Initial Impressions 2.0 Blog #112: March Weather, Repeating Timelines, Cape Cod Adventure, etc.

1. It’s amazing how much warmer warm temperatures feel when coming out of a cold winter. This week, we touched 60 degrees on Cape Cod. If you had told me it was 75, I’d have believed you. Being stuck inside working all day, I was itching to get outside into the sun once the day was over. I had an important phone call to take, and I decided rather than sitting in my car, I’d hit up the famed Monday Runday track and do some walking while talking. It was almost perfect. The track had a few snowy patches that had not been hit by the sun, but otherwise it felt just like it did last time we did Monday Runday back in October. In all, I walked a little over 1.5 miles and burned around 200 calories. Not bad considering I could have sat on my ass in my car and burned nothing at all.


2. March is the most bipolar month there is in terms of weather. You can get days that are in the 60s and sunny, and within the same week, have temperatures hovering around freezing with the threat of snow. Obviously, that is what we got this week. I think growing up in New England has conditioned me to get out and fully enjoy the warm days of March since it can quickly go the other way. I think April is a bit like that as well, at least at the beginning of the month. It’s only when we get to around the first of May that we on Cape Cod can fully relax and enjoy spring without the looming threat of a secret frost or snowy day.


3. Incredibly, my story of the tough dealings with the editor of the short film I co-produced did not end last week. After agreeing to double the pay of the editor just to get the film finished, this guy decided to get greedy. The next day, he asked for more money again. He asked if I could get the donors for the When Henry Met Henry film to just cough up some more cash for his ‘expenses.’ Like what? We gave him instructions to use copyright-free music and find royalty-free b-roll footage. Not sure what his ‘expenses’ were. In the end, I set a hard line and said he’d get the money we agreed to for editing the film, or he’d get half if he sent me all of the raw footage and walked away. Not a bad deal. I don’t know if he thought I’d roll over at his attempts to hijack the film, but that didn’t happen. He ended up agreeing (yet again) to the money and to get the film done. I wasn’t a complete ass; I did give him an extension on the deadline until the end of March. I will say, it felt good to stand up to someone trying to screw me over. I might have to do it again sometime soon.


4. My niece Sylvie gave me a makeup case cell phone. It’s a cute pink plastic phone with different lip gloss inside. I began thinking of how I could use it in a video. I came up with a story of me being lost in the woods without my phone and remembering the phone she gave me, only to discover that it’s makeup. I went to a local conservation area with ideas for shots that I could then edit into a 2-3 minute funny horror video. Of course, shooting some scenes where I am scared and calling out for help would be best done with nobody around. I got some basic b-roll video as I walked the paths. Then I got set up for a shot of me wandering the woods while my phone was on a tripod, capturing the scene. Right on cue, came an older couple who appeared to be birdwatching. There I am, standing off in the woods, positioning my phone. They were curious, but I just said hello. Thankfully, I didn’t have to explain to them what I was doing. Shooting skits with my camcorder at 17 was cute and creative. Shooting skits, by myself, in the woods, at 48, might end up with a call to the nuthouse. 


5. One of my favorite things to do for my podcast is to craft unique alternate logos and cover art. I try to capture the nostalgic vibe of the 60s through the 90s while also keeping the basic layout of the logo. I made a pair of them in the past week. As you can see, they both have the classic, typical 70s avocado color palette. I went with two uniquely retro backgrounds. One was the faux wood paneling that I fondly remembered from my Nana’s house growing up. The other was one of the oddly paneled tiled kitchen floors. I believe we had this in one of our kitchens growing up. There is another tile setup that was super 80s, but I’m saving that one for a future podcast logo.




6. An interesting phenomenon that happens way more often than I think has to do with where I go for photography on Cape Cod. I will have an idea of a place I want to go shoot, and I’ll go there. No, that’s not the interesting part. What happens is that many times now I go to a place, and the next day I have photos of that same place in my social media memories. It’s like my subconscious takes me to the same places at the same time each year. It happened this week when I went to get some videos of the bridges at the Cape Cod Canal. The next morning, I was going through my Facebook memories, and there it was, a post filled with photos of the same bridges from 2016. I definitely don’t choose to visit the same places on the same days, but man, does it happen a lot.


7. On that photo trip I just mentioned, I came across a massive flock of Common Eiders, which are sea ducks that are usually black and white. They were hanging out in little crevices along the Cape Cod Canal as the tide was flowing out. When I say a massive flock, I’m talking a few hundred. They typically hang out in a cove at the western end of the canal across from Mass Maritime Academy. It was fascinating, and I found myself trying to get close-up video of these ducks. Naturally, they found me as a threat and would fly further down the canal. Once they’d realize I wasn’t trying to hurt them, they’d stop just far enough away. I kept walking toward them, filming them flying away and landing just enticingly close enough that I’d keep going. This game was repeated a few times. I ended up with several videos of duck wings slapping on the water. I guess it will be good for people who enjoy nature sounds and ASMR.



