One of the traditional inns along Route 6A. Photo/C. Danko © 2011
As a 21st century consumer, I started down Old King's Highway on Cape Cod with a different agenda than the route's 16th and 17th century travelers likely had. I was looking for local artwork or crafts to decorate an apartment and work space. What I found were wooden carvings of local birds and insects, hand-crafted jewelry, glassware, original nature photograph taken on the Cape, many antique shops, and a fresh produce stand advertising blueberries that day. I left with photo of Sagamore Bridge at dusk and a wooden piping plover, but I could have easily spent a lot more money.
Called Route 6A, the road stretches along the northern portion of the Cape, from Sandwich to Orleans, at which point it joins with Route 6. It is also known as "Old King's Highway," and it's a historic scenic byway said to date back to the time when Native Americans were the sole human inhabitants of the region. During Massachusetts' maritime years, the pathway was used by merchants traveling to and from Boston. It was eventually paved, and today it is a windy, tree-shaded road that many visitors use while exploring the more traditional side of Cape Cod. 6A is a photogenic route, with green and blue marshes visible from the road and its colorful, flower-decorated shops. It is lined not only with artisan shops, but with country inns and restaurants, and it is only minutes away from Cape Cod's northern harbors and beaches.