Northeast - Boston Harbor Islands Help

Hey,

I'm new to the Boston area. As a birthday present, my wife rented a 25' wellcraft for the day of July 14th. I've been on the waters of Long Island, NYC area for many many years, but am new to Boston Harbor and the surrounding waters. If anyone has a great trip already charted out already it would save me some time. Any local knowledge? Things to be aware of, avoid, make sure I go see? Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks so much,

-Joe

http://bostonharborislands.org/

http://www.nps.gov/PWR/customcf/apps/maps/showmap.cfm?alphacode=boha&parkname=Boston%20Harbor%20Islands%20National%20Re creation%20Area

You can dock your boat at George's Island but I'm not sure if the docks are in decent shape. Fun to walk around the fort there. Everything on Spectacle Island is new; I think it's 15 bucks to dock there for the day. Great view from the top of the hill there + a decent little beach. You can also walk around Peddock's island. It's like a time warp to the 50's there.

You could also take your boat all the way into Hull Gut to Nantasket Beach. There used to be a great amusement park there back in the day until developers knocked it down in the 80's and built 'beautiful' condos. . . Still, there's a boardwalk there and a historical merry go round.

Marina Bay has a bunch of restaurants and clubs. (Probably one of the biggest marinas on the East Coast)

http://www.barkingcrab.com/locations/

^Not sure if your 25 footer will be able to squeeze under the bridge to get there.

http://www.jerryremys.com/

^This place I hear has docks for guests.

Go out as early as you can pick up the rental. A Saturday in July in Boston Harbor will be filled with yahoos.

Low tide is around 2:30 in the afternoon so you should be able to see things to stay away from. ;)

All good advice so far. I would recommend having a chart or using the GPS if the rental boat has one. The harbor is full of rocks and other navigational hazards and some aren't obvious and could easily ruin your day. A good cruise is out along the outer islands if its a nice day, there are always a lot of birds and the rocky islands and lighthouses are very nice. It'll also be quieter out there if its a nice weekend day with lots of boat traffic.

Joe, where are you starting from and what do you want to do? There is a lot of great places in Boston Harbor such as the places to eat mentioned and many more. There also some good places to anchor up and relax. It all depends on what you want to do.

I keep my boat in Quincy Bay and often when I take guests out I give them tour of the inner parts of Boston Harbor, it's a real differant view of Boston and worth the trip. I then usally head to one of the islands or over to Worlds End and drop a the anchor for lunch.

Give us a little more information of what your looking for and I'm sure you'll get plenty of help planning a great trip.

Seamooch - where to you like to anchor up for lunch in the Harbor other than World's End?

Seamooch - where to you like to anchor up for lunch in the Harbor other than World's End?

I don't do too many lunch trips (mostly fishing & the occasional cruise), but on occasion when i do we like the area around George's island and Lovell's island. If the wind is right it can be nice around the Brewster Islands and calf island, a little bit quieter and lots of birds and cliffs.

Ideally I'd like to go out in the morning, see some of the inner harbor....then head out to the outer islands and drop the hook somewhere. Have lunch,...cruise around the outer islands and then maybe dock somewhere for dinner. Thanks for all the advice so far btw. Very helpful.

http://www.bostonboating.com/articles/rocksandshoals.php

Biggest mistake i see new boaters make in boston hahbah is wanting to get a close up look at Castle Island inside can 5A and do some damage. I am sure the sea tow and boat us captains have seen more though. I almost tore the outdrive off my chris craft 20 years ago. Lesson learned for me. Have fun be save

http://www.bostonboating.com/articles/rocksandshoals.php

Biggest mistake i see new boaters make in boston hahbah is wanting to get a close up look at Castle Island inside can 5A and do some damage. I am sure the sea tow and boat us captains have seen more though. I almost tore the outdrive off my chris craft 20 years ago. Lesson learned for me. Have fun be save

That does seem to be a favorite spot to get stuck, it seems like every busy weekend there's a tow boat freeing someone from that shoal by castle island. I was there yesterday in 2 feet of water fishing the rip and a boat went by on plane inside of me, no idea how they didn't do serious damage or hit bottom!

http://www.nps.gov/PWR/customcf/apps/maps/showmap.cfm?alphacode=boha&parkname=Boston%20Harbor%20Islands%20National%20Re creation%20Area

In this ^"map", you see a nice open fairway between Lovells to Great Brewster and Boston Light.

You'll also see lots of space between Thompson Island and Squantom.

This is the way things look at high tide.

http://www.charts.noaa.gov/OnLineViewer/13270.shtml

^In the chart, you'll notice that these two areas are well visible at low tide. Lots of skegs and prop parts in these two spots. (In case you're a snorkeler)

Reminds me, I saw a 20 something foot whaler have a go at the Thompson Island bar at WOT. Not sure how the two aboard didn't get their teeth knocked out when the boat stopped like it was stuck on glue. Not sure if it was the guy's boat. If it was, wouldn't you raise your props, get out of the boat, and try to drag your boat free? . . . Or maybe even try to push it out with an oar? The guy cranked the motor over then throttled forward and backwards multiple times as if he was in a car stuck in snow. It was not as pleasant as hearing ice being chopped in a margarita blender.

I assume you're renting from Boston Boat Rental at India or Rose wharf?

a cruise through the islands is nice. Once you go under long island bridge, bang a left and cruise up behind long island. Nice sandy beach and usually pretty calm back there. Rainsford island, which will be on your right, is good for exploring too. watch out for the rock piles to the south of it though.

In the inner harbor, the USS constitution is docked over in Charlestown. Always worth a spin by.

Dinner, I'd recommend docking at Liberty Wharf (new seaport development). There are some nice restaurants right there (Del Frisco's, Remmy's, Legal Harborside-- reservations highly recommended). I think its $20/hr to dock.

Thanks again everyone, very very helpful and informative.

Boston Harbor Islands are a great place to spend the day- you can't go wrong as long as you play it safe. I agree that you should get out early before the wind and chop pick up. My opinion is Spectacle is the best for a walking view of the city, Georges is great for seeing historical fort warren (although the dock was closed last summer) and anchoring off the east side of Lovells is the best for swimming. I can't underestimate the importance of knowing where the obstacles are, as the harbor can be very dangerous to a new boater. Study charts and get GPS. Here is a pretty good overview of some of the main dangers.

http://www.bostonharborbeacon.com/2012/05/15/boating-dangers-of-boston-harbor/

Consider going to Cohasset. Large sandy area just outside of the inner harbor. Boat anchor in 3-5 feet of water and swim and mingle. Water is pretty warm too. Getting to Cohasset requires good chart reading to avoid the obsticles and stay off the rocks but nice place with restaurants with docking.