8. On this same one trip, I ended up with five or six great videos in probably half an hour. While filming a ship passing by, I noticed in the distance that the railroad bridge was lowered. It typically sits 135 feet above the water when raised. It gets lowered a few times a day for trains to pass over the canal. I saw it lowered and knew a train would pass by me in a few minutes since the railroad tracks run along the canal. I was at the Bourne Recreation Area, which sits directly under the Bourne Bridge. I had a minute or two to decide how I wanted to film the passing train. I wanted a cool perspective, but also didn’t want to risk damaging my phone or myself. I settled on filming from the platform where people could board the train. I set up my phone on a tripod in the perfect position and waited. I knew the train wasn’t stopping, so I didn’t have to worry about the conductor getting mad that I was faking them out like I was going to be a passenger. The train approached, blew its horn, and passed by. It rumbled with such force that the phone shook as it passed, maybe less than 10 feet away. The video was great except that I thought it was going to be a big half-mile-long train, but it was a little stubby one with maybe four cars. Oh well, I was lucky just to be there in that moment, so I’ll take it.


9. This week, for the first time probably since I was a kid, I had cream soda. Well, actually, diet cream soda, but still. Have you ever had something that you loved as a kid but got away from it? Foods, drinks, activities, maybe music? I can’t remember when I stopped drinking cream soda as a kid, but obviously, it happened at some point. I was at the store and walked past it, and wondered when the last time was that I had had it. Weird how something can be your favorite and then just not. I’m sure as a kid, I loved the sugar of the regular cream soda. I can’t do that anymore; it makes me feel terrible. That being said, the diet cream soda was good, so I’ll be making it a part of my drink rotation going forward. Who knows what the next thing from my youth will be that I bring back? My guess is something to do with a flannel shirt.


10. I constantly have to shake my head at the people who complain about a certain social media site from that site. Like, if you go on Twitter(X) and constantly mention how you hate it there, you know what you do? Delete your account and go somewhere else. It’s not hard. You didn’t sign a lifetime contract to remain miserable on a site you hate. You know how I know this? Because I deleted my Twitter account when I got sick of how much of a cesspool it was filled with toxic scum and bots. It’s the same with a job. Unless you’re under contract, you are not being forced to work somewhere you hate and are miserable. Just remember, you are not obligated to be on social media. I grew up in the 90s without it. If tomorrow all social media sites vanished, it would take a little while to get used to, but I’d be fine. It’s mostly just people who are so desperate for attention that they post how they hate whatever site they’re on for engagement farming.


11. Few things are more fun for me than exploring the lesser-known and hidden pathways of the Outer Cape in the offseason. Venturing out to Wellfleet and Truro in March allows you almost total freedom to go wherever and see whatever there is to see. I hiked through the downed branches to visit the Jenny Lind Tower located in the woods near the old North Truro Air Force Base. I wanted some video of the AFB, so I headed toward the chain link fence behind the tower that surrounded the base property. I thought I might be able to follow the fence back to my car. It was mostly true. I got some footage on my way, but also had to bushwhack through a lot of brush. I had a chance to slide under a gap in the fence to get onto the base property. After being sliced and diced by broken branches and thorns, though, I figured with my luck, I’d end up gutting myself sneaking under the fence. Despite it being March, I ended up with several small ticks on my pants. Thankfully, I noticed one and did a more thorough check. Those dang things are going to be a menace this summer.

12. Another adventure from the same trip was something on my ever-dwindling Cape Cod bucket list. Close to a beach in Truro, there is an FAA beacon on a hill. I am being intentionally vague about its whereabouts since I don’t want to get anyone in trouble if they go to seek it out. I ventured through a small but worn path that led up the hill and eventually to a clearing where the beacon stands. I had noticed the location on Google Maps and had wondered for years how to get there. I decided during this trip to wander the parking lot of the beach, looking for a path. Once I found it, I made my way uphill, making sure to stay low and as inconspicuous as I could. I made sure that when I emerged from the clearing, for as much footage as I got, I stayed far enough away. You don’t want to get too close, just in case cameras are rolling. Even if you just take photos from a distance, staying on the edge of the clearing is the wisest move. Getting to see this FAA beacon checks off one of the very few places I have yet to see on Cape Cod. The biggest one remaining is Monomoy Lighthouse in Chatham. We’ll see about making that happen.

Initial Impressions 2.0 Blog: The Best of 2025

Welcome in to the 2025 year in review for the Initial Impressions 2.0 blog. For this post I went through all of the blogs written in 2025 and whittled down hundreds of entries into the Top 20 funniest or most foolish things I saw or did over the preceding 12 months. I hope you enjoy this look back at the year that was. A video version of this post is available for members over on Patreon!

