Biking on the Cape Cod Rail Trail

Dennis/Wellfleet
508 896-3491

(5/23/08)

DCR TO REOPEN CAPE COD RAIL TRAIL

Cleanup and repaving completed following oil spill

The Cape Cod Rail Trail follows a former railroad right-of-way for 22 miles through the towns of Dennis, Harwich, Brewster, Orleans, Eastham and Wellfleet. Its paved surface, few hills, and well-marked automobile crossings make it ideal for cyclists. The trail has a wide unpaved shoulder on one side to accommodate horseback riding, walkers, and runners.

There are many opportunities to get off the trail and visit a beach. Food and water are also readily available and public restrooms can be found at Nickerson State Park, Salt Pond Visitors Center at Cape Cod National Seashore and the National Seashore Headquarters. If you do not have a bike, bike rentals are available at many points along the way. For people with disabilities, a limited number of hand-cycles are available for rent at specific bike concessions. For more information call Nickerson State Park at 508-896-3491.

Trail Map
Click here to view trail map

History
Before the first railroad tracks were laid, the Cape was a relatively isolated area, accessible only by packet boat or stagecoach. By 1848, the Old Colony Railroad Company laid tracks that connected Boston and Sandwich. Railroad track extensions continued and by 1873, Old Colony had linked Boston with Cape Cod’s outermost point of Provincetown, offering a miraculously short, five-hour journey. As the Cape’s popularity as a summer resort increased, the railroad was heavily used to transport visitors from New York and Connecticut, as well as other parts of Massachusetts. With the growing number of visitors came train-loads of food and other provisions needed to meet their needs. But the railroad’s importance was soon surpassed by the automobile. Bridges to carry cars over Cape Cod Canal were opened in 1935, and in 1937 passenger service to the towns east of Dennis ended. Trains continued to haul freight until the mid-1960’s, but then the tracks were torn up and the station-houses were razed or vandalized. If you look carefully as you ride along the trail, you can still see occasional relics of the Cape’s rail days.

Park Directions
The Cape Cod Rail Trail is located in the mid-Cape area, in southeastern Massachusetts.
Free parking for trail users is available at:
• The trailhead at Route 134 in South Dennis
• Headwaters Drive in Harwich
• Route 137 in Brewster
• Nickerson State Park in Brewster
• Orleans Center
• Cape Cod National Seashore at the Salt Pond Visitors Center in Eastham, one-half mile from the Locust Road intersection with the trail
• National Seashore at Marconi Area
• The trailhead at LeCount Hollow Road in South Wellfleet

Other MassParks Rail Trails
Ashuwillticook Rail Trail
Lanesborough – Cheshire, 5 miles

Nashua River Rail Trail
Ayer, Groton, Pepperell and Dunstable, 11 miles

Norwottuck Rail Trail
Northampton – Belchertown, 10.5 miles