Discover Chatham

In Chatham, discoveries range from coastal landscapes and wildlife watching to museums with their own historical themes. On Morris Island, trails wind through beach, forest, dunes, salt marshes, and tidal flats. A walk here is about more than just one type of landscape. If you prefer to experience culture and nature in different ways, you can pair the trails with a museum visit or a stop at the Chatham Fish Pier.

Nature Trails and Wildlife Watching

The Monomoy National Wildlife Refuge is in Chatham and includes the Morris Island mainland unit. The trails in this unit are accessible year-round from the parking lot at 30 Wikis Way in Chatham. Along the trails, you can observe songbirds, shorebirds, and horseshoe crabs; seals can also occasionally be seen there. Wildlife watching is a reason in its own right to take in the surroundings attentively, while the Refuge’s landscape offers further impressions.

The Morris Island Trail offers a self-guided walk with interpretive signs and a trail map. The signs along the way and the map accompany your independent exploration. If you want to see different landscapes, this trail features beach, forest, dunes, salt marshes, and tidal flats within the Refuge. For a different kind of nature experience, you can take the short trail in the Captain Hardings Conservation Area along the shore of Bearse’s Pond: there, you can watch frogs, birds, and other wildlife foraging.

Walks with Different Character

The Marconi–RCA Conservation Area has a short, easy loop trail along the shore of Ryders Cove. It is a good choice if you prefer a manageable distance. You can also walk through restored coastal forests on the Marconi–RCA Conservation Trail. This woodland offers a different focus from the diverse habitats of the Morris Island Trail. When choosing an outing, you can therefore consider whether you’re looking for a short loop by the shore, a walk through coastal forest, or trails through a variety of landscapes.

The Antenna Field Walking Trail is a ten-minute walk behind the museum that leads to the first of the original Marconi antennas. This destination gives the walk a specific historical connection. Together with the nature trails, it shows that Chatham offers more than just one kind of outing.

Museums and the Fishing Pier

At the Chatham Railroad Museum, you can see hundreds of exhibits in a restored railroad depot dating from 1887. The building and collection give the visit a clear focus on railroad history. The Atwood House & Museum preserves a house built around 1752 as a historic house museum. It presents the life, art, and culture of Cape Cod in the 18th and 19th centuries. If you’re interested in historic buildings, you can choose between a former railroad depot and a house museum whose themes span several centuries.

At the Chatham Fish Pier, you can watch the fishing fleet land its daily catch. The pier complements museum visits with a glimpse of the fishing industry. These different interests can help guide your choice of a vacation rental or vacation home in Chatham: nature trails and wildlife watching, a self-guided walk, historical exhibits, or the activity at the Fish Pier. This lets you plan your stay around the outings you’d most like to enjoy.

More town pages: Falmouth, Dennis, Brewster, Wellfleet, Orleans, Eastham, Truro, Harwich.

For the main trip overview: Barnstable.