Provincetown Tour

This seaside town at the northern tip of the Cape is on the site of the Mayflower’s landing in 1620, commemorated by the towering Pilgrim Monument. P-town is known as a longtime haven for artists, and the LGBTQ community. Numerous galleries plus restaurants, nightclubs, cabarets and specialty shops are clustered on and around lively Commercial Street.

There are a few good recommended running options in P-town.

• Commercial St. runs for 2.4 miles from one end to the other, with the busiest part about 1.5 miles between Bangs St. and Vine St. During the season, it’s a fun scene of people, shops, and restaurants, though it can be crowded and where there’s a sidewalk, it’s narrow.
• Combine Commercial St. and then up and down some of the short side streets (cute homes and B&Bs) connecting Rt. 6A.
• Run along Rt. 6A (shoulder/sidewalk part of the way), which parallels Commercial St., or combine Commercial St. & 6A.
• Beach. A beach parallels most of the length of Commercial St. Much of the time it is wide enough for running, with firm sand — especially at low tide.

There’s also a great 7 mile ‘best of Provincetown’ loop. Start at the pier, at Commercial & Ryder St., near the Pilgrim Monument. Run 1 mile southwest to the Pilgrim’s Landing Park rotary. Take a right on Province Lands Rd./Rt. 6A, and run for 1.8 miles, passing Rt. 6. At this point, you can continue on Province Lands Rd. or on the bike path that runs parallel. Follow for another 1.8 miles to the intersection with Race Point Rd., near the Visitor Center (restrooms, water, seasonal). Turn right on Race Point Rd., follow for 1.6 miles, cross Rt. 6, and the road turns into Conwell St., back down to Commercial St.