Some of the most pleasant bicycling on the Cape is found right along the Cape Cod Canal, making the Canal one of the most popular bike trails. These very level bike paths follow the service roads maintained by the Army Corps of Engineers.
These roads offer some of the finest sightseeing that the Cape has to offer. There is always something to watch going through the busy Canal, which is wider than the Panama Canal. Freighters, barges, cruise ships and numerous yachts pass through the Canal. There are picnic grounds, museums, restrooms right along the trail. The Canal is a destination itself!
These interesting paired eight-mile bicycle routes, one on each side of the Canal, provide continuous cool breezes and fantastic scenery. These paths follow the full length of the Canal along both sides of the Canal. They are popular for bicycling, walking, running and rollerblading. The biking is entirely on the level, parking is excellent at several locations on both sides of the Canal, and sightseers can view the scenic Bourne and Sagamore bridges from unique perspectives unavailable to automobile drivers. At the far western end of the Canal, you can see the Canal Railroad Bridge. When a train needs to pass onto or off of the Cape, boating traffic is stopped and the entire center span of the bridge is lowered, using counterweights and electric motors found in the side towers - it is a sight to behold!
Other attractions along the Cape Cod Canal bike paths are the Canal Marina, the Canal Electric Plant, the US Coast Guard Station, the Massachusetts Maritime Academy, Scusset Beach, Scusset Fish Pier, and Bourne Scenic Park. At the eastern end of the Canal in Sandwich, there is the excellent free Cape Cod Canal Visitor Center with many displays about how the Canal was built and how it is run and maintained. You can stop anywhere along the bike paths to rest, picnic, try some fishing, or soak up the sun.
Because the Cape Cod Canal bike paths are very wide and level, they are a great bicycling spot for families that want an easy route with lots to see and do. Locals come here year round, visitors stop here on their way to the Cape, and many make bicycling on the Canal a part of their trip. If you are looking for a walking or jogging path with lots to see and do, then this is the place for that, too!
Cape Cod Canal Trail Map
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