A word of introduction: I began POSTCARD HARBOR TOURS in 2010, with my 18-foot Marshall Sanderling catboat GALA VI.  After eleven successful years with her, I “moved up” and purchased my current vessel, the Marshall 22 catboat EPISTROPHY.  She is expanding the Wellfleet catboat experience with more room and even greater comfort and stability, for which catboats are justifiably renowned.

Among its other unique attributes, Wellfleet possesses one of the finest, most picturesque and most varied natural harbors on the Cape-and what better way to experience it than from the cockpit of a genuine Cape Cod-style Catboat, of the type which has plied these waters since around the time of the Civil War.

As far as is known, catboats-defined by their plumb bows, mast all the way forward with one sail, wide beam and sea-kindly nature-were developed in the Newport, R.I. area and quickly worked their way northeast to Cape Cod and the Islands, with their shape and design changing to meet local needs. They were a staple of the inshore fishing industry and, especially in this area, of the shellfish industry. With the advent of the internal combustion engine around 1902, local fishermen simply installed their favorite “one-lunger” and eventually got rid of the mast and sail. Some of their descendents (sans masts) were still in use into the post-WW-2 era, and I can remember seeing (and playing on) their bones in the mud of Duck Creek when I was a child. The traditionally-designed catboat says “Cape Cod” just as loudly as our lighthouses and salt-box cottages, and have been featured on postcards since tourism became popular.

So-grab your sunscreen, your favorite floppy hat and your camera, board EPISTROPHY and let’s head out to explore Wellfleet by sea!