Brewster Ma is located on Cape Cod, a wonderful place almost anytime unless you dislike snow. But spring, summer and fall are certainly beautiful times to explore the Cape and Brewster is right in the middle.
Mapquest wanted us to get there by following route 6A. This is a great way to see the sights as the little country-style road meanders through all the little hamlets and towns along the coast of the Cape. However we had two young children in the car (Can you hear the famous query? “Are we there yet”) so we chose to take the Cape Highway also known as RT 6. It’s not as scenic but it’s certainly faster. We got off at the Dennisport exit and crossed the cape back to 6A South for our last little bit to our destination.
We were heading to the Cape Cod Museum of Natural History.
The Museum is pretty tiny but it’s really well-appointed. The mission statement or purpose is to increase awareness of the environment around us.
There’s a library for research, an activity room where the kids can look at terrariums with snakes and toads, or enjoy the stuffed animals and birds in glass cases.
There was a video feed from the Osprey nest and a large window looked out on bird feeders and bird baths. There were binoculars supplied to help with the bird watching.
In the short time we were there I spotted a family of cardinals, a yellow finch as well as an assortment of sparrows. The chipmunks were in attendance too.
There’s also a long activity table where the kids can color or trace the animals etched on the surfaces.
Downstairs was a small aquarium with local fish, crabs, lobsters and turtles. The jelly fish tank is a see through tank. Everyone was taking pictures through the tank, myself included.
A large shallow tank that looked like a “touch tank” was really a “No Touch tank” which was monitored by a volunteer who answered questions and pointed out the various creatures.
She also made sure that no little fingers made their way into the tank. This was a bit of a disappointment for the kids but there were quite a few animals in this tank that would not do well with handling.
The museum is set on the edge of a salt marsh and mud flat but there is no admission for the trails. The only admission is charged for going into the museum itself. Even that is nominal, less than $10.00 per person.
You can go through the museum fairly quickly as we did with 2 energetic children towing us along but if you are an adult and go without the kids , you may want to linger at some of the exhibits or sit in the comfy chairs in front of that big window and spend some time bird watching. I could have spent more time there without question. But today’s trip was for the kids and we moved at their energetic pace.
If you get to Brewster this is definitely worth a stop.