No. 2 beach pick: Truro, Mass.

Envision Popeye’s arm, bent and flexing a bicep, and you’ve got the basic shape of the giant glacial deposit known as Cape Cod. Truro is right about where the wrist would be, a hundred miles from Boston on the Outer Cape, between Orleans and Provincetown

The most family-friendly and accommodating of the beach communities at this end of the cape, Truro occupies a special place in the hearts of generations of New Englanders. Whitewashed cottages and old-fashioned motor courts, bayside and ocean-facing beaches -- including Head of the Meadow, one of the East Coast's finest -- and a relaxed summertime ambience have made Truro a vacationer's destination for decades. It is has been inspiring writers and artists from the esteemed Henry David Thoreau (who wrote “Cape Cod” about these environs) to pop singer Patti Page (who paid tribute in her 1957 hit “Old Cape Cod”).

AGE APPROPRIATE

Truro is a low-key community where adults can enjoy themselves with the kids -- and without them, too.

TOO MUCH FUN

Head out to Head of the Meadow Beach. Spend the day working on a tan and/or some paperback best seller, periodically dashing into the water to cool off. Finish off with a picnic or cookout at sundown. Bring Frisbees. Repeat. $10 parking fee; lifeguards at the ready.

BEST ATTRACTION

The Cape Cod Lighthouse (a.k.a. Highland Lighthouse) has been beaming its beacon seaward since 1857. The scenic, whitewashed structure can be climbed (a brief 68 steps) and must be photographed. Get a more elevated perspective from the observation deck farther up the sizable, eroding bluffs. Come at sunset and be “oohed” and “aahed” into rapt submission.

KEEP 'EM HAPPY

Hit ‘em with a little history in the great outdoors. Visit the Pilgrim Heights Area of Cape Cod National Seashore, between Truro and Provincetown. Take the nature trail that circles Pilgrim Lake to a freshwater spring where the pilgrims from the Mayflower toasted their arrival in the New World.

TIMING IS EVERYTHING

The summer season is short but sweet, so if you want to enjoy the beaches for anything other than soul-restoring hiking and solitude, be advised that the ocean temperatures peak in August at 70 degrees. July is bearable (68-69 degrees), September slightly less so (65-67 degrees), and June is only for the hardiest among the species (61-64 degrees).

AVOID THE CROWDS

Truro is in the heart of Cape Cod National Seashore, which runs for 42 miles. Isolation isn’t hard to come by out here, even on the more frequented ocean beaches like Head of the Meadow, Ballston and Coast Guard. Just hike down the beach or disappear in the dunes.

CAN'T MISS

You’ve got to at least visit Provincetown, Truro’s rowdy twin, just 10 minutes up the road at the very tip of Cape Cod. You might want to stick around for some great dining (think lobster), gallery hopping, nightclubbing, and people watching. We promise, you’ve never seen anything quite like P-town. Double takes are the order of the day.

BARGAIN LODGING/DINING

There is Truro and there is North Truro, and you really don’t need to know the difference. Just be aware that most of the lodgings are along Route 6 in North Truro. The quaint cottages and motor courts are remnants from a simpler time. Standard rooms start around $115 a night in season (read: a bargain).

INSIDE TRACK

As an alternative to the ocean beaches, visit one of several Truro beaches along Cape Cod Bay, such as Ryder or Great Hollow. They’re calmer and warmer, offering a different side (literally) of the cape.

-- Parke Puterbaugh, beach guidebook author