An Englishman called Bartholomew Gosnold took an expedition to an area called various things (including the Promontory of Vinland) in 1602 and named it Cape Cod. He died 5 years later so who knows what it might have been called. Given the large number of English town names (Barnstaple, Sandwich, Bourne) here then it might have been called Canvey Island. Cape Codders should feel happy then.

Cape Cod is technically and officially an Island since in 1914 the Cape Cod Canal was formed making the only access via the Sagamore or Bourne Bridges.

This is the Bourne Bridge (the way we got onto the island) taken from the Cape Cod Canal.

Cape Cod is a very popular summer destination, but fortunately in April it’s still fairly quiet. Perhaps not surprising as it’s also still a bit cold (a bit like an English summer day!).

Cape Cod is home to Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI), pictured here in an aerial shot:

WHOI is the largest independent oceanographic institution in the USA. WHOI is well know for many things but perhaps the most famous is one of it’s scientists, Robert Ballard, who discovered the remains of the Titanic in 1985, 12,500 feet down. And there couldn’t be a more appropriate day to write about the Titanic than on this, the 99th anniversary of the sinking of the ship.

These days if you want to see real bits of the Titanic you can go to the Luxor Hotel in Las Vegas where they have an exhibition showing for the next 10 years. Being Las Vegas you can quickly move from historic exhibits to near-naked floor shows without getting a crease in your trousers, as you can see from this advert on their website: