Exploring The Cape w/Briley Early
Since we started our travel life, we’ve always taken the opportunity to share our adventures with as many family members as possible. When we first arrived in Cape Cod, it was right around the time our niece, Briley, was getting ready to graduate from high school. There couldn’t be a better time to share an adventure than right after such a big milestone! So, we invited her out to The Cape for a week of sunshine, beaches, and ocean exploration. The timing of her trip couldn’t have been better. Amity had just finished her last week of work in Massachusetts, so she had the entire week off. The weather cooperated as well, greeting us with our first days of 80–90 degree heat. Welcome to Massachusetts and Cape Cod, Briley!
Mile: 65,922
Quote of the Blog: “The best gift you can give someone, is to travel with them. The memories and bonds made during travel last forever.” - Oprah Winfrey
Song of the Blog: “Fireball” - Pitbull
Briley flew in and out of Boston. Her flight arrived mid-afternoon, so we used the day to check off the last Boston activity on our list: The Freedom Trail. The trail starts at Boston Common. We explored the park a bit before heading out on the trail itself. It was a beautiful day to walk around Boston. The trail winds through the city and passes some of the most iconic locations from the American Revolution and other historically significant sites. We walked a couple of miles, stopping at the Massachusetts State House, the site of the Boston Massacre, John Hancock’s grave, and Quincy Market. It was a great way to see a lot of Boston in a single afternoon. My favorite stop was the Bell In Hand Tavern, established in 1765 and the oldest tavern in the U.S. Amity’s least favorite was the Old Corner Bookstore, which is now a Chipotle. It’s honestly heartbreaking to see history replaced by fast food.
Picking up Briley was a breeze. Once she landed, we set out to get some food. We had planned to try a spot known for its creative mac & cheese dishes, only to find out you can only order online—no physical restaurant. That was a first for all of us! Luckily, we had a solid backup: Sugar Factory, a place we’d seen earlier in the day. The vibe and décor were definitely the highlight, more so than the food. Still, we were thrilled to have Briley with us and catch up on everything—graduation, life, and her budding running career. With nothing else planned, we headed to the car and drove down to our house in Wareham.
Our first full day was packed. We started bright and early with a drive down The Cape to Barnstable for a whale-watching tour. The boat was much bigger than any we’d been on before, and we snagged great seats on the upper deck. The tour took us through Cape Cod Bay and around Provincetown and the Outer Cape to a spot known for whale activity. It was amazing to see a group of humpback whales swimming together. We watched them surface and dive for a while. The most important thing we learned from our guide? “Whales spend most of their lives swimming underwater.” We also spotted a seal swimming among the whales, as if he wanted to play. As the boat made its way back into harbor, the morning chill gave way to a warm and sunny afternoon—perfect beach weather.
After the tour, we drove further down The Cape to Coast Guard Beach. Briley is training for her freshman year as a D1 runner at the University of Nebraska Omaha, and Amity is prepping for a marathon later this summer. So we headed to the Cape Cod Rail Trail for a training run. I made sure to thank Briley afterward—it was my first “training run” with a D1 athlete, even if she was miles ahead and I only saw her at the car. Once we wrapped up, we got beach-ready and made our way to the water. Coast Guard Beach is recognized as one of the nicest along the Cape Cod National Shoreline, and we agreed! The first thing we noticed was the incredible number of seals swimming in the surf—at one point I counted 15–20 of them in a single group. The girls took a walk while I stayed behind to relax and watch the seals. As evening approached, we packed up and started the journey back to Wareham.
Since it was Sunday, we knew traffic getting off The Cape would be rough. We decided to stop for dinner at Fisherman’s View Restaurant, a place Amity and I had been wanting to try. It’s located right on the Cape Cod Canal, at the north end where it meets the bay. We didn’t have reservations but got lucky—we were seated immediately at a window table overlooking the water and a beautiful sunset. The menu leans heavily toward seafood, and we were proud of Briley for trying new things. She not only ate a raw oyster on the half shell, but also sampled the lobster mac & cheese. Bold moves that left us all smiling! Everything we had was delicious, and we perfectly timed it to miss the worst of the bridge traffic. We called it an early night, as the ladies were heading out the next morning for a ferry ride to Nantucket for an overnight adventure. I’ll let Amity take it from here.
