Larry, Will, Tim, et al.
The Cape Code National Seashore is certainly a worthy place to visit - in off-season. In addition, there is Plymouth Rock, a reconstruction of the Mayflower, Plymouth Plantation, First Encounter Beech, Provincetown, etc. However, best not to go to the Cape with trees in mind. Most of the vegetation is stunted and fairly young. You see a lot of pitch pine, black and scarlet oak, Atlantic white cedar, and in places scrub oak. Green briar is a common species that slows progress when bush whacking. The stunted tree forms can be highly artistic, but it takes 100 years or more for nature to create works of tree art. The young stuff is undistinguished. For visitors seeking to commune with salt water, there is Cape Cod Bay and there is the Atlantic. Most of the time, Cape Cod Bay is pretty calm. Consequently, I prefer the Atlantic side. However, there are many interesting plant communities around the Bay. It isn't a place to be taken lightly. The salt marshes are fascinating - delightful. Then there is Provincetown. Hmmm. Still don't know quite what to make of Provincetown. Artists flock there, partly because other artists flock there. It is a social thing, a tradition, but Provincetown is unique and their are quaint sights. You can see some pretty outlandish things, but somehow they seem okay. Watching the seals was a past time I enjoyed while at Nauset Beech. With all the civilization around, it is sometimes hard for me to grasp what the ocean truly represents. One stands at the edge of the water. Behind is a completely human controlled environment. Nature exists at the pleasure, or whim, of people. Everything represents manipulation by humans. In front, there is the ocean vastness. Just the sight of all that water is an experience in itself. However, combine that with sand, sky, and the crashing of the waves and it is sheer magic. People skim along on the ocean's surface and think they know the ocean, but only feet down, the world changes. Nature asserts itself. It is in control. What always bothers me is ocean front development. I go to see the ocean, experience its moods, feel its power. I'm uninterested in the huge, unsightly box-shaped Mac-mansions - the pretentious rich flaunting their wealth. Consequently, most of the Massachusetts coast has me mumbling in my beard. But the National Seashore is something else. It was a fine weekend. Bob ----- Original Message ----- From: "Larry" <[email protected]> To: "ENTSTrees" <[email protected]> Sent: Wednesday, October 14, 2009 7:57:28 AM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern Subject: [ENTS] Re: Atlantic ocean Bob, Cool beach! I love walking along the shoreline. Larry --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ Eastern Native Tree Society http://www.nativetreesociety.org Send email to [email protected] Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/entstrees?hl=en To unsubscribe send email to [email protected] -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