1. One trip, 3 foolish encounters. First, on my way to the gym, I got a white bucket stuck under my car. I thought it wasn’t large enough so I could easily pass over it. Nope. I could hear it scraping the road, so I found myself intentionally driving into potholes to try to dislodge it. Eventually, this worked. After the gym, I walked to the supermarket at the other end of the parking lot. Inside I saw the funniest fake eyebrows ever. I gasped in shock and had to run away to laugh. It was as if this woman had taken a Sharpie and drawn two straight lines in the middle of her forehead. Was there nobody around to help her? Or stop her? Finally, on the way back to my car, a man who looked like he was hiding a keg under his shirt remarked about my wearing shorts. I didn’t care enough, and he didn’t look smart enough, to explain how I was at the gym a few doors down. I just smiled and kept walking thinking about how that guy probably looks in the mirror and thinks he has a 6-pack instead of the keg. (#51)

2. At my work, we have something called compression therapy. You get wrapped up in these pads that squeeze your body, stimulating the lymphatic system to get moving. It is great for your overall health. When you do this therapy, it is 30 minutes, you relax, and then when the session is done, someone comes in and unwraps you. If somebody has done the compression therapy enough, they might feel comfortable enough to start unwrapping themselves to help. A person was doing that before I got in the room to assist them. It all seemed fine until I went back in to clean off the pads. It was then that I noticed the splatters of blood on different parts of the various pads. It looked like a crime scene. The worst part was that there was another person set to use the compression therapy, and as I wrapped them in the pads, I kept noticing other drops of blood I had missed. I had no poker face and was horrified.(#57)

3. I have a skill, I guess, for being able to have and remember vivid dreams. I’ve written several short stories based on dreams I’ve had. This week was not a story-type dream, but it was memorable. I dreamed I was walking around a mall in California. I was fascinated by the food court, more specifically, a Cape Cod themed burger place. While I stood outside of this restaurant, I heard a voice say my name. It was famed comedian Norm MacDonald, one of my favorites, who sadly passed in 2021. He said, ‘Hey I like that restaurant too.’ Then he gave me a classic Norm one-liner. He said ‘you know what the best part about it is? You can actually go inside.’ Meaning that he was making fun of me, standing and staring longingly at this restaurant from the outside when I could actually go in and eat. It was pretty funny.(#59)

4. Nobody could have told me that one day I’d be driving down Commercial Street in Provincetown in the backseat while in the passenger’s seat, Frankenstein’s monster growled and yelled at people on the sidewalk. The uncle of one of the crew in the film dressed as the famed monster for a scene. We had to drive him to the location, though. As soon as the first woman spotted him and mouthed ‘Oh my God’ it was over. Frankenstein spent the entire drive shouting and growling at people much to my amusement. Too bad it was a short drive, although the wackiness continued on location. I’m sure all of the people driving by were wondering why Frankenstein was attacking people. Or maybe not, it could have been just another day in Provincetown.(#61)

5. Shenanigans seem to follow me wherever I go. I went out for an afternoon adventure after it had rained. After a lot of driving, I made my way to a place in Sandwich called Scorton Creek. It’s loaded with trails, marshes, a few abandoned shacks, and it crosses the railroad tracks. I couldn’t find the old abandoned shack I had found years ago. I made my way to the tracks to make better time back into the woods. I filmed a quick video joking that I was living the movie Stand By Me as I walked the tracks. I said if I saw a train, I’d have to dive off the tracks. 30 seconds later, the dinner train comes rolling down the tracks. I was in no man’s land. I didn’t know how fast the train was going, and I was at the creek so I was stuck. I had to scale down the embankment and watch as the train passed by, basically right overhead. I don’t think any of the people on the train saw the crazy guy at the bottom of the embankment, but you can be the judge, as I made a video about me jinxing myself.(#73)



6. Speaking of phony outrage. While in the deli section of a grocery store, an old man with a big white beard and a straw hat on was asking about getting some bologna sliced. The employee was explaining the differences between types of bologna, and for some reason, this triggered this old man. He started yelling about how not all bologna is the same. To his credit, the employee stayed calm. When the old man said he didn’t know anything, the employee calmly shot back and said he must know something since he’d been working at the same place for 19 years. The angry old man walked away. Another customer made it a point to sympathize with the deli employee and said some things loud enough that the angry old man could hear. I stayed nearby for a few moments just in case there was a second act to the bologna drama.(#74)

7. My sprained ankle happened 3 weeks ago and is getting closer to being healed. Of course, that meant it was time for me to inflict another injury on myself. This time I decided to create a hand sandwich and use the steel of the reverse hyper machine at work as the bread. In trying to adjust the flat pad for a future client, I mistook where my hand was. Instead of having it braced with my left hand, I had nothing. When the arm let go it pancaked my right hand between two steel bars. I had a client on the treadmill and was doing this while she walked to save time. I gasped but didn’t scream. My boss walked in a minute later, and I was basically hyperventilating. I was sure my hand was broken. Luckily, there was a less than one-inch gap between the steel bars so my hand wasn’t completely crushed, just mostly. There was lots of ice, lots of ibuprofen, and lots of bruising and swelling. Oh, and also it was a Monday, and I had a super busy day training clients, so it was a bundle of laughs.(#75)

8. One of the funniest and most random events occurred at my day job. A new patient came in for their appointment. In their hands, they were carrying something odd. It turned out to be a dirty pair of white boxer shorts. They said that they found them outside and that even though they weren’t any of ours, they figured we didn’t want them to be seen by other patients. So this person picked up someone else’s dirty underwear with their bare hands and brought them into our office. To top it off, they then calmly placed them on the front desk next to our office manager. They didn’t even throw them away. They basically presented dirty underwear as a gift to signal their arrival in our office. Our office manager later said that she had to use another piece of trash from the can to sweep the underwear into the can. She then thoroughly sanitized the desk. The wild thing is that the new patient was really nice, and I truly think they believed they were doing something nice.(#78)

