This week's Sunday Morning Paddle of 2024 will launch on Sunday June 9, 2024 at Riverhead Beach.  Let's meet around 8 am with the aim of launching at 8:30 am. We expect to return to the put-in at midday.  Low water is 7 am so the tide will be rising all day. Abject Note of Apology: I am so sorry to impose the high cost of parking at Riverhead (currently $30 for nonresidents). My car is in the shop and I have no alternate vehicle that can transport my kayak. So I need a venue in Marblehead Harbor that I can paddle to which has public parking. This series of paddles provides a regular weekly opportunity for members to get on the water outside of the workweek. There is no set trip level: all skill levels are welcome. Trips will be tailored each week to the makeup of the group. If desired, opportunities for skills practice will come up naturally without a set curriculum.  The early launch time avoids car and boat traffic, often minimizes wind conditions, and leaves paddlers free to enjoy the afternoon. The exact plan won't be decided until right before we launch and will depend on the group and the conditions. Registration is here: https://forms.gle/NWhTR9MWh68Biv8m8 To join the trip you must be a paid-up NSPN member, and have signed the participant agreement for this season. Your signup information will only be shared with other members on the trip. Trip level: Sunday morning paddles do not have a specific level. All properly equipped members are welcome: please bring boats with rigged deck lines, bulkheads, spray skirts, and dress for immersion.  NOTE: club paddles are cooperative adventures, not guided trips. We encourage paddlers to make their own independent decision about their comfort level with conditions and plans at the time of the paddle. Each participant is responsible for her/his own safety. Don’t assume the trip initiators are smarter, stronger, better at rough water, more attractive, or more skilled paddlers than you are. For more information, see this description of our trip philosophy from the NSPN web site.  Please PM me if you have questions! Hope to see you there! Joe Berkovitz

Reach out directly on you to the group and would like to add another boat.

Thanks for a fun day…and the green wall at Folly was greener than I've ever seen it!

Eight of us paddled out from Lane's Cove at 10AM, turned right, and headed to Rockport Harbor for lunch. Conditions were nearly perfect, blue skies, light seas, and just enough of a SE breeze to keep us focused on reaching the ice cream shop on Bearskin Neck. In Folly Cove, we admired a grotto with verdant, dripping green walls and a Folly-esque deck perched above it. I spotted a disturbance in the center of the cove and spent some time excitedly chasing a bubble trail (surely a porpoise, sea turtle, or bubble-whale) until someone pointed out the dive flag nearby. We passed several dive groups, shore fishermen, paddle-boarders, and even a couple of lone sea kayakers. A short scramble up the rocks at the broken concrete ramp in Rockport Harbor put us in the middle of the tourist crush, where we dispersed in search of restrooms, ice cream, and shady lunch spots. Back on the water, we got a bit of a wind assist and cruised back up the coast, arriving at the cars at 2:45. Special thanks to Britta for organizing and co-leading this trip with me, and to Joyce, Karen, Barbara, Prudence, David, and Mike for a great day on the water.

Sorry, can't make it after all.  Have fun!