Briley and I had such a fun little getaway to Nantucket. It started with the ferry ride and checking into a cute hotel that casually mentioned they “don’t lock their doors.” First stop: the Sconset Bluff Walk, where we had the entire path to ourselves—just us, fancy houses, ocean views, and dreamy flowers. We had lunch on the beach and ended up watching a beached seal (don’t worry, the tide eventually took it back out—we decided it survived). We explored all the shops, including a hilarious stop at the “Nantucket Red” store, only to agree we didn’t even like the color. Souvenir shopping was tough with so many cute options. Dinner at Pi Pizza was delicious, even though we were distracted by a table of wild kids turning the place into a Post-It art gallery. Ice cream from The Juice Bar was a must (even if a kid’s cone cost $12), and we took it to the beach to enjoy a beautiful sunset. The next morning, we each set out on a long run through the charming streets of Nantucket. We had a good laugh after Briley got a little lost and confused on her route. Breakfast at the adorable Lemon Press was a lucky find, and we spent our last few hours walking the beach and soaking up the scenery. We wrapped up with more shopping before catching the ferry home.
Back to Billy here. While the ladies were off on their island adventure, I spent my days preparing for our upcoming move to Wisconsin and my nights trying to catch fish. I didn’t catch anything—par for the course in Massachusetts—but I did enjoy beautiful sunsets while watching seals eat the very fish I was trying to catch. Cape Cod’s surprises are always fun and beautiful. When I picked them up from the ferry, we headed back to the house and relaxed. We took Briley to the local Swift Beach, but the tide was too high to walk around. So, we called it a chill night at home.
For Briley’s last day, we decided to spend the morning on the Cape Cod Canal, check out Scusset Beach, and then head up to Boston for the night. As usual, we started with a run. I’ve loved running along the canal and was excited to share it with Briley. It’s a scenic trail that starts and ends at one of our favorite beaches—Scusset Beach. After our run and some cool-down time in the car’s AC, we walked down to the beach. Amity and Briley had been unable to walk out on a jetty in Nantucket because of the tide, so we gave it another try here. As we walked out, we found ourselves in the middle of a cicada hatch. There were several screams and flailing arms as the bugs flew into our faces, adding a wild twist to our already tricky rock-hopping walk. We made it safely to the end of the jetty when Amity suddenly said, “Oh hey! Look right there!” Sitting on one of the rocks was a seal. What a perfect way to end Briley’s Cape Cod adventure. We hung out with him for a bit before braving the cicada gauntlet back to the car.
Once we were cleaned up and ready, we made our way to Boston. We didn’t have much of a plan other than to do some sightseeing and enjoy an Italian dinner in the North End. We stayed at a hotel near the airport, since Briley’s flight was early the next morning. We parked near the harbor and walked from there, passing the Boston Tea Party Museum and along the Wharf. We decided to take the subway to the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. It was our second visit, and we appreciated it even more this time around. With the context and familiarity, we found it even more inspiring and enjoyable.
After the museum, we realized we were within walking distance of Fenway. Papa Sparks would’ve loved knowing we took Briley to see it! We stopped into the Bleacher Bar for a peek into the stadium. With dinner time approaching, we hopped back on the subway and headed to the North End. With a little time to spare before our reservation, we walked to Quincy Market to revisit some of the Freedom Trail sights. Dinner was at Trattoria Il Panino. Despite the relatively low-key vibe, the food was top-tier—and we loved that the dishes came out in frying pans! We had planned to get cannoli there, but they didn’t serve any. So, we headed to Mike’s Pastry down the street. Every time I’ve been to Boston, I’ve seen someone with one of their boxes, so I figured it must be legit. The service was…let’s just say, authentically brusque—eye rolls, exasperation, and even a death stare as we paid. A true Italian wears their emotions on their sleeve, so we figured the cannoli had to be the real deal. We brought them to a nearby park and confirmed: absolutely amazing. With the sun setting on Boston and on our week with Briley, we walked along the harbor and Wharf back to the car. It was a beautiful way to end an amazing week—and our time living on the East Coast.
As the saying goes, “All great things must come to an end.” We’re so glad we got to spend our last week in Massachusetts and on the East Coast exploring with Briley. It truly is the definition of Living Rad. Thanks for coming out, Briley!