Today marks my foray into the blogosphere, a territory as foggy as the Cape can sometimes seem from the Sagamore when the bridge protrudes from the mist but the familiar canal and outline of Provincetown are swallowed by clouds. Without overdriving the headlights, I hope to offer a glimpse into what makes our side of the bridge so compelling. How has Cape Cod crept into our hearts and minds until it's no longer merely a place; it's part of who we are? Since I was little, I've loved the feeling of slight detachment from the mainland. Battered and eroding though our shores may be, their rough beauty offers a respite from predictability -- a bit of life on the wild frontier.

In a recent piece for Cape Cod Life magazine, I wrote that I always thought the Sagamore Bridge was a ferris wheel because that's what the top looks like from the final bend in the aptly named Pilgrim's Highway. Even after I realized our car wasn't going to be carried into the air, I still had the same butterflies every time I caught sight of that silvery structure. It meant we were about to cross into a land of adventure. Now that I know more of the year-round challenges that come with living on an ocean outpost, I'm more realistic about this narrow strip of sand we all call home and the courage it takes to remain a true Cape Codder. But rather than erode my childhood delight, a deeper knowledge of Cape Cod -- its character and characters, has only deepened my admiration. Off Provincetown's tip, the great, great-grandsons of whalers use their ancestral knowledge to free rare right whales from fishing nets. In Wellfleet, beachwalkers and conservationists have rescued more than 300 stranded sea turtles this winter alone -- an all-time record. Close to where I live, a favorite childhood island picnic destination is the subject of a push-pull debate between Osterville and Cotuit, due to the ever-changing shoreline. We live in a place where the natural elements create a crucible in which interesting things are happening all the time. I intend to write about them with the joy I feel at every crossing of the bridge into the translucent light of Cape Cod.