Boat Launch: At the end of Seavey Landing Road, Rocky, gradual slope. Semi-private launch.
Directions (From Portland, ME): Go South on the Maine Turnpike (I-95) take the Scarborough exit, #42. At the light go straight. This will connect you to Rt. 1. Turn right onto Rt. 1, crossing over the marsh. At the second light turn left onto Rt. 9/Pine Point Rd. After about a mile and a half, you will pass Ken’s seafood restaurant on your right. Not much beyond that you will turn left onto Seavey Landing Road (Right before the Blue Point Congregational Church). Drive to the end of the road.
Parking: Limited. There are only 2-3 spaces at the end of the road, but you could probably park on the side of the road.
Wildlife: There are many kinds of birds along the marsh. Visit the Maine Audubon Society page here to see the varieties. I have heard that some people have seen seals down towards the Pine Point Boat Landing, but I, unfortunately have not.
Notes: This is a salt water marsh that goes out into the ocean. You could park at the Maine Audubon Society, right on Rt. 9, but I am not sure if there are fees there. You should be careful of the tide. Paddling against the tide can be tough, especially down near the Pine Point Boat landing. You may want to consider taking two vehicles, parking the second one at the boat landing to avoid having to paddle against the current on the way back. (If the tide is going out.) There are bugs at the launch site that will bite you. They are like horseflies with green heads and their bites hurt. Bug spray does help. I did not find there to be many of them once I was out on the water, but loading and unloading can involve a few bites. I have limited experience in salt water and have not kayaked in the open ocean. I urge you to stay in the protected part without going into the ocean unless you have experience and knowledge of currents and tides.
This is the launch site close to low tide. (picture taken on a different day than I actually paddled the marsh.)
There are hermit crabs in the water!
Looking left form the launch site.
A cormorant.
There are many narrow channels you can explore, but if you don't want to hit dead ends, stay in the wide, more open paths!
I am not sure what kind of bird this is. I was hoping to get abetter picture, but they did not cooperate.
We first paddled up the marsh (away from the ocean) and went under this foot bridge that is part of the Audubon's nature walk.
After we went under the bridge above, we turned around adn let the outgoing tide pull us towards the ocean. This was taken close to the launch site as we floated past it !
Below the launch site (towards the ocean) we went under this railroad trestle. There is a wider opening on the right side which is the safest place to paddle through.
As the tide was going out sandbars were exposed. The birds seemed to love it. There are sandpipers I think. Keep your eyes on the sand and you may see water spurts from the giant clams!
We made it down to the boat landing in Pine Point. This is one of the lobster boats. It was cool to paddle between the boats, to see them from the water.
Not sure what kind of bird this is, but it was fun to watch them divebomb into the water. It sounded like people were throwing rocks into the water.
As the tide lowered more of the marsh is exposed. It seems to be eroding a bit.
There are no fees to start at the Scarborough Marsh Nature Center and you can go left from there out towards Route 1, which may feel safer for beginners who want to avoid ocean tides. This is a great blog for new kayakers like me!
ReplyDeleteThe bird is a Royal Tern. They eat small fish and shrimp that come close to the surface of the water.
ReplyDeleteLove your blog. The white bird at the beginning is a white egret.
ReplyDeleteWe are going to do this paddle today. First trip of the season. I will report back. 5.21.16
ReplyDeleteReporting back: Audubon center on route 9 was not open for the season so we were able to park at their launch easily. Simple launch. Moderately difficult paddle. Wind and tide flow make it a workout. You get a bit of a rest depending on which bend you're in. Paddling close to edge helped with reducing fatigue. We were out for 4 hours (roundtrip), and didn't get to the ocean, which was fine, that would have been an all day event with the wind and tide flow. The novelty of finally kayaking the marsh was neat. Variety of birds. People watching on the trail and bridge. Hum of cars on the road. Yet extremely peaceful, very few people in the water. A good first paddle of the year. Overall we would probably not keep this on our do again this season list, however we would recommend everyone try it at least once. The channel is quite wide but the number of paddlers that partake in the tours during peak season would make this an avoidable spot for us during that time. Overall we gave it a 6 out of 10. Thank you for putting this spot on your blog. C-
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