Summer reading
Hi folks,
I’m compiling a summer reading list, and would love your submissions for a later missive!
For those of you interested in exploring the Cape - its ecology, history, and inhabitants through the ages - look no further than Paul Schneider’s outstanding book, The Enduring Shore (2001). It’s an excellent read and perfect way to deepen your appreciation of this unique and precious resource we all share.
I first started coming to the Outer Cape when I was in college in the late ‘80s, when you could still find a cheap place to crash for the night in P-Town and when Truro still lay hidden behind dodgy signs and dirt roads. Bliss. I came across Schneider’s book when Ken and I were building our house on Fishermans Road in 2002-2003, and it made everything fall into place.
Spurred on by our indefatigable neighbor (and CHI co-founder), Dick Keating, we took to exploring all of the byways of Truro: the fossilized spine of railroad between the Corn Hill parking lot and the Pamet; the fire roads and kettle ponds on the seashore side; and the hiking trails overlooking the Atlantic that Dick and many other volunteers bushwhacked through every year, keeping them open for the next round of explorers. An old painted driftwood signpost for the nude beach at Ballston, scavenged on one of our beachcombing walks, is a prized possession.
Most people know that the Mayflower Compact was signed in Provincetown Harbor. How amazing to think that these European interlopers probably anchored within sight of our beach in Cranberry Hill, and that The Rock across from our stairs might have become a national shrine instead of a fun place for us to swim out to.
Perhaps it was the thumping disco beat from the Boat Slip that sent the Pilgrims across the bay to Plymouth (just kidding). Whatever the reason, I am sort of glad they left this place in peace for awhile longer.
Enjoy the summer, and happy reading!