Welcome
Friends of Sengekontacket, Inc.
Friends of Sengekontacket, Inc. is a not for profit organization formed for the sole purpose of protecting Sengekontacket Pond, its barrier beach, Joseph Sylvia State Beach, and Trapps' Pond.
Sengekontacket Pond is a tidally influenced coastal pond located immediately landward of the Joseph Sylvia State/Edgartown Beach. The western end of the Pond is in the Town of Oak Bluffs and the eastern portion is in the Town of Edgartown. Consult a map for the actual town boundary, but it approximately runs from the “Big Bridge” on the Beach Road to Major’s Cove on the mainland shore.
The pond is 745 acres in area and about 2.5 miles in length. Pond water is flushed twice daily through two inlets in a tidal interchange with Nantucket Sound. Depths range from approximately 8 feet above mean low water at two inlet bridges to 6-8 feet in the channels in the interior of the pond.
About one-half of the pond consists of flats and sand bars which can be used for commercial and recreational shell fishing. Salt marshes fringe most of the ponds shoreline, particularly along the mainland shore and Trapp’s Pond to the Northeast which is connected to Sengekontacket through a culvert under Beach Road.
Small islands in the pond are important nesting sites for shorebirds such as terns. People kayak and canoe in Sengekontacket, picnic on the protected shores, and scallop, clam, and windsurf its waters. The surrounding landscape includes private residences, a golf course, and conservation property on the island side and a heavily traveled scenic roadway and a popular swimming beach on the Nantucket Sound side.
Friends of Sengekontacket was formed when for the first time in 1988 the pond was closed to shell fishing due to high coliform counts. Since that time we have assessed the foundations of Sengekontacket's natural ecosystems, identifying threats to water quality, and initiating long range planning based on a scientific database.
Sengekontacket Sunrise at Major's Cove by Don Cullivan ©2006
Friends of Sengekontacket, Inc.
PO Box 740
Edgartown, MA 02539
Telephone: 508 627 6966
Fax: 508 627 5833
Email: friends@sengekontacket.org
Website: www.sengekontacket.org