Sandy Point State Reservation
Ipswich, MA · about 50 min from Somerville (typical, off-peak)
The south end of Plum Island. Named DCR lot, not Lot 1 on the refuge.
Salt River / stream Lake / pond Shop (desk) Guide only Parking Stay State access Private — ask first
- Season
- Harvest is year-round on paper (28" to under 31", one fish). Schoolies are the usual fly fish here in season. Confirm current DMF rules. Official rule
- License
- Massachusetts saltwater permit
- Park
- DCR Sandy Point State Reservation lot at the south tip of Plum Island (Parker River Wildlife Refuge Road, Ipswich). About 15 closest spaces; refuge gate hours apply. Not the NWR lots farther north.
- Walk in
- 2–10 minutes from the point lot to public sand and the Ipswich Bay bar.
- Wading
- Open sand and bar. Tide covers fast. Current at the point.
- Usual window
- Moving water around the bar. First light. Hard east wind is a slog.
- Monday conditions
-
Wind ? mph.
- Sky
- ⛅ 86° partly
- Sun and moon
- Rise 5:58 · 🌔 Waxing gibbous · Set 7:33
- Wind at dawn
- 0 mph · Partly Cloudy · 50°F
- Wind later
-
- dawn: 0 mph
- 10am: 0 mph
- 2pm: E 2 mph
- dusk: NE 5 mph
- Tide
- Low 3:28 am (1.6 ft) · High 9:41 am (7.8 ft) · Low 3:27 pm (2.1 ft) · High 9:48 pm (9.0 ft) Best moving water is the three hours into 9:41 am high. · Essex (Ipswich Bay sketch)
- A setup that belongs here
- 8- or 9-wt, Clouser, sand-eel, crab on the bar.
- Notes
- DCR reservation at the end of Parker River NWR. Refuge gate and hours. Confirm MassWildlife / DMF.
Tiny lot and a refuge gate. If the sign says full, do not queue on the refuge road — fish another named lot.
Log this trip
Stays on this phone only. Nobody else sees it.
Shops
Guides
Shop desks, plus a few independents who fish public water. We do not take a cut. Call them.
Concord Outfitters — book a day
Concord, MA · wade / shore · Half or full day — ask the shop
Good for: MetroWest rivers and ponds, first local trout day
Shop desk, not a scraped independent. Call them; they put you with someone they trust.