9. My car is over 150K miles, so keeping up on the basic maintenance is very important. My goal is for it to get to at least 250K. This week, it was time for an oil change. I usually go to Jiffy Lube since it’s quick and convenient. I mean, they do try to upsell you on a lot of stuff, but that’s kind of par for the course. This time was interesting. Everything seemed to be going well until one of the crew told me they couldn’t get my oil filter off. They said they tried a few ways, but it was rounded, and nothing could get it off. What? Is that a thing? They told me I’d need to go to the dealership, and they could change it. The irony is that the last few times I’ve gotten my oil changed, it’s been at the same Jiffy Lube. Getting the oil filter off has never been a problem. So what changed this time? I have no idea, but they ended up changing the oil and doing a few other things and not charging me. That was nice. Unfortunately, this means I have to do another trip for routine maintenance, and a dealership at that. You can smell the attempted upselling from a mile away.(#80)

10. On Sundays, I like to go out, if the weather is good, and listen to a favorite podcast. I have a few spots I tend to visit that are quieter, shady, and relaxing. The podcast I listen to is usually about 2 hours. Keep that in mind. I went to a recreation area and parked in a nice shady spot, and had my windows down. It was perfect weather. The local bike trail goes through this recreation area, so there was a string of riders and runners going by. Also, there was this one guy. When I first got there, he was standing by the bathrooms. He had a backpack and a sweatshirt on and looked a bit scrubby. Within minutes of my parking, he walked over and sat at a picnic table right in my line of sight. He was eating chips and just staring mostly at people going by, but also down at the ground. I’d say within an hour of my sitting there, he had put his head down on the table and seemed to have fallen asleep. How do I know he was asleep? Well, because he left his bag of chips on the ground, and a hungry squirrel was able to come right up to him and start ransacking the bag. Sure, if the guy moved, the squirrel would scamper off, but it would inevitably come back and go for the chips. I honestly thought it was going to try to get into the guy’s backpack, or bite his ankle, which would have been even funnier. In all, I stayed in that parking lot for over an hour and a half, and when I left, that guy was still face down on the picnic table. Even starting my car didn’t wake him.(#81)

11. I might have witnessed the beginning of the next big rock band. I was in a grocery store where there is a guy who works nights. He’s got to be around 20, but he stocks shelves and tends to scream/sing songs as he does it. This is complete with a denim jacket with various metal band logos stitched into it, and copious B.O. that seeps through said jacket. On this visit, I saw him meet another man, probably early 30s, in the soda aisle. They began discussing the instruments they played and planned to chat later. The employee was so excited by the prospect of starting a band that when he didn’t have a pen and paper to give his number (he did so because the other guy said his phone was in his car), he basically ran to the service desk to get one. So if these two form a band that becomes the next Iron Maiden, I’ll know I was there to see the beginning of their journey. Maybe I’ll be in the biopic!(#82)

12. It had been a while since I had walked the expansive tidal flats at low tide on Cape Cod. It had been even longer since I did it at sunset. Luckily, a pair of friends were down on the Cape and wanted to walk the beach before heading home. The tide was low enough, but there were still some treacherous spots. This came into play as I foolishly decided to keep my shoes on rather than leave them in the car. I did a good job for a little while keeping them dry. That all changed when I decided to perform a long jump to cross a small river where the tide was still going out. I managed to clear the river, which was a win, but a few minutes later, I felt my lower back locking up, so I knew I didn’t escape unscathed. After that, it was inevitable that my shoes would get soaked since I was having trouble with my back. So yeah, injured back, soaked shoes, getting older sucks, but hey, the sunset was worth it.(#84)


13. There are some things you can’t unsee. When stopping at the grocery store, I was ‘lucky’ enough to get to see a man who was a good 150 pounds overweight sitting at an outdoor picnic table. You know the ones that are supposed to be for sale, not for hanging out at? Anyway, the reason this was so disturbing was the fact that he had no shirt on. Yup, sitting outside of a busy supermarket with families going inside just showing off his pasty white fat body. He looked like a snowman covered in dollar-store tattoos. I think the grossed-out looks got to him, as within a minute, he was putting his shirt back on. Too late, Frosty, like I said, there are some things you can’t unsee.(#84)

14. On a curvy road not far from me, there is a speed detector. You know, one of those contraptions that shows the speed limit on that road and then your speed, typically in a large digital font. Usually, these detectors flash your speed, and then if you go over the limit, your speed either flashes or changes color, or something like that. This particular detector does neither. Once you go above the speed limit, your speed disappears and is replaced with a ‘slow down.’ If you keep going, it is then replaced by a pair of eyes with angry eyebrows. Seriously? If you got caught speeding on this road, what are they going to tell you as far as how fast you were going? ‘Sorry sir you were going ‘angry eyebrows’ in a 25 zone.’ So stupid.(#85)

