Town of Duxbury - Beach Operations - Beach Update – 8/10/2023

Duxbury Beach Access Update

August 10, 2023

CROSSOVER HOURS AND ACCESS

State Wildlife Regulators and the Duxbury Beach Reservation have informed the Town of Duxbury that with the acceptance of the Town’s Beach Enforcement Plan, coupled with the current avian locations, we are able to open Crossovers 1 and 3 as follows:

Crossover 1: 60 vehicles (30 resident and 30 non-residents)
Crossover 3: 100 vehicles (50 resident and 50 non-residents)

Crossover Hours: 8:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m.

In addition, all back road cut outs will be open EXCEPT for the first cutout on the left just before the 1st Crossover.  Due to state and federal regulations regarding avian activity, no nighttime driving is allowed on the back road after 8:00 p.m. including the cut outs and Crossover areas.

The Resident Parking Lot and Non-Resident Northern Parking Lot will be open between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 11:00 p.m. