Located about 35 miles southeast of Boston and 25 miles northwest of the Cape Cod Canal, Green Harbor is a convenient midway stopping point for boaters traveling the Massachusetts between Cape Cod and Boston. Green Harbor and the town of East Falmouth are located in Barnstable County, which consists of 15 coastal towns along the southern Cape Cod coastline, each offering some unique opportunities for further exploration of the coastline.

The only caveat with using Green Harbor would be the 2.5- to 3.5-foot depths you will find once you have cleared the breakwaters to the harbor; not all boats have shoal enough drafts to visit here. If your boat can squeak over the bottom, you will find four good facilities in Green Harbor with two major full service marinas. There is also a mooring field available here.

The image above is a view from the south looking north over the jettied entrance to Green Pond. Green Pond is located on the South Shore of Cape Cod and is five miles north of Marthas Vineyard and about six miles northeast of Woods Hole.

There are two marinas here, but one of them (coincidentally the only one that accepts transients) is above a six-foot fixed vertical clearance bridge that most boats cannot clear. The other marina is on the east side of Green Pond south of the bridge, but it is a private yacht club; no transient guests are allowed.

Just inside the inlet to starboard on entry is a nice, well-protected anchorage with six-foot depths and decent protection from most directions.

Established as a County in the year 1685, the current boundary lines for Barnstable County were drawn in 1707 and have not changed since that date. Although initially the counties of the Commonwealth were mainly judicial in nature, over time additional responsibilities were assigned by the state legislature. Subsequently, many counties served as subdivisions of the state government, serving as an administrative arm of the Commonwealth on a regional basis, but without legislative authority.

Green Pond is approached from the south via the North Channel. From the North Channel, first set a course for flashing red buoy “2,” which is located in the area of waypoint N41 32.677 W70 34.178. Once you have picked up flashing red buoy “2,” head north toward the opening where you will find flashing green “3” just south of the west inlet jetty.

From here, work your way up into the inlet through the jettied entrance. About a half-mile up from the entrance is a six-foot fixed vertical clearance bridge that limits most boats (except small powerboats) from traveling to the northern portion of Green Pond.

Depths between the breakwall and farther in past the sandy bulge that encroaches on the channel are 11 feet, but the harbor shallows quickly to 3.5-foot depths past the first large marina to starboard. Farther up the pond, a fixed bridge with a six-foot vertical clearance limits travel upstream to all but the lowest clearance vessels.

Local Notices to Mariners are now exclusively available online from the U.S. Coast Guard.

Barnstable County

Barnstable County Fair