Dansm's Sea Kayaking Trips: Manchester to Marblehead (MA)

Manchester-by-the-Sea & Marblehead Salem Sound, Massachusetts


DATE	May 1, 2004	TIME	0730 to 1330	TRIP LENGTH	13 nmiles

WEATHER	Clear skies and sunny, temp 60-70F. Winds S 5-12 knots, seas 2-3 feet. Water temp 50F (wetsuit).			TIDES	09:06 H 13:20 L

LAUNCH SITE	Manchester town ramp, behind Town Hall on MA127. From exit 16 on MA128, follow Pine Street into Manchester, turn left and very quickly look for the sign for a parking lot on the right. Parking is 2-hour limit; aggressively ticketed ($15 in 2001) on summer weekends.		LANDING SITES	-Great Misery Island wonderful, undeveloped island with interpreted hiking trails (owned by Trustees of Reservations, $3 fee)

ROUTE	Launch from Manchester town ramp and head out of Manchester Harbor. Pass on the east side of House Island and head for Baker's Island. Pass just north of North Gooseberry, then skirt the southern tip of Cat/Childrens Island and the south side of Marblehead Rock. Pass the lighthouse on Marblehead Neck and paddle through Doliber's Cove in Marblehead, then skirt south of Gray's Rock and Eagle Island for Great Misery. After a hike, return to the launch.

A KAYAKER'S JOURNAL	I started watching the weather forecast for this trip way too early in the week. At first, it said 20 knot winds, then worse, and, finally, better. Fortunately, the forecast that sounded best, out of the 8 or so that I saw, was this morning's edition: 10- to 15-knot winds moving SW to S during the day. I had planned to get my trip over early, in response to previous forecasts calling for a small craft advisory in the afternoon, so I arrived at the launch site at 7am, hurriedly packed the boat, and donned my wetsuit. The wind was not strong, maybe 8 knots or thereabouts, so I got my hopes up for a great day on the water. I was not disappointed. At 8am on May 1, there are very few people on the water. The various boatyards I passed on the way through the harbor showed significant activity, mostly people prepping their boats for the season, but at first I shared the seas with only the lobstermen and a few recreational fishermen. Leaving the harbor, I tried to gauge the seas to see what I was in for during my 5-mile open-water journey to Marblehead, and was pleased to see that the wind of the day was barely making waves; the seas consisted almost entirely of remnants of the previous day's wind: 2- and 3-foot wave/swells, not too steep and obviously left over from an earlier storm. It was my first time in waves this season, and I fought off a twinge of seasickness, trying to remember to "look at the horizon, look at the horizon!" Quickly, though, I embraced the waves, light wind in my face, and glorious sunshine as I basked in the beauty of the rocky coast surrounding me. The section of coast from Marblehead to the Annisquam River on Cape Ann has a very rocky coastline. Often, the water is bordered by 15-30 vertical feet of rock, and only above that is there any soil or plantlife. Generated by the thousands of years of pounding that this open coast has received, the rugged shoreline is spectacular, and every island in Salem Sound shares it. Some of the "islands" I passed, such as North Gooseberry, are nothing more than huge chunks of granite rising 35 feet straight out of the water, covered with cormorants and offering little in the way of hospitality, but making up for it with their stunning beauty. I almost thought I was in Maine as I sat, bobbing in the water, below the Baker's Island Light perched high on a rocky cliff. After island-hopping (or rock-hopping, if you prefer) across the sound I reached Marblehead Light, perched on the tip of Marblehead Neck like a giant tinker-toy erected by neighborhood children. This tower is surely one of the most unique lighthouses in the country, though whether such individuality translates into attractiveness is an open question. I crossed Marblehead Harbor, normally chock-full of expensive sailboats safely moored, to Little Harbor and Dollibers Cove: shallow, protected waters surrounded by boatyards, houses, and two lovely, wooded islands. One of these, Browns Island, is owned by the Trustees of Reservations and is open for picnicking. Fortunately, I passed through the cove at high tide, because otherwise there is extensive tidal flat preventing even a kayaker from enjoying most of its area. Leaving Marblehead and turning my back to the wind, I set my sights on Great Misery Island, three miles away. My lack of kayaking fitness was evident during the crossing, as my shoulders were aching and I stopped several times to rest and relax. Regardless, I finally made it to Great Misery, also owned by the Trustees of Reservations and maintained as a gorgeous, undeveloped day-use area with numerous hiking trails and spectacular views of Salem Sound. The Trustees provide maps of the island, complete with an interesting interpretive hiking tour that explains the history of various sites on the island, such as the turn-of-the-century clubhouse-for-the-rich called the Casino (Italian for "little house") that burned in 1926 and now is visible only as a large, stone foundation with a view to the north. During the hike I had the island to myself, but once I returned to the beach for lunch the kayakers started pouring in: three boats landed on Little Misery (right next door), two boats joined me on Great Misery, and two others paddled through just in time to see a huge cargo ship leave the power plant in Salem through the channel adjacent to the Miseries. I cannot believe that something so large and so fast leaves so little wake! The wind had started to pick up slightly and my feet were sunburned from sitting in the sun, so I shoved off again, paddled slowly around the shore of Great Misery to take in all the shoreside sights I had seen during the tour, then crossed back to the mainland and Manchester Harbor. As I loaded my boat onto my car, I silently hoped that every weekend this summer would bring such a perfect day on the water. Daniel Smith May 2, 2004

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