"Outermost Cliff and Solitary Dune..."

Located at Coast Guard Beach, Eastham

“…this is Eastham; this is the outer Cape…Having known and loved this land for many years, it came about that I found myself free to visit there, and so I built myself a house upon the beach.”

The Fo’castle, as author Henry Beston called his little house, sat on the dunes about 1.5 miles south of here. In September 1926, Beston came intending to spend two weeks on the beach. He stayed a year, living in solitude and immersing himself in the natural world. His year by the sea provided healing from the horrors he experienced as an ambulance driver during World War I.

Beston’s book, The Outermost House, chronicles his time here. It has become a beloved classic, recording the rhythms of nature on the Outer Cape. The house was moved back from the ocean multiple times and became a National Literary Landmark in 1964. A winter storm in 1978 finally swept the Fo’castle away.

Today, Beston’s words invite you to walk along this beach and capture for yourself the experience of being at the edge of the sea. How does nature rejuvenate you?

TEXT © NATIONAL PARK SERVICE