Massachusetts

Massachusetts ranges from Cape Cod's beaches to the Berkshire hills, offering coastal cycling and beachgoing, whale watching, hiking, and paddling, all steeped in history. Cape Cod National Seashore, the Berkshires and Mount Greylock, the Cape Cod Rail Trail, and the whale-watching grounds offshore anchor it.

Summer is prime for the Cape and islands; fall foliage in the Berkshires (late September–October) is world-renowned. Spring brings migrating birds and whales; winter offers skiing in the west.

Whales (humpback, finback, and the critically endangered North Atlantic right whale) feed off the coast in summer, while white-tailed deer, black bears, wild turkeys, seals, and the great white sharks that follow them off the Cape inhabit the region.

From sandy Cape Cod heath and salt marsh to the rich offshore waters of Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary and the northern hardwood forests of the Berkshires, the state spans coast to mountains.

Glaciers shaped the state, depositing Cape Cod and the islands (Martha's Vineyard, Nantucket) as terminal moraines and outwash, while the Berkshire and Taconic hills rise in the west (3,489-ft Mount Greylock is the high point) above the Connecticut River valley.

The Wampanoag and other peoples lived here, encountering the Pilgrims at Plymouth in 1620. A cradle of the American Revolution, Massachusetts was the 6th state, in 1788.

A deep maritime and whale-watching heritage, Cape and islands beach culture, and the Berkshires' arts-and-foliage tradition shape the outdoors.

Protecting the endangered North Atlantic right whale (fewer than 400 remain), conserving Cape Cod's dynamic shoreline, and preserving Berkshire open space are leading efforts.

Boston (BOS) is the major gateway; the Cape, islands (by ferry), and Berkshires are reached by car. Summer Cape traffic is notoriously heavy.

Rip currents and increasingly common great white sharks off the Cape (heed beach advisories), cold ocean water, ticks, and summer traffic are the main concerns.

State parks charge a parking fee, and MassWildlife administers licenses; Cape Cod is a national seashore.

Heed shark advisories on Cape beaches.

Visit Cape Cod National Seashore midweek to dodge traffic, take a summer whale watch from Provincetown or Gloucester, and tour the Berkshires for peak fall color. Heed shark advisories on Cape beaches.

Massachusetts borders New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, Connecticut, and Rhode Island, linking Cape Cod, the Berkshires, and southern New England.