Cruising from The Chesapeake to Boston (hopefully). I am familiar with anchorages from Sandy Hook up to the Connecticut River and Block Is., but not for Fisher Island Sound, Block Island Sound, Newport-Jamestown Area, Marthas Vinyard, Woods Hole & Buzzards Bay area, Boston. If anyone would care to make suggestions it would be appreciated. PAT
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Bryce
New England Anchorages
Hadley Harbor, at the entrance to Woods hole is well protected. Plymouth and Duxbury harbors have well protected anchorages. Georges Island and Peddocks Island both have good anchorage area. Worlds End Hull/Hingham is good but can get busy on weekends. You can also call 617-241-9640 to reserve a mooring in the Boston Harbor islands. Good luck and enjoy. Bryce
Hadley Harbor, at the entrance to Woods hole is well protected. Plymouth and Duxbury harbors have well protected anchorages. Georges Island and Peddocks Island both have good anchorage area. Worlds End Hull/Hingham is good but can get busy on weekends. You can also call 617-241-9640 to reserve a mooring in the Boston Harbor islands. Good luck and enjoy. Bryce
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Bob Knott
Soooo many choices up here!
Cuttyhunk Harbor (inside) is a must. Very protected, old fashioned place that should not be missed. Edgartown on the Vineyard is great and our favorite place. Oak Bluffs on the Vineyard is honky tonk, noisy, busy, and powerboater heaven. Vineyard Haven is okay, nice little town with walking distance, big harbor, lots of anchoring, big ferries to Cape Cod every hour. Nantucket is a dream location too! Moorings are $55 per night though, but there is limited anchoring out in back of the mooring field. Hope that helps. Sailing up here is great all summer. Prevailig winds are SW all summer, they begin soft in morning, build all day, often to over 20 knots, then die off at night, and begin again the next day. Not much in the way of things to watch out for. Shallow areas are clearly marked, anchoring is nice soft sand and mud everywhere. If you ever run aground it's almost always sand not rocks! Enjoy Bob Knott H380
Cuttyhunk Harbor (inside) is a must. Very protected, old fashioned place that should not be missed. Edgartown on the Vineyard is great and our favorite place. Oak Bluffs on the Vineyard is honky tonk, noisy, busy, and powerboater heaven. Vineyard Haven is okay, nice little town with walking distance, big harbor, lots of anchoring, big ferries to Cape Cod every hour. Nantucket is a dream location too! Moorings are $55 per night though, but there is limited anchoring out in back of the mooring field. Hope that helps. Sailing up here is great all summer. Prevailig winds are SW all summer, they begin soft in morning, build all day, often to over 20 knots, then die off at night, and begin again the next day. Not much in the way of things to watch out for. Shallow areas are clearly marked, anchoring is nice soft sand and mud everywhere. If you ever run aground it's almost always sand not rocks! Enjoy Bob Knott H380
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Paul Akers
Quaint Onset
Don't forget Onset, MA at the west entrance to the Cape Cod Canal. It's a great place to wait for the tide and get an early jump into the canal. Cheap moorings or anchorage. Call the harbormaster for town moorings or Independence YC for cheap moorings and full amenities. Caution: DON'T try the canal against the current.
Don't forget Onset, MA at the west entrance to the Cape Cod Canal. It's a great place to wait for the tide and get an early jump into the canal. Cheap moorings or anchorage. Call the harbormaster for town moorings or Independence YC for cheap moorings and full amenities. Caution: DON'T try the canal against the current.
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Pat Spino
Thanks to all for N.E. Anchorages
You have all been very helpful. I will be sure to visit some if not all suggestions since I will have about two months time during August and September. PAT
You have all been very helpful. I will be sure to visit some if not all suggestions since I will have about two months time during August and September. PAT
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Paul Akers
Hadley Harbor - redux
The other post referred to Hadley Harbor. It can be hard to find/see. Make like you were heading W to E thru Wood's Hole and turn South into Hadley. Quiet, peaceful (VERY busy on weekends). Narrow entrance, but plenty deep enough. Go for a dinghy ride among the islands. Grab an available mooring. They are all private, but sharing is understood by the owners (they DO have priority). Also, use EXTREME caution passing thru Wood's Hole if you are coming/going to Vineyard Sound. Go at slack tide. The current is essentially non-negotiable by a sailboat. The channel winds - the current doesn't. Pay close attention to the bouys since they are colored based upon an East to West passage and in a strong, running tide, can be buried. At slack tide, you can pass thru in about 30 minutes, with no problems. As always, be careful in Buzzard's Bay and Vineyard Sound with the tides and currents. A worthwhile purchase for New England cruising is the yellow Eldridge Guide for Long Island and Massachusetts. I wish I were making your trip. Good Luck, Have fun!
