Blog / Exploring Our Area / Where to Go Sledding on Cape Cod This Winter
Let's face it, Cape Cod isn't exactly known as a wintertime destination. Once you buy a home in the region, you'll notice that most visitors leave during the colder months, forcing businesses to temporarily close their doors and many attractions to sit empty until Memorial Day.
Here's a little secret, though: Cape Cod residents love this time of year.
Although the cold weather makes it a little more challenging to visit a beach or hike through the woods surrounding a kettle pond, there are plenty of activities to fill your time throughout a Cape Cod winter, including sledding.
The Cape doesn't have an abundance of hills, but there are enough to get you by, especially if you have young children.
Here's a look at some of the best places to do some tobogganing on Cape Cod.
Various Cape Cod Golf Courses
You'll have to be a local to figure this one out, but many of the Cape's golf courses turn into sledding hills once the snow comes. The switch makes sense because course architects like to throw various obstacles at golfers, including altitude changes.
Perhaps the most popular sledding hill on the entire Cape is on the first green of the Cape Cod Country Club in East Falmouth. The hill is wide enough for numerous people to sled at once, and it's easy to access due to its location off Boxberry Hill Road. All of this comes together to make it a popular destination for locals in the winter.
You might even see some people snowboarding at various times, as teenagers will construct jumps and turn their time at the club into a full-day excursion.
Cape Cod Country Club isn't the only golf course where you can do some sledding in the winter Bayberry Hills Golf Course in West Yarmouth has a sloped area where you can go for a slide, as do Eastward Ho Golf Course in Chatham, Sandwich Hollows Golf Course, Bass River Golf Course in South Yarmouth, Hyannisport Golf Course, and Woods Hole Golf Course.
Dennis Highland Course has multiple hills right near the parking lot where you can sled, giving you the chance to seek out a small section of snow for your family. There's also the Highland Links in North Truro, a true links course overlooking the Cape Cod National Seashore. This course's naturally hilly terrain makes it an ideal place to toboggan, with the scenic views being a nice bonus.
Of course, golf courses aren't the only places you can sled, as a few parks around the Cape also have hills.
Barnstable County Complex
Here's a weird place to sled that might not be on your radar: the Barnstable County Complex on Main Street. The complex is home to various government buildings, including multiple courthouses, the Barnstable County Department of Health and Environment, and the Cape Cod Commission. There's also a fire station, a comedy club, and, of course, a Kinlin Grover Real Estate office.
The far south end of the complex has a small green space with a hill from the road to the parking low below. This hill might not look like much, but it's an excellent sledding destination for young children in the winter. It's also incredibly easy to access, which is good news for parents who don't want to carry toboggans for great distances to reach the top of a hill.
There's parking at both the top and bottom of the hill, making this a convenient place to stop, and there's even a coffee shop across the street where you can warm up.
Cape Cod Regional Technical High School
In Harwich, Cape Cod Technical High School has some hills separating the school from its tennis courts and sports fields. Much like the Barnstable County Complex, these hills aren't sizable but are good enough for small children sledding for the first time.
Another aspect that makes Cape Cod Technical High School a good choice for tobogganing is the parking situation, as there are plenty of available spots. Thanks to its location, the school is also easily accessible, sitting just off the Mid-Cape Highway in Harwich's Pleasant Lake neighborhood.
Eldredge Park
Eldredge Park is a well-known destination in large part because it's home to the Orleans Firebirds of the Cape Cod Baseball League. It's also on Nauset Middle School's campus and has a playground, skatepark, tennis courts, baseball diamonds, and soccer fields.
The park isn't nearly as active in the winter as in the summer, but you can do some sledding in the area around the Firebirds' baseball diamond. That's because the field sits in a bowl, so there are hills up the first and third base lines.
The hills are short but relatively steep, and there is plenty of parking nearby, making this a worthwhile destination to check out this winter.
Lots of Places to Go Sledding
Just because Cape Cod isn't known as a sledding destination doesn't mean you won't find multiple places to take your toboggan. There are little hills everywhere, many of which won't have anyone around in the winter.
Once you buy a home on Cape Cod, you can spend your summers scouting even more sledding locations, so you know just where to go after the first snowfall.