Open Boat, Moving Water - A Paddler's Journal: Newport/Kings Beach and Gooseneck Cove Marsh

Friday, July 28, 2017

Newport/Kings Beach and Gooseneck Cove Marsh - July 28, 2017

Looking out from the put-in

I’ve been working my way through the Newport launch sites on Rhode Island Blueways, and today I got up early to paddle among the rocks at Kings Beach off Ocean Drive.

Kings Beach is is typically a sea kayak put-in since conditions can change quickly due to tides and weather. To the west is Brenton Point and the East Passage of Narragansett Bay. To the east is the rocky coast along Ocean Drive and the Cliff Walk.

Cormorants on the rocks

The sea was relatively calm when I arrived with 1-2 foot rolling waves. Unfortunately, fog was rolling in as I launched, and visibility eventually dropped to zero, so I was forced to return to the put-in. With my original trip cut short, I decided to paddle Gooseneck Cove Marsh at Green Bridge, to the east of King’s Beach on Ocean Drive.

Gooseneck Cove Marsh is a wetland that has undergone a 10-year restoration by Save the Bay. A dam was removed and culverts installed along Ocean Drive to improve the flow of sea water into and out of the marsh. I put in at Green Bridge and paddled up the marsh as far as Hazard Road. Green Bridge would also be a good place to put in to paddle the ocean since it would avoid the paddle around Price Neck to the west of Kings Beach - I may try that next time.