15. Squirrels are definitely one of the most annoying animals there are. Not just with how they run into the road with no regard for the vehicles barreling down on them. It’s also how they are nonstop eating machines who don’t care how they get what they want. Don’t get me wrong, it can make for some funny scenes, which is what happened this week. My sister Ashley has spent years trying to grow sunflowers, which are her favorite. This year, she has finally had a few make it. This includes one flower that is nearly 8 feet tall. Apparently, this was too enticing for a squirrel that climbed up to the top and was sitting on the flower, tearing the seeds out and dropping the petals to the ground. Eventually, we were able to scare it off, but it was too late. It’s still standing, and the bees still like it, but the giant sunflower has seen better days.(#86)



16. I am glad that I have a vivid and strong imagination. That means that I can see a situation clearly, so I don’t need to act it out in reality. What am I talking about? While out for a walk, I was going through one of my favorite neighborhoods. A few hundred feet ahead, coming toward me, was a single man walking four good-sized dogs. I could see it was a battle for him to control them. All I could think of was what if something startled or excited the dogs? I could envision them dragging this poor guy all over the street, or tripping him as he goes flying into the air. It would have been a great comedy sketch. I was smiling widely as I passed without incident and waved. Lucky for him, I have that imagination and a little self-control.(#90)

17. This is a bit of the weird and random stuff that I caused myself. In New England, we got a massive Nor’easter for a good 3 days. In all, we ended up with something like 4 inches of rain in total. I was out for a drive surveying the damage when I got an idea. My car is white; therefore, it is almost always dirty. With the rain still falling at a good clip, I got an idea. I decided to stop at the store and buy some cleaning wipes and paper towels. You see where this is going. Since there was nobody else on the roads, I stopped at a park. I then proceeded to ‘wash’ my car using the cleaning wipes, rain, and paper towels. I ended up with a pile of wet garbage that I had to throw away. It wasn’t as sparkly clean, like a proper car wash would have given, but all in all, my car looked much better after that. Laugh if you want, I know I did as I realized how crazy I looked. I would have died if someone pulled up and saw this idiot using a roll of paper towels to ‘clean’ his car.(#91)

18. On a break from working, I grabbed my phone, selfie stick, and my yearly mini-pumpkin and headed to get some photos. I ended up at the Cape Cod Canal and started wandering around the grounds snapping photos. Everything was normal until I started walking along the water, headed for a marina. I saw a guy fishing, and he gave me the side-eye. At first, he joked to me that my photo would be better if his ‘fat old ass’ wasn’t in the way. I smiled, and he said ‘Hey it’s good to see you again.’ Now I was confused and asked, ‘really?’ The guy said, ‘Yeah it’s me Shawn. I saw you here before not that long ago.’ I told him it definitely wasn’t me, but I was polite and wished him a good evening before going for more photos. No idea who that guy was, or more importantly, the guy who looks like me who is creeping around the canal. Maybe it’s old me from the future coming back to take photos at the canal.(#92)

One of the photos I took along the canal that day.

19. Sometimes I go seeking an adventure, other times the adventure finds me. I was out with my pumpkin, grabbing some Halloween-themed photos at an old mansion. It’s on a quiet road near the beach, but is almost always deserted, which allows me to take my time setting up shots. I parked in a lot that is fairly hidden. I thought there might be a path so I could walk to the beach without having to get on the actual road. There wasn’t one, but there was a smaller overgrown parking lot, which I took a photo of so that I might be able to find out what it was used for. On the way back to my car, I spotted what looked like a decaying house about 50 or so feet back in the woods. Obviously, I needed to go check it out. Unfortunately, there was no path to it. This meant that I needed to bushwhack my way through the trees and brush to get there. It was a mess inside. There was a lot of graffiti, as would be expected. There were also holes in the floor exposing water underneath. Luckily, I caught myself before falling through the floor, but it was close. It’s pretty rundown and a little dangerous, so I don’t recommend going inside. I got a lot of photos and videos, which I put together into a little Halloween adventure film so that you can see what it’s like.(#92)



20. I had two choices. I could do some content work in the morning and go for a walk in the afternoon, or vice versa. I chose the latter. I figured if I didn’t get up and out in the morning, I might not go at all. Well, I chose wrong. At first, my walk was fine. It was cloudy but mild. Great. So I decided to do a little longer loop around a new extension of the bike trail near where I live. As I went down that way, it began to drizzle. Still, no big deal. Then, there I was, nearly 3 miles from my car when the skies opened up. It started pouring rain. I had to take my headphones and shove them in my shirt so they wouldn’t get ruined. I was walking the bike trail in the rain for over 45 minutes, totally soaked. It ended up becoming a fun adventure, mostly because I had no other choice. By the time I got back to where I parked, it was like I had gone swimming in my clothes. Oh, and of course, when I got back to my car, the rain stopped. The afternoon was sunny and 60 degrees, by the way. Wicked boo.(#94)

In My Footsteps Podcast Episode 216: When My Grandfather's Ghost Visited Me, A Disturbing Railroad Safety Short Film, Best 1960s Horror Movies(10-15-2025)

 

The stories of when my grandfather's spirit visited me as a child. A disturbing educational short film about railroad safety. Some of the best horror movies from the 1960s.

