Winterizing the Cottage

While we definitely love being on the Cape during the summer months, there’s something magical about being on Beach Point during the winter. Whether you are a writer or just need an escape from the city, it's a great place to be. It has a different vibe, perfect for those who enjoy quiet time.

In October 2021, the Town of Truro approved year-round occupancy for condominiums in town.

This means that the Days’ Cottages can now be occupied through the winter.

To gain approval, we had to demonstrate to the town that the cottage was properly prepared for enduring the cold weather that hits Beach Point during the winter months.

We insulated the exterior walls and the crawl space under the cottage with spray foam insulation, insulated the ceiling and extended the chimney brick up to the ceiling. We also replaced the bayside windows with more efficient ones, and, in the process, sealed off all those drafty spaces from the wind coming off the bay. Of course, we insulate the pipes under the cottage too.

The biggest improvement, however, was replacing all of the siding on the cottage. We got rid of the old, damaged, and brittle vinyl siding that was installed sometime in the late 80s (?) and replaced it with long-lasting, fire-resistant hardieboard.

All of this just ensures that we can be comfortable and cozy throughout the winter. Although the cottages were not originally built for winter occupancy, I am glad the town finally allowed us to stay year-round.

If you're interested in spending time in the cottage during the winter and seeing what winter is like on the Cape, let me know.

The Seawall at Days’ Cottages

The view of the bay is pretty hard to get over—endless blue water, shifting sands, and the sound of waves rolling in. If you’ve ever stayed at one of the Days' Cottages, you know how much the weather over the Cape Cod Bay shapes the day.

This storm in 2022 came a few days before Christmas and was another reminder of how powerful the weather off the bay can be. As the wind howled and waves crashed, the 800-foot seawall—really, the first and only line of defense—took a direct hit. The buttresses absorbed the brunt of it, but sections of the seawall suffered damage.

Other than some missing siding from some of the cottages, Daisy included, and some overturned adirondack chairs, the cottages remained undamaged. It still boggles my mind to consider these cottages have endured storms like this for nearly 100 years. Unfortunately, repairs to the seawall were needed in the spring.

Check out the video clips from the storm below. The sea certainly put up a fight this time!

Our Daisy Cottage Interior Renovation

Until 2016, all of the cottages were owned by the Days Family and rented out during the summer months. For decades, families have returned to the Cape to enjoy their week on the beach.

As the artistic evidence on our chimney bricks shows, there are several families who have been coming back to Daisy yearly for half a century. 

After purchasing Daisy from Joe and Cindy Days in 2016, we decided to update the interior of the cottage. We wanted it to be more open, brighter, and cheerful. We also wanted the cottage to feel familiar to all the families who’d been coming year after year. That was one of the reasons we decided to keep the painted chimney exactly the way it was.

My father has renovated hundreds of homes during his lifetime on the Cape and agreed to help us out with the remodel. In early spring of 2017, we started the project. The remodel was completed within hours of the first renters showing up for the summer season! 

Here are some clips we put together that show what the cottage looked like before the remodel and how it looked just before the first family of the season arrived.