# Moving to Newburyport, MA



## Yorkshire (Jul 23, 2018)

I have been sailing for five years with Courageous Sailing in Boston, MA. This is a wonderful organization that teaches both kids and adults to sail. It has a fleet of various sizes from lasers to cruisers. I mainly sail the Rhodes19 or J22 in the harbor. Once a member you just book a boat and sail it - no ownership or maintenance. 

In February 2019 my wife (a non sailor) and I will be moving to Newburyport, MA. I am not planning on buying a yacht (perhaps a small motorboat, which my wife will go on), but will be looking for opportunities to crew and race on any yacht. Courageous is great, but the drive to and from Boston is not - and senseless when living a half mile from the water.


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## SeaStar58 (Feb 14, 2018)

I spent a good deal of my youth on Plum Island and across the way in Salisbury. You do need to be careful of the tides as the current on the Merrimack river will pull the navigational aids under during the spring thaw and during heavy tides. Many would say if you plan to put out there you need a minimum 25 foot boat and plenty of power or be prepared to wait for the tidal flow to ease.

The current can be raging going under the Bridge Street Bridge and there use to be a large navigational buoy near the North end of the bridge on the seaward side that could be a hazard when it got pulled under. I haven't been back there in 30 years so hopefully they have done something about that particular one.

Have you checked out the evacuation procedure regarding incidents at the Seabrook Nuclear Power Station? The plan when I was there involved trying to make the drive to a decontamination station in Andover Massachusetts in 30 minutes or less. Note that when the beaches are full it can take 45 minutes just to get to the entrance ramp on rte 495 so that plan was totally unworkable. Newburyport is well within the Seabrook Station Emergency Planning Zone.

Check out the current information below and be sure to get your emergency kit in order including your Potassium Iodide. The current plan appears to put the decontamination center at the Masconomet Regional School (20 Endicott Rd, Boxford, MA):
https://www.mass.gov/info-details/seabrook-nuclear-power-station

https://www.mass.gov/service-details/build-an-emergency-kit

They appear to have made it possible to navigate all the way to Haverhill from Newburyport too:
https://www.necn.com/news/new-england/Newly-Discovered-Merrimack-River-Channel-482852761.html

You may want to check out the American Yacht Club for sailing too:
American Yacht Club :: Location of the AYC


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## eherlihy (Jan 2, 2007)

gosailingapp.com


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## Bleemus (Oct 13, 2015)

Very nice crowd at the American Yacht Club in Newburyport. Introduce yourself and you will be sailing whenever you want.


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