Now that we have our sweet little rescue pup Rosie, it's a no-brainer to head down on the first warm days of spring!

Finally after months of negative degree temps, extreme high wind storms and a very yucky start to March, yesterday we finally woke up to the birds chirping and the sun shining warmly through the windows.

We already knew that we would be heading down to meet with our My Fishing Cape Cod TV title sponsor the Goose Hummock in Orleans, but with weather like this, we needed to make a full day out of the ride down Cape.

The Snowy Owl

Our first stop on our way to the Goose Hummock was at one of our favorite coffee roasters on Cape Cod, the Snowy Owl in Brewster.

The Snowy Owl is right on route 6A, with indoor and outdoor places to sit and enjoy their amazing coffee and pastries.  My go-to when I'm there is an iced coffee which is served in a really cool insulated cup. I also ordered one of their warmed-up spinach and cheddar scones (pictured below on the left), and Ryan ordered a blueberry scone that was also to die for.  

Basically anything you get here is going to be amazing, and my stomach grumbles just thinking about those scones.

The Snowy Owl is a local coffee shop that roasts their very own coffee which you can even purchase to make at home!  Attached to the Snowy Owl is another really cool shop that sells herbs, local soaps and other handmade goodies.

The whole vibe of the place is wonderful - the staff is friendly, the atmosphere is cozy and the location couldn't be better.  It was even chosen as the most beautiful coffee shop in Massachusetts by Architectural Digest!  The shop was made with 200-year old reclaimed barn wood and sells locally made crafts along with bags of their coffee to take home.  

After a delicious pit stop there, we headed 10 minutes down the road to the Goose Hummock.  I dropped Ryan off for a meeting with Team Goose, while Rosie and I went on our merry way to explore Fort Hill in Eastham.

My 5 Minutes at Fort Hill
in Eastham

I was so excited to take Rosie to Fort Hill.  I had read all about it in The Nature of Cape Cod which is a wonderful book about all the different hiking, walking, birdwatching and conservation areas on the Cape.  

The walk sounded glorious, especially on a sunny 55 degree Wednesday in March. I drove by the historic Captain Penniman House (the one with the big whale jaw in the front yard) and pulled into the parking lot of Fort Hill.  

If you've never been to Fort Hill, it's definitely worth a quick stop for the view. There's a two mile hike that takes you along the marsh, and that's what I was planning on, until I saw a huge sign that read No Pets and even showed a picture of a person walking a dog on a leash with a big X through it.

What a letdown.

Poor Rosie was whimpering in the backseat and it was really quite a sad scene.  The poor animal just wanted to sniff some rocks and grass!

Hiking the Kettle Ponds

Once Ryan's meeting with the Goose was over, I swung by the shop and picked him up. Ryan had another meeting to attend in the afternoon, however I was determined to find somewhere nearby to take Rosie for a walk.

Fortunately for Rosie, we discovered that Nickerson State Park in Brewster allows dogs! The fact that the park is dog friendly, along with the pristine and gorgeous kettle ponds, makes Nickerson one my new favorite place to hike on Cape Cod.

As you can see, Nickerson is a gorgeous freshwater paradise and a wonderful place to spend some time outdoors.

Despite having to be carried over a large downed tree!

I think we all need to see a closeup of that face.

Poor thing!  Life's not easy with four legs sometimes.  

But don't worry because Rosie loves Ryan. If you hadn't known this already, I like to call Ryan "Snow White" because animals literally flock to him. I'll just go ahead and embarrass him by letting you know that.

But I digress.  

It's a bit of a letdown that so much of Cape Cod is off-limits to dogs, even if they are on a leash, so it is becoming my mission to find the best dog-friendly (and fishing-friendly) locations on the Cape!

During March the kettle ponds of Nickerson are stocked with trout, meaning endless opportunities to try out fly fishing or light tackle spin fishing in one of the most beautiful places on the Cape.  

The hike we chose around Flax Pond was beautiful with about 2 miles of easy walking and lots of places to stop and cast a line.  There are dozens of trails to choose from here, so I highly recommend this place, especially if you have a dog.

Driving Historic Route 6A

Whether you're a Cape Codder at heart, or have never even been to the Cape, you've got to make time to drive route 6A.  It will certainly add on to your driving time but trust me, it's worth it.

This scenic route takes you through the quaint downtown areas of West Barnstable, Yarmouth and Brewster to name but a few.  You'll pass historic homes, barns, inns, restaurants, coffee shops, bookstores, flower nurseries, markets, and beautiful marshland.

Route 6A eventually joins route 6 at the Orleans rotary. From there route 6 will take you north towards Provincetown and Truro, where you'll start to find little side roads that lead to beautiful vistas, with places to park and walk through the woods. 

One of my favorite spots to go for a walk is in Truro at the old North Truro Air Force Station, which is where this next picture was taken.

The beauty of route 6A is that no matter where you start, you'll always end up somewhere amazing.

Getting back to our adventure that day, after our hike in Nickerson State Park, we were both in need of more coffee and more food (or at least I was), so we headed down 6A towards another one of our favorite spots, Nirvana Cafe in West Barnstable.

They too have amazing coffee and downright delicious panini's pressed to order.  I got myself a chicken and walnut salad on local cranberry walnut bread. It. Was. Delicious.

There is no photo of said sandwich because it was so darn good and I ate it before I remembered to take a photo of it!  So I guess you'll just have to go and see for yourself  

At Nirvana Cafe, you can stay inside or sit yourself down on an adironak chair on the sidewalk and watch the world go by in the quaint little town of West Barnstable. I love West Barnstable because it is brimming with charming white picket fences and beautifully kept little Cape homes.

Planning Your Own Day Trip in the Offseason