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boardwalk trail through a grassy meadow
Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary, Wellfleet

Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary

  • South Wellfleet
  • 1183 Acres

Plan Your Visit

Wellfleet Bay provides peace and unmatched beauty on the hillsides and shoreline overlooking Wellfleet Harbor. Extensive trails bring you to a panoramic salt marsh, sandy barrier beach, and pine woodlands, each attracting a wide array of wildlife.

Directions to Wellfleet Bay
Hours
Nature Center
  • Tuesday-Saturday
  • 9:00 am-4:00 pm
Trails
  • Daily
  • dawn to dusk
  • 5 miles
  • 0.5 universally accessible miles
See Trail Maps

Connect with Wellfleet Bay

Property Regulations

  • Foot travel only; please stay on trails (day passes are available for powered mobility devices)
  • Dog walking and horseback riding are prohibited; please leave all animals and pets at home (service animals welcome)
  • Collecting, swimming, wading, smoking, hunting, fishing, releasing of animals, and feeding wildlife is prohibited.
  • Commercial photography needs prior approval; please see all photography guidelines.

Facilities

  • Parking
    Parking
  • Electric Vehicle Charging Station
    Electric Vehicle Charging Station
  • Trail, Universally Accessible
    Trail, Universally Accessible
  • Nature Center/Museum, Universally Accessible
    Nature Center/Museum, Universally Accessible
  • Restrooms, Universally Accessible
    Restrooms, Universally Accessible
  • Camping
    Camping
  • Picnic Tables
    Picnic Tables

Featured Experiences

  • Cape Cod Field Schools

    Wellfleet Bay offers a wide variety of field courses for adults that focus on the unique coastal environment and wildlife of Cape Cod.

  • campground with two tents in the distance
    Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary Campground

    Camping

    Camping at Wellfleet Bay offers the natural world of the sanctuary for exploration and enjoyment.

  • Wellfleet Bay campers exploring a salt marsh with their counselor

    Family Fun

    Have fun with the whole family at Wellfleet Bay, either on your own or during an organized program.


     

  • Handful of Diamondback Terrapin hatchlings © Terri Munson
    Diamondback Terrapin hatchlings © Terri Munson

    Projects

    Wellfleet Bay is actively involved with a variety of projects including protecting sea turtles, diamondback terrapins, horseshoe crabs, and more.

Latest News

More News
A tall white bird sticks out in a green saltmarsh. A channel of open water cuts through the center of the marsh.
Allens Pond, South Dartmouth
Special Event February 06, 2025

Cape Cod Natural History Conference

Event Date: Saturday, March 8, 2025

Keep Reading
Common Eider landing on water
News January 15, 2025

6 Winter Waterfowl to Look for on the Cape

Keep Reading
A person in a canoe skimming the water's surface with their hands
© Jared Leeds
News January 07, 2025

Wildlife on Tap Lecture Series

Keep Reading

Upcoming Programs

See More
See More

Sanctuary History

If you were here 150 years ago, you’d be in the middle of asparagus and turnip farms, open fields and salt hay meadows. Dairy cows grazed nearby. 

Learn More

Get Involved

You can contribute to Wellfleet Bay's conservation projects from rescuing stranded sea turtles to monitoring Diamondback Terrapins.

Find Out How

Explore Wellfleet Bay

  • View out to ocean at WB © Lauren Fenn
    © Lauren Fenn
  • up close of a fiddler crab with claw in air
    Fiddler Crab © Maceo Susi
  • boy walking across boardwalk over flooded marsh
    Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary, Wellfleet
  • trail through forest at Wellfleet Bay
    Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary, Wellfeet © Elizabeth Attardi
  • garden with sign that says butterfly and hummingbird garden with nature center in background
    Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary, Wellfleet