Paddling Hingham Harbor & the Islands

 

GPS Stats: Launch to Bumpkin Island  2.8 mi 52 mins Bumpkin Island to Grape Island  1.1 mi 18 mins Grape Island to Rocky Neck  3.0 mi 59 mins Rocky Neck to Launch  2.9 mi 41 mins Total paddling time/distance  9.8 mi 2:50     I met up with Nelson, Todd, Craig, and Dave (of the Wild Turkey Paddlers) for a paddle around Hingham Harbor and the Islands, at 7:00 in the morning.  At that time, the fog was thick and created an almost mystical feeling as we set off for the point of World's End.  The temperature was chilly, but once paddling, we warmed up quickly. The forecast had predicted 8-10 mph winds out of the NE.  In Hingham Harbor, this means chop.  However, there was virtually no wind, little chop, and also hardly any boat traffic (except for the occasional fisherman).  Once beyond the end of World's End, we crossed the mouth of the Weir River and over to the western side of Bumpkin Island.  Here we beached on a small spit of gravel, just wide enough to lay 5 kayaks across, and did our best to get the boats out of the approaching high-tide zone.  We did a little exploring but didn't spend too much time on the island. From Bumpkin Island, we crossed over to Grape Island, where a Boy Scout troop was camping for the weekend.  They had come over on a floatilla of mismatched sailboats (mostly Sunfish) and seemed to be enjoying themselves.  We helped them get their larger Flying Scott down the beach into the water.  I think we were all a bit torn between wanting to paddle and wanting to explore the islands.  But in the end, the paddling won out. From Grape island, we circled around the south side of Slate and made the crossing back to the Weir River.  If the conditions were as predicted, this would have been a bit more interesting.  Instead, it was a very relaxed crossing. Once in the Weir River, we followed it in to the Rocky Nook section of World's End.  Here, the shoreline seems like what you would expect to see in Maine... with high rock cliffs covered in pines.  We beached on the one small accessible section and took a snack break.  I couldn't resist climbing to get what I hoped would be a coll pic of the yaks below. I had hoped to go further down the Weir and use my new camera to attempt to capture some of the wildlife that is often there.  But, we had run out of time and needed to head back. By this time, the fog had lifted, the sun was shining bright, and it was getting hot.  Passing behind the SW side of  Sarah Island,  we were met with the racket of at least a hundred nesting gulls perched in every nook and cranny of the steep-sided Island.  As we made our way back into Hingham Harbor, I was pleasantly surprised to find there was still almost no boat traffic. The "Official" Wild Turkey Paddlers Trip Report can be found HERE

Click images to enlarge  Preparing to launch from Hingham Harbor     Todd, Craig, and Nelson head out into the fog    Dave    Craig and Todd    Nelson    Nelson rounds the tip of World's End    Craig and Dave    Craig, Dave, and Nelson with Sunset Point visible through the fog    Landing at Bumpkin Island    The dock at Bumpkin Island    Looking off to the Northwest from Bumpkin Island    Todd    Preparing to Land at Grape Island    Beached at Grape Island    Exploring Grape Island    "Honestly Nelson, it's a REALLY big sharks tooth"    Craig   Dave    Todd with the hills of World's End in the background    Preparing to land at Rocky Nook    Todd investigates the cliffs    Looking down from the cliffs    Looking out towards the mouth of the Weir from the Cliffs    Break time!!!    Discussing our next move    Nelson    Craig approaches a cormorant that has watched "Titanic" one to many times... "I'm the King of the World!!!!"