Cape Pogue Wildlife Refuge is closed to oversand vehicles to protect nesting piping plover chicks, The Trustees of Reservations announced Monday.
Cape Pogue Wildlife Refuge is closed to oversand vehicles to protect nesting piping plover chicks, The Trustees of Reservations announced Monday.
Fees are going up for over-sand vehicle permits, as the Trustees of Reservations work to enhance stewardship and generate more revenue for the fragile barrier beach. The county commission approved hikes to annual permits, but held off on approval for daily pass increases.
All of Norton Point Beach, on the Edgartown side, has been reopened for oversand vehicle access, The Trustees of Reservations announced Saturday. The piping plover chicks which had been using the eastern end of the beach for feeding have successfully fledged, so under state shorebird guidelines vehicle access is allowed again to this beach.
The Edgartown side of Norton Point Beach stretches for two miles from Left Fork to the Breach in Norton Point.
Swimming in the breach on either the Chappaquiddick or Edgartown side remains strictly prohibited.
To protect a large group of coastal birds nesting on Norton Point Beach, The Trustees of Reservations have closed the stretch of barrier beach between Chappaquiddick and Katama to off-road vehicles. The closure came Friday when a number of birds hatched, and will remain in place until further notice.
Fishermen, sunbathers and swimmers, however, will find that much of the two-and-a half-mile beach remains open to passive recreation. Access by foot is available from the Left Fork in Katama and from the beach on the Chappaquiddick side.