Episode 216 brings all of the spooky from fiction, to truth, to somewhere in between.

It begins with an educational short film, sure to give kids nightmares. The Finishing Line, released in 1977, is a British film that highlights the dangers of playing on railroad tracks. How do they do this? By turning it into a disturbing Game of Thrones style massacre where the players don't win, they just survive.

We move on to love from beyond the grave. As a small child, I was visited on numerous occasions by the spirit of my grandfather, who had passed more than a decade before I was born. It was a part of a creepy but all too real time in my family. Now I share all of the details from all of the stories straight from the mouths of those who were there.

The new Top 5 looks at some of the best horror movies from the 1960s. These are some of the most influential and highly regarded films ever. Which is your favorite?

There is, of course, a brand new This Week In History and Time Capsule centered around the very first World Series in Major League Baseball.

You can support my work by becoming a member on Patreon. Or you can Buy Me A Coffee!

Helpful Links from this Episode

• Buy My New Book, In Their Footsteps!
• Searching For the Lady of the Dunes True Crime Book
• Hooked By Kiwi - Etsy.com
• DJ Williams Music
• KeeKee's Cape Cod Kitchen
• Christopher Setterlund.com
• Cape Cod Living - Zazzle Store
• Subscribe on YouTube!
• Initial Impressions 2.0 Blog
• Webcam Weekly Wrapup Podcast
• CJSetterlundPhotos on Etsy
• The Finishing Line Short Film

Listen to Episode 215 here

When Cape Cod Became A Vacation Destination: 1873-1900

    Today, in the 2020s, Cape Cod is a major destination for travelers looking to escape the grind of the city. Exchanging smog for salty air, bustling sidewalks for windy country roads, and the rat race for relaxation.

    It has been this way for generations. Cape Cod is relatively docile during the colder months and swells to the point of bursting during the summer. However, it was not always that way.

    Long ago Cape Cod was rustic, virtually deserted except for the hearty locals that plied their trades along the seashore and dirt roads. Then something changed. Well, two things.

    First came the classic novel Cape Cod written by Henry David Thoreau. Released in 1865 it gave a first-person romantic view of the sandy peninsula so few knew about. It gave people nearby a reason to pay Cape Cod a visit.

    Second, the Old Colony Railroad finished its expansion into Provincetown. Reaching the end of Cape Cod in July 1873 the railroad now gave people from farther away access to the places that Thoreau’s book had described less than a decade prior.

    These two things together were the genesis of creating a vacation destination. It did not take long for railroad cars filled with travelers to take the ride from near and far. They stopped in Sandwich, Falmouth, Chatham, Provincetown et all. These people poured into the villages in search of Thoreau’s Cape Cod. So what was it like to be a tourist on Cape Cod in the early days? We will take a look at a vacation on Cape Cod in the late 19th century.

Provincetown railroad station c. 1900(Picryl.com)

    The arrival of the Old Colony railroad in Provincetown, Massachusetts, in 1873 was a major turning point in Cape Cod's transformation from a working maritime region to a sought-after summer tourist destination.

    The line connected directly to Boston, making travel quicker, cheaper, and more accessible—especially for the growing middle class. With the arrival of the train, Cape Cod began to shift away from industries like whaling, fishing, and saltworks—many of which were already declining—and embraced the growing economy of leisure and summer escape.

    Once arriving via rail, one could take a horse and carriage to a nearby resort, hotel, or cottage. It was far different back then. There was no such thing as a hotel chain. It was single-location hotels and/or resorts. The average room at a lodging establishment would run you anywhere from $1($26 in 2025) a night in the early 1870s to about $6($229 in 2025) a night in the late 1890s.

    Interestingly there were countless boarding houses and seaside inns that began popping up. These were similar to today’s bed and breakfast locations. Also, it was rare to stay for a night. Typically the average visitor would plan for a week, month, or even the entire summer.

    Some of the popular hotels one could have stayed at on Cape Cod during those latter days of the 1800s included the Cape’s first resort, Hotel Chatham, which opened in the summer of 1890. There was The Globe Hotel in Barnstable Village which opened in 1827. It would later become the Barnstable Inn and remain in business until 1972.

    Visitors could also have stayed at the extravagant Chequesset Inn in Wellfleet. Built in 1886 this resort hotel on a wharf over the water at Mayo Beach was unlike anything else on Cape Cod. The Central House in Sandwich, which opened in the mid-18th century, was a popular spot and later became the Daniel Webster Inn. The Santuit House in Cotuit was one of the original hotels on the peninsula, opening in 1860. There was also the iconic East Bay Lodge in Osterville, which opened its doors in 1886 and remained in business for over a century.

    Of course, if one was looking to walk in Thoreau’s footsteps, they could literally stay where he stayed. The Highland House in Truro, formerly the Small Farm, opened as a boarding house proper in the late 1860s after the release of Thoreau’s Cape Cod.

    If resorts or hotels weren’t desired there were also normal everyday people who would open up spare rooms in their homes to travelers. It is not too unlike today’s AirBnb company. The local residents began catering to visitors with services like horseback tours, fishing charters, beach outings, and homemade meals. It was an economic boom for Cape Cod.

