Rules of the Road Are Rocky on Cape Pogue

Located on the furthest, most immaculate tip of Chappaquiddick, Cape Pogue Wildlife Refuge is home to salt marsh, coastal cedars, endangered shorebirds and some of the best recreational fishing the Vineyard has to offer.

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Edgartown Questions Trustees' Plan for Oversand Permits

Edgartown Conservation Commission members have raised concerns regarding the number of vehicles the Trustees’ allow on their trails and whether the organization would be able to secure sufficient staffing for the summer volume.

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Lawsuit Seeks to Block OSV Use at Cape Pogue

A couple who own property at the extreme northern tip of Chappaquiddick are suing the Trustees of Reservations in an effort to stop the organization from selling oversand vehicle permits at Cape Pogue, a remote 400-acre wildlife refuge.

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Make Way for Plover Chicks: Cape Pogue Closed to Vehicle Traffic
Sara Brown

Cape Pogue Wildlife Refuge has been closed to vehicle traffic to protect newly-hatched piping plover chicks.

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Norton Point Open Again to Oversand Vehicles
Sara Brown

With the Norton Point breach now closed, vehicle traffic is again allowed on the barrier beach connecting Edgartown and Chappaquiddick.

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Chappy Beaches Closed to Vehicles After Storm

An early November storm last weekend left behind severe erosion on Chappaquiddick beaches. The Trustees of Reservations have temporarily closed all beaches on the Island to over-sand vehicle traffic.

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Cape Pogue Closed to OSVs to Protect Plover Chicks

Cape Pogue Wildlife Refuge is closed to oversand vehicles to protect nesting piping plover chicks, The Trustees of Reservations announced Monday.

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Some Fee Hikes Approved for OSVs at Norton Point Beach
Olivia Hull

Fees are going up for over-sand vehicle permits, as the Trustees of Reservations work to enhance stewardship and generate more revenue for the fragile barrier beach. The county commission approved hikes to annual permits, but held off on approval for daily pass increases.

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Nesting Plovers Prompt Closure at Norton Point
Mark Alan Lovewell

To protect a large group of coastal birds nesting on Norton Point Beach, The Trustees of Reservations have closed the stretch of barrier beach between Chappaquiddick and Katama to off-road vehicles. The closure came Friday when a number of birds hatched, and will remain in place until further notice.

Fishermen, sunbathers and swimmers, however, will find that much of the two-and-a half-mile beach remains open to passive recreation. Access by foot is available from the Left Fork in Katama and from the beach on the Chappaquiddick side.

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News Update: Saturday, July 16 - Norton Point Beach Opens to Oversand Vehicles

All of Norton Point Beach, on the Edgartown side, has been reopened for oversand vehicle access, The Trustees of Reservations announced Saturday. The piping plover chicks which had been using the eastern end of the beach for feeding have successfully fledged, so under state shorebird guidelines vehicle access is allowed again to this beach.

The Edgartown side of Norton Point Beach stretches for two miles from Left Fork to the Breach in Norton Point.

Swimming in the breach on either the Chappaquiddick or Edgartown side remains strictly prohibited.

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