Westport
Harbor
 Making
for Westport Harbor
Westport
History
Where to
Eat
Things
to See and Do
New Bedford Marine Rescue (TowBOAT/U.S.) -- New Bedford
Marine Rescue (TowBOAT/U.S.) -- Tow Service: (508) 990-3997
(BOAT/US and NBOA Tower); Channel 16 (156.8MHz), or 1-800-391-4869
Making for Westport Harbor
The entrance to Westport Harbor in the bight between Horseneck
Beach and Gooseberry Neck opens directly into the Atlantic
Ocean. Upriver, the harbor is well-protected behind the
land, but getting there is tricky.
Entering the Westport River is tricky. You should not
attempt it in rain, fog, or with a strong southerly wind
blowing, since heavy seas break on the bar at the entrance.
From the west or south, set a course for green can no.
1 and bell “WH,” southeast of Two Mile Rock. Leave can
no. 1 to port.
From the east, you can cut inside Hens and Chickens (two
mounds of rocks 0.9 nm southeast of Gooseberry Neck) or
you can skirt around them, giving black can no. 1 a wide
berth.
If you are approaching north of Hens and Chickens, leave
red nuns no. 2 and 4 to starboard, then head for red nun
no. 6, leaving it 200 yards to starboard. Resist the temptation
to cut inside red nun. No. 6 and head for daymarker 4A
- there are several treacherous three-foot spots around
the marker.
Head for lighted bell WH, which marks the beginning of
the entrance channel. Keep the daymarker at Two Mile Rock
to port and make for red nun no. 2. Pass close to green
can no. 3 at Dogfish Ledge and come within 40 or 50 feet
of red nun no. 4 at Halfmile Rock. Keep an eye on the
depth sounder, since a sandbar runs south of the buoy.
From nun no. 6, swing hard to the west to round the Knubble,
marked by a flashing green 6-second marker, no. 5. Stay
in the middle of the channel where there is plenty of
water. Mark a line from red nun no. 10 to black can no.
13 and don’t stray west, or you’ll wind up on the rocks.
There are a few transient moorings at the Spindle Rock
Yacht Club.
Here, the West Branch of the Westport River cuts to the
north - the water is shallow and spotted with mud flats.
The main channel of the harbor continues east, about 80
feet wide and running anywhere from six to 20 feet deep.
A mooring field runs in two rows east from red nun 18
to red nun 20. There is a sandbar between the two rows,
so if you head for the northern row, you’ll probably hit
bottom.
On the south shore, F. L. Tripp and Sons has the best
facilities in the harbor. Don’t go past the east end of
the pier, or you’ll hit rocks. Holding varies from sand
to mud to rocks, and the current inside Westport Harbor
runs fast at up to 2 knots. So it’s best to be safely
moored or tied up at a marina.
When leaving Westport Harbor, the tidal current rushing
out of the channel can carry a boat up onto Horseneck
Beach. It is best to motor out until well offshore.
Westport History
The town of Westport got its name from the sailors who
referred to the harbor as the “west port” or the port
where they sailed when heading west from “east port,”
which was in Maine. Some distance upriver from the harbor
is the old town of Westport, purchased in 1652 from the
Indians by Miles Standish for “ten shillings and sundry
commodities.”
During the whaling era, “Paquachuck,” as the natives referred
to Westport, became an active whaling port. Westport and
its early sister port, Eastport, Maine, were so named
because they formed the early boundaries of the Massachusetts
Bay Colony.
At the time of the Civil War, Westport became a popular
stop on the Underground Railroad, aiding many slaves in
their escape from the South over land and sea. In the
era of Prohibition, Westporters used their waterfront
to smuggle liquor, as local men, signaled from the water,
rowed through the heavy surf to load their dories with
“hooch.”
West of the Knubble (the point across from Horseneck Point)
is the village of Acoaxet (pronounced ah-cokes-et).
Emergency shoreside and marine services:
Tow services: New Bedford Marine Rescue (TowBOAT U.S.):
508-90-3997, VHF Ch. 16 (156.8 MHz), or 1-800-391-4869.
Cuttyhunk Marine, 508-991-0858 or VHF Ch. 16, 12, or 22;
Island Marine Service, Newport, RI, 401-849-4820 or VHF
Ch. 16 or 11.
Police: 911/ 508-636-3344
Fire: 911/ 508-636-2121
Radio Telephone: VHF 24, 26, 87 (New Bedford Marine Operator)
Airport: T. F. Green, Warwick, RI, 401-737-5300; New Bedford
Regional Airport: 508-991-6160
Taxi services: Sunshine Cab, Dartmouth, 508-997-5546.
Where to Eat
On the way into the harbor, you probably spotted the Back
Eddy where you can get a delightful meal and watch your
fellow boaters navigate their way into town. Other nearby
restaurants include:
Bayside, 1253 Horseneck Rd., 508-636-5882
Bittersweet Farm, 438 Main Road, 508-636-0085
CeJa’s, 140 Charlotte White Rd. Ext., 508-636-8287
Ellie’s Place, 1402 Main Road, 508-636-5590
Oriental Pearl, 576 State Road (Rte. 6), 508-675-1501
White’s, off I-195, 508-675-7185
Things to See and Do
Westport is a sandy, windswept town, peaceful and tranquil.
At Horseneck Beach, there are more than 100 campsites,
197 picnic tables, and 3.5 miles of public beach. In early
June, the annual Westport River Day sees kayaks, canoes,
and other craft heading down the river.
You can get a visitor’s permit to go quahogging or shellfishing
- call 508-636-8823. In nearby Adamsville, RI, you’ll
find the country’s oldest continuously run store, Gray’s,
off Main Street (401-635-4566), with the original soda
fountain still in use.
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