Chequesset Inn in Wellfleet

    It didn’t take long before wealthy Bostonians began summering on Cape Cod, often for weeks or months. Over time, the seaside towns that had once been tightly knit fishing communities opened up to a seasonal rhythm of visitors that is commonplace today. Cape Cod was praised for its “invigorating sea air” as a remedy for the city’s industrial ills, especially for treating "nervous ailments" and "weak lungs."

    In one article from the Boston Globe in August 1885 Cape Cod was said to have three “productions.” They were men of ability, pretty girls, and undisputed excellence of its cranberries. It is no wonder people near and far began flocking to the “right arm of Massachusetts.”

    The beautiful scenery was similar to what one sees today on Cape Cod. However, the amenities were far different. It was top-of-the-line for the time. That being said, electricity was very rare, even in the late 1890s. Rooms were lit by oil lamps. Also, indoor plumbing was a luxury; you would have to make do with a chamber pot or outhouse in most locations.  

    Meals at a hotel, resort, or boarding house were formal affairs, often with fresh seafood, local vegetables, and multiple courses. Think clam chowder, broiled fish, blueberry pies, and pitchers of lemonade or ginger beer.

    If you wanted to venture out on the town to get a meal there weren’t restaurants as you’d think of them today. Typically, taverns doubled as ‘eating houses’ so you could enjoy a drink and a meal. The dress code even at casual ‘chowder houses’ was fancy by today’s standards. Men wore jackets, often even hats, to the table. Women wore dresses with high collars and long sleeves—even in summer. Once inside and seated, you were expected to sit up straight and speak quietly.

    The fare was classic New England. You could get clam chowder, baked or steamed fish, or chicken. There were vegetable choices like beets or stewed tomatoes. Desserts consisted of various puddings and pies. One thing you wouldn’t be expected to do while eating out was tipping, although that practice was becoming more common at the turn of the 20th century.

What a dinig room of a resort might have looked like.(Bing AI)

    Once settled in at the desired location on Cape Cod there was no lack of activities to partake in and attractions to visit.

    Early risers could enjoy the sunrise and a walk on the beach or along quaint village lanes. There was shell collecting, sketching or journaling, and excursions to nearby sites. These were via carriage or wagon.

    If you didn’t like those options, there was always the new mode of transportation called a bicycle. It was invented back in 1817 by German inventor Karl von Drais. Innovations in safety led to bicycles being widely available starting in the 1880s. 

    Be aware though that a bicycle would cost a pretty penny. For example, in 1896, a Monarch brand bike on the low end would cost you $40($1,500 in 2025). A model with all of the bells and whistles could run you upwards of $100($3,700 in 2025).

    

    Heading out and about on Cape Cod in the early years of its life as a vacation destination would bring you to many incredible sites. What you saw depended on where you stayed. In those days, you typically did not venture a great distance from your hotel as a horse-drawn carriage or a bicycle could only realistically go so far.

    One thing that could be seen virtually anywhere was the ocean. Fishing and swimming, or bathing as it was referred to then, were the two most popular activities during a summer jaunt to Cape Cod.

    In Falmouth, one could take a dip at Silver Beach; it wasn’t ‘Old’ yet. In Chatham, it was Harding’s Beach. Orleans had Nauset Beach. The Outer Beach was the name for the stretch of sand between Coast Guard Beach in Eastham and Race Point in Provincetown. One could also partake in the growing activity of pleasure boating, especially in the 1890s.

The remains of Billingsgate Island in 1890(Picryl.com)

    Perhaps you could take a boat to the tip of Monomoy Island in Chatham. A popular activity was taking a boat across Provincetown Harbor to Long Point, something that is still enjoyed to this day. Long Point went from a bustling community in the 1850s to virtually deserted by the late 1870s. Many of the homes that once dotted the ‘fingertip’ of Cape Cod were floated across and assimilated into Provincetown proper.

    Boats at the time would have no issue traversing Vineyard Sound to get from Woods Hole to the island of Martha’s Vineyard as it was roughly five miles. Nantucket from Hyannis might be a little more difficult, being thirty miles offshore. Another option was to sail out from Eastham or Wellfleet on Cape Cod Bay to Billingsgate Island. Though erosion was becoming an issue, there was still a thriving community on the shrinking island well into the 1880s.

    Lighthouses dotted the shore to keep boats safe. The Outer Beach of Cape Cod is seen as one of the most treacherous stretches of ocean on the east coast of the United States. In the early days of Cape Cod tourism the cargo ship Whittaker wrecked off of North Truro in 1876. More famously, the steamship Portland wrecked off of North Truro in 1898.

    Along the eastern shore of Cape Cod, one would notice the Chatham Twin Lights, which were erected in 1877. Further up the coast sat the Three Sisters of Nauset. The diminutive wooden towers were built in 1892 to replace brick towers that were allowed to be claimed by the sea. Continuing north you’d find Cape Cod’s oldest lighthouse, Highland Light in Truro. The different number of lighthouses at the three stations was intentional so that seafarers would have a better idea of where they were.

