Norton Point Beach

A barrier beach connecting South Beach to Chappaquiddick, accessible by 4WD with a Trustees permit. Remote Atlantic beach with excellent surf fishing. One of the wildest stretches of sand on the Vineyard.

Norton Point is the slim, ever-shifting barrier beach that connects (and occasionally separates from) Chappaquiddick to the main island, running east from South Beach across Katama Bay to Wasque Point. Access is by 4WD only with a Trustees of Reservations Over-Sand Vehicle permit, and even then it's strictly seasonal and weather-dependent — the beach periodically breaches through, cutting Chappy off from Edgartown by car. For visitors with the right vehicle and patience to get the permit, the reward is a stretch of Atlantic coast nearly devoid of buildings, with world-class surfcasting for stripers and blues, nesting plovers and oystercatchers, and the only legal driving-on-sand experience on the Vineyard. Without a permit you can hike in from the Katama end. Bring water, sunscreen, and respect for the closures — every nesting season some sections are roped off.