Anytime is a lovely time to go to the beach. The Cape is not the beach. My preference: September, early morning if possible. Yeah, a sweater is likely accoutrement, but equally likely to be shed. You find parking. You do not find traffic. You find more than a patch of sand to claim. You may even find yourself Commander in Beach, with only a spattering of fellow bipeds about, free to do silly things as one pleases.
The outer Cape offers seal sightings every few hundred yards or so as you saunter along. They’re pretty darn cute. They pop up, whiskers a-whiskerin,’ then dive, traversing 20 – 30 feet of shoreline at a time. They’re close, like 15 feet from shore close. Unfortunately, my instinct tells me it’s not because they’re interested in some light interspecies conversation over tea, but maybe self-preservation instead. I’m doing the same thing over here homey, no way I’m getting out there with Jaws lurking about somewhere… 
Marveling at the crashing waves, they mount a fierce assault up the angled beach. Their will fades fast, they change their mind. Maybe we’ll just head back guys, OK? Right, right…
Turning right, then left, I gaze as far as I can. 7 and 4 I count. 7 humans, 4 seagulls. Nice.
The dunes are huge. I’d say 50 – 75 feet high. Might be chump change dune height compared to what you’re accustomed to partner, but hey, I’m pretty impressed. They’re so fragile. Worn from ages of wind and water-sourced battering, yet they don’t look “old.” Their grasses and scrubby brush clutch beneath firmly, their battle timeless, but only observable over time.
Anytime is a lovely time to go to the Cape, but I’m a sucker for September. Chintzy tourist spots cling to a few more weeks of season. Their facades and employees both sporting some bags under their eyes after a summer’s worth of consumerism and too much pastel. It has a natural ebb and flow to it like its surrounding fathoms of ocean. 
Edit: One week after this post was drafted, a 26 year old male was bitten by a shark and died later at a hospital. The attack occurred one beach south of this one. Be mindful of your surroundings and don’t look like a seal.