The other post referred to Hadley Harbor. It can be hard to find/see. Make like you were heading W to E thru Wood's Hole and turn South into Hadley. Quiet, peaceful (VERY busy on weekends). Narrow entrance, but plenty deep enough. Go for a dinghy ride among the islands. Grab an available mooring. They are all private, but sharing is understood by the owners (they DO have priority). Also, use EXTREME caution passing thru Wood's Hole if you are coming/going to Vineyard Sound. Go at slack tide. The current is essentially non-negotiable by a sailboat. The channel winds - the current doesn't. Pay close attention to the bouys since they are colored based upon an East to West passage and in a strong, running tide, can be buried. At slack tide, you can pass thru in about 30 minutes, with no problems. As always, be careful in Buzzard's Bay and Vineyard Sound with the tides and currents. A worthwhile purchase for New England cruising is the yellow Eldridge Guide for Long Island and Massachusetts. I wish I were making your trip. Good Luck, Have fun!
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Pat Spino
Thanks Paul Akers
I just returned from a trip to the Solomons, Annapolis, St.Michaels, Oxford, etc. Wonderful time. Upon return I saw your response(s) waiting for me about the New England Anchorages. I really appreciate your second response. I am familiar with some of the cautions you advise about as well as with Eldridge. Generally, the currents in the Chesapeake are not nearly as bothersome as those in Buzzards Bay. But sailing out of Barnegat Inlet has taught a great respect for the direction of both current and wind. I have my fingers crossed; so far it appears as though this trip will happen. Since I've been up to Block and Mystic I am interested in going further north. Your suggestions will be very helpful. Thanks again. PAT
I just returned from a trip to the Solomons, Annapolis, St.Michaels, Oxford, etc. Wonderful time. Upon return I saw your response(s) waiting for me about the New England Anchorages. I really appreciate your second response. I am familiar with some of the cautions you advise about as well as with Eldridge. Generally, the currents in the Chesapeake are not nearly as bothersome as those in Buzzards Bay. But sailing out of Barnegat Inlet has taught a great respect for the direction of both current and wind. I have my fingers crossed; so far it appears as though this trip will happen. Since I've been up to Block and Mystic I am interested in going further north. Your suggestions will be very helpful. Thanks again. PAT
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Bob Knott
Cape Area cautions
When cruising around Cape Cod there are really only two bad spots for current. By bad I mean they are so great you CANNOT or should not go against them. (1) Woods Hole: You must go through with the current or at ebb, and the same goes for the (2) Cape Cod Canal where current can exceed 6 knots! Current is everwhere else to of course but very managable. In Buzzards bay when the wind blows SW as it does all summer, the waves get short and steep when against the current, but that makes for spirited sailing! Almost all anchorages are sand or mud with good holding. Many places are crowded so call ahead if you are renting moorings. Enjoy the sail up! Bob Knott H380
When cruising around Cape Cod there are really only two bad spots for current. By bad I mean they are so great you CANNOT or should not go against them. (1) Woods Hole: You must go through with the current or at ebb, and the same goes for the (2) Cape Cod Canal where current can exceed 6 knots! Current is everwhere else to of course but very managable. In Buzzards bay when the wind blows SW as it does all summer, the waves get short and steep when against the current, but that makes for spirited sailing! Almost all anchorages are sand or mud with good holding. Many places are crowded so call ahead if you are renting moorings. Enjoy the sail up! Bob Knott H380
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Pat Spino
Thanks Bob Knott
I appreciate your continued interest in my plans. Yes, both of those locations are bad. I have not experienced them but are aware of the cautions and they are on my list of worrysome places. On my previous trips to N.E. I have found the following "trouble spots" which demand a knowledge of current sailing: Barnegat Inlet, Point Pleasent Canal (which has improved since construction of the new bridges), Hell Gate, The Race (which I have gone through under sail at full ebb on the way to Block--VERY exciting!). Add Plum Gut, which I have not experienced, to the list. Well, maybe we'll cross paths while I'm up there. Look for me: '90 Legend 35.5 "Flying Colors" Thanks much PAT
I appreciate your continued interest in my plans. Yes, both of those locations are bad. I have not experienced them but are aware of the cautions and they are on my list of worrysome places. On my previous trips to N.E. I have found the following "trouble spots" which demand a knowledge of current sailing: Barnegat Inlet, Point Pleasent Canal (which has improved since construction of the new bridges), Hell Gate, The Race (which I have gone through under sail at full ebb on the way to Block--VERY exciting!). Add Plum Gut, which I have not experienced, to the list. Well, maybe we'll cross paths while I'm up there. Look for me: '90 Legend 35.5 "Flying Colors" Thanks much PAT
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