Cape Cod Rail Trail Parking

Parking for the Cape Cod Rail Trail is free at eight lots that DCR lists, from Station Avenue in South Yarmouth to LeCount Hollow Road in South Wellfleet. The one paid lot is at Nickerson State Park in Brewster, where DCR charges $5 for a Massachusetts plate and $20 for any other in season. Lots are open sunrise to sunset, the same as the trail.

Pick a lot by where you want to ride, not by which is closest to your rental. The trail is a straight line about 25 miles long, so starting in the middle (Brewster or Orleans) lets you go either way and turn around when you're tired. Distances between lots are on our mileage page.

Every Cape Cod Rail Trail Parking Lot, Town by Town

DCR's list runs west to east. This is the same order you'd meet the lots riding from Yarmouth toward Wellfleet.

Yarmouth: Station Avenue

The Station Avenue trailhead in South Yarmouth is the western end of the trail and the first free lot on DCR's list. The trail crosses Station Avenue on a bridge here. From this lot the trail heads east through Yarmouth and Dennis, crossing the Bass River on its own bike bridge.

Dennis: Route 134

The Route 134 trailhead in South Dennis was the trail's original western end, before the section into Yarmouth was added. It's a good start if you want the middle and eastern parts of the trail without the extra miles at the Yarmouth end.

Harwich: Headwaters Drive

The Headwaters Drive lot in Harwich sits north of Route 6. South of it is the bike rotary where the Old Colony Rail Trail branches off to Chatham, so this is the easy lot if you want to ride to Chatham and back.

Brewster: Route 137 and Nickerson State Park

Brewster has two choices. The Route 137 lot is free. The lot at Nickerson State Park, off Route 6A, is DCR's only paid trail lot.

DCR's two pages give slightly different seasons for the Nickerson fee. The rail trail page says it's charged from Memorial Day through October 31. The Nickerson page lists the park's general fee season as May 23 through October 12, with the rail trail access lot at $5 for Massachusetts plates and $20 for others. Residency is decided by your license plate, not your address. The Nickerson lot puts you next to the park's own bike paths, covered on our Nickerson page.

Nickerson also has 8 veterans parking spaces, split between the rail trail lot and the park itself. A veteran plate is required.

Orleans: Orleans Center

DCR lists free parking in Orleans Center, right where the trail runs through town past bike shops and places to eat. It's a central start: Wellfleet is to the north and Brewster and Harwich to the west.

Eastham: Salt Pond Visitor Center

The Cape Cod National Seashore's Salt Pond Visitor Center, at 50 Nauset Road in Eastham, is about half a mile from where the trail crosses Locust Road. DCR lists it as a free trail lot. The visitor center is open daily, 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. (5 p.m. in summer), with restrooms and exhibits. It's also the start of the Nauset Bike Trail to Coast Guard Beach.

Wellfleet: Marconi Area and LeCount Hollow Road

In Wellfleet, DCR lists the National Seashore's Marconi Area and the trailhead at LeCount Hollow Road in South Wellfleet. LeCount Hollow is the classic eastern end. The paved trail now runs about another mile past it to the edge of Wellfleet Hollow State Campground, but there's no trail parking at that end.

How Busy Are the Lots?

DCR doesn't publish how full each lot gets. Search data tells you when people go: searches for rail trail parking peak in August at almost three times the yearly average. On a sunny summer weekend, plan to arrive in the morning or pick a smaller lot away from the town centers.

If a lot is full, drive on to the next one; DCR's lots are spread along the whole trail. Our trail map page explains how to read DCR's map, which shows the lots.

Can You Park Anywhere Else?

Many bike shops on the trail have their own lots for renters (see bike rentals). Don't park in private driveways or on residential streets next to the trail; DCR asks riders to respect the private property beside it.

Parking for the Other Cape Trails

• Old Colony Rail Trail: Depot Road in Chatham, Chatham Airport and Route 137/Route 28. See Old Colony Rail Trail.
• Shining Sea Bikeway: County Road in North Falmouth and Depot Avenue in Falmouth village. See Shining Sea Bikeway.
• Cape Cod Canal: the Army Corps recreation areas on both banks. See Canal bike path.
• Province Lands: Race Point, Herring Cove, the visitor center and Beech Forest. See Province Lands Bike Trail.

Questions About a Lot

DCR runs the trail from the Nickerson State Park office, 3488 Main St., Brewster, MA 02631, (508) 896-3491. The current list is on DCR's Cape Cod Rail Trail page.