The Trustees of Reservations preserves eight properties that range from Chilmark to Chappaquiddick. There’s a lot to choose from in terms of habitat, programming, experience and viewpoint. Islands portfolio director Darci Schofield notes that what each property offers and what you get out of it will depend on your mood. Each one is unique. Here’s a guide to help you choose which to visit. Or you could make a commitment to seeing them all!
Cape Poge Wildlife Refuge (Chappaquiddick): This seven mile-long barrier beach property is located on the easternmost point of Martha’s Vineyard. In addition to the white sandy beach, salt marshes and a saltwater pond, you’ll see magnificent cedar trees, osprey nests and a variety of shorebirds. The historic Cape Poge Lighthouse, established in 1801, is now automated and continues to flash its greeting over the waters at night. Lighthouse tours are not available at this time but check the programming schedule for their return.
Darci notes: “When I’m out at Cape Poge, I feel as though I’ve traveled back in time; it could be 400 years ago. It’s inspiring. You see the dunes and old trees, which have profound strength.”
Mytoi (Chappaquiddick): Enter the wooden garden gate at Mytoi and you’ll pass into a Japanese-style garden flourishing with native and non-native flowers and exotic plants, a pond that is a habitat for turtles, frogs and goldfish, and a sheltering pine grove. A trail leads to Pocha Pond and the salt marsh.
Darci notes: “Mytoi is a quiet, soothing place that also showcases a variety of flowering plants that you just don’t see elsewhere. Mytoi was designed so you can regain your peace. As you walk on the boardwalk, the demons walk away and into the water as you continue along the path.”
Wasque (Chappaquiddick): This 200-acre land of shifting sands and changing ecologies has long been a favorite spot for fishing, birdwatching and walking the beach. The preserve features white sand beach and forests of oak and pine trees. You’ll find monarch butterflies and countless species of birds, including egrets, herons and osprey. Swimming is prohibited because of the strong undertow.
Darci notes: “Wasque is a secret to many people yet beloved by families and fishermen alike. It always feels very peaceful, with a lingering fog draping the unique sandplain grasslands and heathlands. Wasque has two parking lots making it a low-key yet stunning beach destination.”
Menemsha Hills (Chilmark): This north shore site is home to Prospect Hill – the second highest point on the Island – which offers spectacular views of Vineyard Sound and the Elizabeth Islands. Walkers and hikers in particular enjoy the varied topographies that include low wetlands, wooded groves, coastal plains, rugged cliffs and a rocky oceanfront beach. Currently the Trustees are doing a lot of work to generate new wildlife and plant habitat growth.
Darci notes: “This is a very well-loved place for hikers. You can feel very isolated – alone – in a delightful way.”
The Brickyard (Chilmark): Explore the remnants of a north shore brick factory, including its 45 foot-high chimney. The iconic image of the bright red spire of bricks against the background of stone walls, high cliffs, scrub brush, and trees, with a beach at its feet, has inspired artists to render it and visitors to ponder what it was like when the site made and shipped as many as 800,000 bricks each year. While The Trustees maintain The Brickyard as a separate reservation from its abutting property, Menemsha Hills, a hike to the Brickyard begins at the same North Road parking lot and descends along a shared path for much of the way until a fork where an Eastern spur leads to the Brickyard.
Darci notes: “What I love most about this property is that you can go for a long walk through a unique forest and then at the end you arrive at the shoreline and these cliffs and a stunning beach. That arrival is like a gift.”
The FARM Institute (Edgartown): Based at the site formerly known as Katama Farm, the windswept land on the Katama Plains is now home to a unique agricultural partnership where Slough Farm and The FARM Institute (The Trustees) share an educational lease and Morning Glory Farm and Grey Barn Farm tend it as an agricultural site. Farming, food and community is the slogan for this easily accessible site. Programming includes Barnyard Buddies for children on Saturday mornings. The site includes a professional teaching kitchen with a regular schedule of farm-to-table cooking classes.
Darci notes: “At the FARM Institute, I can walk outside and check on the baby chicks. There’s a little lamb that loves to say hello. Sometimes there’s a bunny who likes to herd the chickens. The farm is beautiful and there is so much for people to enjoy.”
Norton Point Beach (Edgartown): This beach connecting Edgartown to Chappaquiddick is a place of raw beauty offering shelter and sustenance to shorebirds and shellfish alongside a recreation spot for swimmers, beach walkers and fishermen. In winter snowy owls and buffleheaded ducks call the beach home, but in spring and summer, it’s a nesting site for piping plovers. The Trustees are conducting a large rescue and restoration project at Norton Point. Because of the fragile ecosystem, visitors are advised to check the Trustees website or social media (@trusteesmv) for alerts about sections of the beach being closed for protection of its birds and grasslands.
Darci notes: “Norton Point Beach is one of our most popular beaches. I often visit it in between meetings to inspect the shoreline — is it eroding or building up today? Norton Point Beach has great energy from people coming out for a good time on the beach: I watch our visitors enjoy sunbathing, beach games, fishing, or eating lunch.
Long Point Wildlife Refuge (West Tisbury): The journey to Long Point, on the Island’s southern shore, begins as cars travel the sandy road under open skies before entering a shaded path of trees. The woods offer flat paths that are great for walking and birdwatching; here the Trustees are doing work to protect endangered plants and prepare them for climate change. From the parking lot, you’ll walk through grasses and sand to two spots for a great beach day: a pond on one side and the ocean on the other. Programming includes pondside yoga, birding excursions and kayaking.
Darci notes: “Long Point is a nice place for families. There is access to calmer waters for the little kids but adults can go to the other side and surf or be on the beach. I’ve also enjoyed seeing how much people enjoy taking long, quiet walks through the woods and on the path that leads to the beach.”
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