Wasque (“way-skwee”) is a land of shifting sands and changing ecology, where sea level rise, ever-fiercer storms, and strong long-shore currents demonstrate their impacts all along the coastline.

For generations, visitors and residents alike have fond memories of sweeping white sand beaches. Today, Wasque, a popular saltwater fishing destination, is in transition, undergoing what many Native Vineyarders remember from long ago. Shifting sandbars, strong long-shore currents, and the rapidly moving Breach will likely erode great portions of the swimming beach. Its dry, acidic, sandy soil nurtures an oak and pine forest, sandplain grasslands, and heathlands. Windy conditions, grazing, and fires have kept forests from taking hold here. It’s a place in a constant state of flux, where no two visits are ever quite the same.

Leland Beach, also known as East Beach links Wasque Reservation and the Cape Poge Wildlife Refuge. The property surrounds over 100 acres and a half mile of prime beachfront. The Trustees manages the area for the Division of Marine Fisheries (DMF), who got the property in 1993. Fishing access is preserved through this collaboration, allowing access to the legendary Wasque Point surf-fishing waters. Bluefish and striped bass are common targets among recreational fishermen.

Explore a habitat of rare sand barrens along half a mile of trails. Bring binoculars to zoom in on sandpipers, piping plovers, terns, and other shorebirds at the surf line. Glimpse monarch butterflies as they feed on the flowers of the Northern Blazing Star before migrating south.

Nature watchers can sit back and observe many bird species, including sandpipers, piping plovers, terns and other shorebirds at the surf line, and ospreys hovering over the water’s surface, preparing to dive onto a fish. Poucha Pond contains marshes that offer habitat for great blue herons, egrets, migrating shorebirds, and ducks.

Children can look for monarch butterflies as they feed on the flowers of the Northern Blazing Star before migrating south, while parents and caregivers scan for less dramatic appearing butterflies and moths such as mourning cloaks, sulphurs, and red admirals, which appear annually. Saltwater anglers find Wasque a fine destination for striped bass and bluefish.

Gatehouse Hours: 9AM-5PM

Memorial Day Weekend through Columbus Day Weekend:

Parking:
Nonmembers: $20
Trustees Family level Membership: $15
Trustees Contributing level Membership or higher: Free

Walkers/Bikers:
Nonmembers: $5
Members: Free

Please note: The Cape Poge/Leland OSV permit provides a family membership discount. The “All Over” OSV permit provides free parking at Wasque.

We welcome school and youth groups for experiential educational programs. Please visit our Education Page for details and to initiate a visit request.

Wasque Road, Chappaquiddick Island
Martha’s Vineyard, MA 02539
Telephone: 508.627.3599
Email: islands@thetrustees.org

Get directions from Google Maps.

From Edgartown–Chappaquiddick ferry, take Chappaquiddick Rd. 2.5 mi. At sharp right curve in road, bear right onto School Rd. and follow for 0.8 mi. At second sharp curve in road, bear left onto Wasque Rd. (turns into a dirt road) and follow for 1.2 mi. to entrance and parking (90 cars) at end.

Public restrooms. Picnic tables. Bike rack. Limited handicapped-accessible transportation – ask a ranger for assistance.

Please download a property map before heading out.

• Dogs are not allowed on the beach from April 1 – September 30. On upland walking trails, dogs are permitted year-round but must be kept on-leash.
• Please respect protected shorebird areas and do not walk on the dunes.
• Due to strong and changing currents, swimming at Wasque can be hazardous. Use caution at all times and if in doubt, don’t go in the water!
• The sand cliffs at Wasque can be particularly dangerous. Don’t go near the edge of the cliffs as they tend to be undercut and you may be standing on nothing more than a thin layer of ground — stay at least 10 feet from the edge of all of Wasque’s cliffs.
• At low tide, you may be tempted to venture around the base of these extensive cliffs, but falling trees and other hazards can block your escape route when the tide comes in.
• Avoid swimming in areas where seals are present. The growing population of seals on the sand islands off of Wasque’s shores may attract feeding sharks.
• Use common sense – be safe, be wary, and respect the power and beauty of nature from a safe distance!

Regulations

• Hunting is not permitted at this reservation. Learn more about hunting on Trustees properties.
• Dogs must be kept on a leash at all times.
• Bikes are permitted on trails only – not on the beach.
• There is no longer oversand vehicle access to Wasque via The Trustees’ Cape Poge Wildlife Refuge due to severe beach erosion at Wasque Point.
• PHOTOGRAPHY: We ask that photographers or their clients become Contributing Level Members before conducting portrait sessions at this property.  Click here for more information, and to request permission for any portrait sessions. The Trustees of Reservations reserves the right, and may give permission to its designated photographers and videographers, or to outside media, to photograph or video visitors and program participants at all its facilities and properties.