People, Places: Raison d’être

Manchester-by-the-Sea’s Singing Beach

My schedule is pretty flexible these days, so I have to wonder why it has taken until August to figure out that I should work  mornings and evenings and spend afternoons at the beach!

Well, this week I finally came to my senses, and on two occasions, I relaxed to the soothing sound of waves gently crashing on Singing Beach! It’s one of my favorite Cape Anne beaches.

Singing beach is about 30 miles north of Boston. With light traffic, it takes about 45 minutes door to door.  Parking ($25) at this beach is very limited even during the week.  You can park in town and walk about 5 minutes to the beach.  Better yet, I recommend that you take the commuter rail to Manchester-by-the-Sea and walk the same distance.  It’s a quaint town, so you can also browse through boutiques before or after enjoying the beach.  There is a snack bar at the beach, but I usually by a sandwich at the local deli and have a picnic lunch.

Singing beach is at the end of a beautiful residential neighborhood.  Multi-million dollar homes and trees line the beach which is probably less than a half mile long.  Looking straight out to the horizon dotted with sailboats, it feels like you are on an island.  The water is clean and reflects many shades throughout the day.  There are also a few small rocky islands not far from shore.  

The clear blue/green water was a brisk 66 degrees, so it stings your feet upon entry. Nonetheless, it is refreshing on an 80 degree day. It’s  funny to watch everyone have the same physical reaction to the cold water temperature.  Actually, just adults.  Apparently kids have no idea how cold the water is. They jump right in.

Oh, I should warn that this is a family beach for the most part. On Thursday, there were literally bus loads of kids.  They were mostly on the opposite end of the beach, so it was still pretty quiet near me. I intermittently read, walked, napped and swam throughout the day.

It was a lovely day.

August 10, 2009 Posted by aburnis | Beach, Boston, Travel | Singing beach | Leave a comment