Travel with Bennett-Watt and discover the Cape Cod Shoreline preserve where you can join Art's Dune Tours and see the Cape
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Cod dunes.
Tags:Visit the Cape Cod Shoreline in Massachusetts,Arts Dune Tours,Cape Cod Dune Tours,Cape Cod Fishing,Cape Cod Massachusetts,Cape Cod Surfing,Cape Cod Tourist Attractions,Clam Bay Cape Cod,What to do in Cape Cod,bennett watt,cape cod history,cape cod national seashore
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Transcript
Male: Cape Cod National Seashore is an American treasure administrated, reserved and protected by the National Park Service. It comprises over 43,000 acres of shoreline and upland landscape. Within the park, a 40-mile stretch of pristine sandy beach, dozens of clear deep, freshwater ponds and salt marsh, also here, several historic Cape Cod buildings and lighthouses.
Since 1946, the Costa family, first Art and his wife, then son Rob has been showing off Provincetown’s treasure of dunes and beach which is now part of the national seashore.
Rob Costa: I always loved taking people out there on a tour because—especially people that have been coming to Provincetown for years and first timers that have never been out there because it’s the biggest part of Provincetown. We have about 4000 acres of the Cape Cod National Seashore in Provincetown’s backyard and it’s just amazing because most of the people that come here don’t even know that this area exists. And it’s definitely the road less travel, I mean out of the 55,000 people that we have here during July and August, I wish we could say we took them out. Now before 1961, anybody could drive anywhere out there in the dunes and it was quite a lot of fun. But then when the park came in, declared it National Seashore, with them came a lot of rules and regulations.
Quite frankly a lot of people weren’t really used to abiding by and the idea of regulating the trails and marking the trails and people were just like, wow! And every few years after 1961, just more of the dune area has been cut back and the use of the dunes have been cut back from the public until about 1981 or so, the National Seashore just decided to clear the entire dune area off from the public. And the only people allowed out there now are the dune tours and the people who live out there on the dune shacks.
True story that I took my mom on a dune tour of a baby four years ago, so she have never been on her ride and she’s never been on my tour so I think we could share information and boy, that was the first time I was speechless because on my tour in front of everyone, she told me I was conceived behind that shack. So I was like, “Ah that’s TMI, ma.” Too much information, yeah. But it’s kind of a cute story so I tell it. She’s going to kill me if she ever found out this is on TV.
Actually my dad started it. His name is Art and that’s why it’s called Art’s Dune Tours and he started it in 1946 in a 1936 Ford Woody. That was his first truck. We’ve been on here and make sure that it is big 6-0. There have been 14 companies, so that the big come n and gone throughout the years but we persevered, we’re the only ones left really, we’re the only ones surviving and I think the main reason because of that is the fact that my father had a real love for this. I mean, what you see we’ll make it out there. it’s just incredible and just to do this everyday in the season and meet all of the people and just see how the dunes has just kept them going was just what it’s like of what's in his job, you know what I mean and he just—he had—and that’s like, he wasn’t really in it for the quick money, like all the 14 companies that have come and gone. He just loved it and it was his little business and he had a work in the wintertime, so passion is what made us persevere as a company so, pretty proud of that, he left us a nice legacy to continue on with, you know.
It’s a very magical place because a lot of people come out here for so many different reasons. You know we've had people come out here and remember their loved ones who come out and celebrate marriage. People come out here, right, paint or just enjoy the beautiful view and the fresh air and our silly little stories and just—I mean, there’s something for everyone right here you know. It’s really, really amazing.
Male: The tours stop twice. On the first, there’s a nice trail to hike up for a view of the valley. On the sunset tour, they stopped along the beach and Rob sets up for a classic New England Clam bake and of course, a spectacular sunset, weather dependent of course.
On both sides of the cape are dozens of quaint New England communities, beaches, safe harbors and marinas, anchorage for everything, from eight foot dingies to large yachts of the rich and famous.
Less rich and perhaps more famous, charter fishing captain Bob Loose on The Striper starts his day at Harwich Harbour well before dawn. Bob is a retired commercial fisherman whose romance with the sea just won't let him give it up.
Rob Striper: I start in May and I’ll get down the middle of October. This is my favorite time of year because it is not windy, you know, less boats. The chances of getting a real big one are—
Male: On days like this, the magic of the sea is so awesome, even the most grounded of land lovers can appreciate its great attraction to seafarers over the centuries. The clients would fob on this particular day. I've been with him for over 10 years with a datebook every other week through the entire season.
This is exciting fishing. Rob’s technique is based on the changing tide, he positions his boat right on the each of a rip where the tides meet, which is also where the bait are concentrated and of course so do the strike bass feeding on it. The action can be nonstop when all the conditions are right.
Bob Striper: This is our feeding station. You have all this flat water around here and then there’s a shoal here where the bottom comes to the top and you're only eight or nine feet—and when the bait flows, it lays on the deep edge, just like a troll hiding behind the rock in the book.
Male: Clients on the Striper use Y rods, since they're not only more exciting but fight the fish more effectively than the conventional rod. And there’s no casting involved so you don’t need to be a—to use them. The limit is two fish over 32 inches per angle.
Though most of their catch strike bass and occasional false albacore, a tuna-like fish or blue fish will also take the—
If you don’t have a boat, surf casting from the beach is another popular sport here on the cape. With the proper equipment, you can even four-wheel out on the beach for fishing and camping if yourself contain.
With over 45 years of experience working in 40 countries, the South Pole and North Pole, the Watts present their travel, fly fishing and cooking videos.
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