchen, made myself some coffee, and then took my laptop out to the front porch to relax! Only one other person was up, Fabien, a man from Philly! He told me he has been staying at this inn with his wife for 15 years! I asked if all b&bs are this nice and he said he didn't know, this is the only one he ever stayed at!
After several cups of coffee, it was time to go for a run. Paul walked along the sound while I ran the running path depicted on our Falmouth map. Part of it was along the water and the other part was through neighborhoods. It wasn't too busy because it was still early. It looks like Cape Cod people like to sleep in!
These shrubs are everywhere. What are they!??
The first part of our day was spent biking the Shining Sea Bikeway. It's an 11 mile (one way) bike route through the woods, past bogs and marshes, and past little towns.
The path is an old railroad route. The station is now a spot for bikers to stop for food.
We biked the whole bike path (out and back). Just before we were nearly done, we stopped in Woods Hole for lunch. We were starving! The place we ate at looked out over the Steamship Authority Ferry that goes to Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket, so we got to see all the hustle and bustle.
I had a huge burger and fries. Paul had fried cauliflower.
The last time I biked, my ITB and knee hurt so much, so I totally expected it to hurt after this ride... but it did NOT! How awesome is that!? The only thing that hurt is the area that hurts from sitting on a bike seat for a long time! We did 31 miles total!
We spent a couple hours relaxing on the beach.
Then we had drinks at our inn and played cards. Hey, it's just like home...
... but with a way better view!
We ordered in sushi and ate it on the porch.
Our second night in Cape Cod ended with laying in bed watching the new episode of Big Brother. Priorities, people!!!!
Come back Tuesday for the last part of my Cape Cod recap!
Come back Tuesday for the last part of my Cape Cod recap!
Have you ever been to Cape Cod?
Any idea what that shrub is?
Did you ever stay at a B&B?
Any idea what that shrub is?
Did you ever stay at a B&B?
How was the weather there? I've never vacationed up North because I always assume that their summers aren't as warm as ours but I could be wrong..haha
ReplyDeleteI love all your pictures. The one of you and Paul on the beach is a framer for sure and I love how your running top matches the unknown shrubs!
Do you know how long it takes the ferry to go to Nantucket? I've been reading a lot of books this summer that take place in Nantucket and now I am intrigued. Looks like you had a fabulous relaxing time and I realize perhaps I should put this place on my list!
Good question, it was in the high 80s all the days we were there. It was VERY humid and I came back from every run SOAKED.
DeleteI looked it up, and there are ferries from Hyannis to Cape Cod. The fast ferries take an hour. The normal ones are two hours and 15 minutes! It's a little farther out than MV.
I have never stayed at a B&B before! I've stayed in hotels, AirBNB and cruise cabins but we've never done a B&B. Somehow I always thought that was for older people but I guess now that we're in our 30s, we are kinda there. It looks like you guys got great, personal service and I would want that on a vacation so I think if I have a choice, I will look one up for our next vacation.
ReplyDeleteThe beaches look so nice and relaxing... so glad you had a good bike ride too and your ITB was fine. I do hate bike seats though for that reason! Hope the rest of your vacation is awesome.
Well we were the youngest people there and we made friends with all the older people. :) It was fun to chat with people at breakfast about what their plans were for the day. I think you guys would like a B&B. Normally we get cheap hotel rooms for vacations because when we are on vacation we are out and about, so it wouldn't make sense to spend a lot of money on a really nice place when all we're doing is basically sleeping there. But we tried to make this relaxing and not all go, go, go so spending more for that comfort was okay. I honestly didn't realize just how convenient of a location this place was. Steps from the beach, less than a 1/2 mile walk to the bike rentals, and less than a mile walk to the ferry to go to Martha's Vineyard. After driving all the way to Cape Cod, I was excited not to drive at all! The only driving we did was to go get the sushi and then I drove to the bike path to run on the day we left. That's it!
DeleteI say this all the time, but will you start planning our vacations for us? This sounds like the PERFECT get away. My parents honeymooned in Cape Cod and I have always wanted to go! It looks just amazing. And, we LOVED fried pickles. There are a few places that serve them here and we always get them. Soooo good! Thanks for sharing your trip with us!
ReplyDeleteGirl, I will plan your vacation ANYTIME! :) It makes me feel good to hear you say that. :) A honeymoon on Cape Cod sounds perfect! Paul and I have our 10 year wedding anniversary in a couple days, so this was sort of to celebrate that. :)
DeleteThe couple times I was there, it was great. I think one year my family went we met up with a bunch of family friends, and the guys ran the Falmouth road race. It may have been the Beach to Beacon, I'm not sure. All I remember is it was raining that whole morning.
ReplyDeleteSorry, not Beach to Beacon. It was a big road race.
DeleteI bet you it was the Falmouth Road Race because the route I took was depicted on the map as that race. There were even mile markers painted on the street!
DeleteOh, I love Cape Cod!!! Last time I was there, in 2012, we stayed at a B& B in West Yarmouth! I have such fond memories!
ReplyDeleteWow you were far from the West Coast!
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