Customer Reviews

Sea Kayaking Coastal Massachusetts: From Newburyport to Buzzard's Bay

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I really liked this book. Not only were there a large number of well-researched trips, but there were lots of extras that made the book a great resource.

The first section of the book is a review of basic kayaking information. Having read this type of information before, I nonetheless found Ms. Evans' text easy to read and helpful. I particularly liked her treatment of hypothermia, one of the main hazards of sea kayaking.

The main section of this book consists of 42 carefully detailed trips. Each one begins with a overview of important information about tides, local hazards, and NOAA charts. One of the things I liked about the text was that Ms. Evans wasn't afraid to include a few subjective statements like: "Nauset Marsh is one of the most beautiful places in Massachusetts for paddling serene, unspoiled, and protected water." I found these comments helpful in making trip choices.

In addition to trip details, Ms. Evans includes quite a bit of information about local access, conservation and environmental issues. Information such as why horseshoe crabs are important, why over-development harms local waters (nitrogen overloading causes oxygen depletion), and why the preservation of salt marshes is so important (they give food and shelter to 2/3rds of all commercially valuable fish and shellfish). It makes sense that Ms. Evans knows about these issues since she practices environmental law in Boston.

All in all a valuable resource for Massachusetts paddlers.