In the News: The ‘Other Cape’ on Boston’s North Shore Has Gorgeous Mansions, Overstuffed Lobster Rolls, and No Crowds

June 10, 2022 / Art and Music, Food and Drink, Good to Know, History/Maritime, In The News, Outdoor Adventures, Things to Do & See

Excerpt from The ‘Other Cape’ on Boston’s North Shore Has Gorgeous Mansions, Overstuffed Lobster Rolls, and No Crowds| Written by Robin Catalano | Published by Travel + Leisure

The North Shore of Massachusetts may have a lower profile than other parts of New England — but that, according to one travel writer, is the whole point.

Most summer visitors to coastal Massachusetts flock to Cape Cod, a quintessential maritime region that has lured politicians and celebrities for more than a century. But in high season, it’s not unusual to wait in standstill traffic for an hour or more just to cross the Sagamore Bridge from the mainland. For a native New Englander like me, the easygoing alternative is Cape Ann (often called the “Other Cape”) and the surrounding North Shore, which includes a dozen or so towns stretching from Boston to the New Hampshire border. Over the years, I’ve frequently escaped to the North Shore’s boulder-strewn beaches and small harbors; here, my recipe for a perfect stay, which I road-tested one gorgeous July weekend.

Friday

I began in Gloucester, this country’s oldest seaport, about an hour’s drive north of Boston. In 1606, French explorer Samuel de Champlain arrived in what is now Gloucester Harbor, which he called “le beau port.” English colonists followed, and by the early 19th century the area’s fishing and shipbuilding industries were flourishing. The Cape Ann Museum (capeannmuseum.org) documents this maritime history and also houses an impressive collection by Luminist painters like Winslow Homer and Edward Hopper, who explored the effects of light on the coastal landscape. (The light is said to be uniquely ethereal because of the granite’s reflective properties.)

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