The Three Sisters of Nauset(Picryl.com)

    There were no movie theaters yet but one could find entertainment nonetheless. The resorts where you stayed often had parlor concerts, dances, and lectures. Most towns had bandstands at the green where concerts were held several evenings a week.

    If you were staying in Truro you would be lucky enough to be close to Cape Cod’s first golf course. Founded in 1892, Highland Links is a nine-hole course that to this day is kept as close to the Scottish tradition as possible. Spectacular views are mixed with natural hazards like Scotch broom and wild cranberry. Back then though the greens were made of sand rather than grass.

    Shopping was a popular pastime in those early days of Cape Cod vacations. However, it was a different experience. There were no department stores yet on Cape Cod. Jordan Marsh was a big deal, but trips to Boston in the late 1800s were few and far between. On the Cape visitors would check out general stores.

    The building itself was typically a weathered clapboard with a wooden sign hanging out front — maybe it just said something like “Dry Goods & Provisions.” The store might be creaky-floored, dimly lit with oil lamps or early gas lighting, and smelling of a mix of coffee, kerosene, tobacco, spices, and wood. Shelves were packed, floor to ceiling, and everything felt a bit cluttered but cozy.

    Don’t let the aesthetic sway you though; one could get virtually anything you needed on your vacation inside the general store’s walls. This included dry goods like flour, sugar, salt, coffee, beans, rice, and molasses. There were tools & hardware like nails, rope, lanterns, and fishing gear. You could get clothing & fabric like bolts of calico, buttons, socks, hats, and even corsets. There were household needs like soap, candles, kerosene, matches, and enamelware. Don’t forget medicines, local produce or meat, and even luxury items like imported tea. Maybe you could even have a Coca-Cola, which came around in 1886.

    Shopping was also different back then because you had to ask the keeper for what you wanted. There was credit and bartering as options for payment. General stores were also social hubs for the locals.


    Popular general stores from the time included the Hallet store on the Old Kings Highway in Yarmouth Port which opened in 1889. The Knowles General Store in Brewster opened in 1866 and is still in operation today as the Brewster General Store. Brackett’s store in Eastham was supplying the Outer Cape from its opening in 1850. Centerville also had a Hallet’s general store. This one opened in 1856 and is still in operation today as the 1856 Country Store.

Brackett's General Store in Eastham

    Those spending their vacation time on Cape Cod had no shortage of wonderful attractions to enjoy. The Boston and Sandwich Glass Company in Sandwich was one of the largest businesses on Cape Cod. One could tour the glassworks up until its closure in 1888. 

    In Provincetown, a popular spot was the site of the Pilgrims' first landing. Located at the end of Commercial Street, you’d see their landing site, but this was in the days before the Pilgrim Monument, or even the West End Breakwater, which you can walk across to Long Point.

    In Yarmouth, you might gaze upon the Farris Windmill, which now resides in Michigan. In Wellfleet, you might spend the day at the beach in the shadow of Mayo Beach Light, which now resides in California. In Woods Hole, you might be unlucky and be downwind of the Pacific Guano Company. The fertilizer made at this factory was comprised of bird guano, sulfur from Italy, and various small local fish. It went bankrupt in 1889.

    In those early tourism days between 1875 and 1900, Cape Cod was known for fishing and cranberries. Many visitors partook in those activities or at least watched them. Virtually every town on the Cape had one or several working cranberry bogs, with upwards of 400,000 barrels being harvested annually. They also had no shortage of fishermen, rustic shacks, and boats.

(Boston Public Library)

    Spending a week, month, or entire summer on Cape Cod might make you the envy of your family and friends. You could further rub it in by sending them letters or postcards at the post office or telegraph office in town. Telephones were still a novelty in the 1880s and 1890s. This meant that even if you had access to one, the person you wanted to call might not.

    Similar to how life is on Cape Cod in the present day when Labor Day, first celebrated in 1882, approached it was time for many businesses to close up shop for the long winter. The railroad took the visitors back to where they had come from. Whether Boston, Providence, New York, or any smaller village in between, those who spent time on Cape Cod left with cherished memories, and perhaps a few souvenirs.

    As the 20th century dawned there was much to be excited about as far as tourism on Cape Cod. Electricity, telephones, and automobiles all became common. Guglielmo Marconi made wireless communication easier paving the way for radio. This made it possible to promote Cape Cod to the United States as a whole.

    It was off to the races. Kids who visited Cape Cod in the early days returned with their kids. Generations of families have made the Cape part of their summer ritual.

    Some things have changed. Cranberries and fishing are no longer the main enterprises. The roads are paved and named. Retail chains are as prevalent as mom-and-pop shops. However, some things remain the same from the late 1800s. The dunes create a magical landscape. Lighthouses still shepherd vessels safely by. Although there is a canal separating Cape Cod from the mainland, there is still a vibe that cannot be quantified when one arrives.

    Since the arrival of the Old Colony Railroad in Provincetown in the summer of 1873 made it more accessible, Cape Cod has been a vacation destination. The world feels smaller in the 2020s yet when arriving on Cape Cod, it is possible to find that same aura that those who first visited there must have felt. It cannot be explained. It must simply be experienced.

A classic Cape Cod scene.(Boston Public Library)