Waquoit Bay

Waquoit Bay is a shallow bay that straddles the town lines of Falmouth and Mashpee on the south side of Cape Cod. It is protected from the waves of Vineyard Sound by two beautiful, sandy barrier beaches – South Cape Beach in Mashpee and Washburn Island in Falmouth, a 330-acre state-owned island that is accessible only by boat and remains one of the last undeveloped coastal properties on Cape Cod.

Apart from a dredged boat channel, the bay is no more than 5-6 feet deep, so the water is warm in the summer through late September. What makes Waquoit Bay so special is the fact that several tidal rivers flow into it, all of which can be explored in their own right. It also provides access to several ponds and views of a couple of osprey nests and other estuary life.

There are a number of places you can put in, from White's Landing near the Edwards Boatyard in East Falmouth to the Great River Boat Landing in Mashpee.

One of our favorite trips is to start at White's Landing and paddle down the Childs River for about a mile before taking a sharp left onto the Seapit River, which takes us to Washburn Island. We pass grass-filled tidal marshes that you can paddle into at high tide, and one of many osprey nests in the bay can be spotted there.

There are some primitive camp sites on Washburn Island, where you can stay overnight as long as you've booked well in advance and can do without certain creature comforts (like flushing toilets and showers).

Keeping the island to your right, you can paddle the entire length of the bay to the boat channel between Washburn Island and South Cape Beach. You can paddle across this channel but watch out for boat traffic, particularly in the summer.

Alternatively, you can cut in to Tim's pond, just before the boat channel. You can paddle all the way across the pond and put out on the opposite shore. From there you can carry your kayak a short distance to Eel Pond and paddle up the western side of the island.

This is just one of several kayaking trips you can take on Waquoit Bay. If you've taken others, do tell us about them but clicking on the activity review option at the bottom of this page. You can upload photos, too, if you like. We'd love to hear all about it.

Directions

From the Mashpee Rotary take Route 28 north to East Falmouth. About 3 miles later you'll cross a bridge and see Edwards Boat Yard on the left. Immediately after the boat year take a left onto Whites Landing Road. There is a fairly large paved lot at the end of the road.

Independent Reviews

If you are familiar with this Cape Cod activity and would like to let others know what you think, you can submit a review right here (and even upload photos, if you like). The hope is that independent reviews will be helpful to other couples as they plan their own trips.

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