WiWaSa (Wind, Water, Sand)
Orleans Vacation Rental - ID 10909

Our family has owned this cottage since 1949, and we took over its stewardship in 1999 as the third generation. We started renting out summer weeks the following year. Alice's family is from Cape Cod, and although they tend to wander away from time to time, most seem to come back eventually. So we've got lots of relatives all around, especially in Orleans, Brewster and other close towns. That helps with finding great caretakers and vendors, especially because our full-time home is in Raleigh, NC, where we live with our three teenage-ish daughters. Even still, we're able to visit family on the Cape several times a year and spend weeks at a time at our cottage.

As you can probably tell from this introduction, history, family and place are all very important to us. Our greatest delight is knowing that our guests are creating their own wonderful memories with their families as well, as vouched for by guest book entries going back to the 1950's.

What is special about this property?
The best part about the property is the location: Weeset Point. It's quiet, private and just beautiful! Our house and the house next door have been owned by the same families since the 1940s, and that creates a great sense of community. The ''new'' neighbors are as or more committed to the Point as we are. As joint custodians of a private gravel road, we work together to maintain it and to make access to the private pathway around the point safe and healthy. In 1983, Whitney Balliett published an article in the New Yorker titled ''Weeset Journal'', describing his many summers vacationing there. You can read it for a lyrical description of the place and time spent there.

The house itself is also interesting - it's a ''Hodgson House'' which was an early 20th century prefab design made in Dover, Mass. (There's lots of history about Hodgson Houses on the internet for those who like to google.) It's funky and rambling and a throwback to the old days before McMansions to when vacations were about unplugging and adventuring. That said, we do have WiFi, cable, streaming media, etc., but you can avoid it if you're serious about taking a break.

What is special about your town?
If you're searching for a house in Orleans, you probably already know its amenities. They include Nauset, Skaket, Pleasant Bay, lots of freshwater ponds, the bike trail, a few museums and, of course, food and drinks galore!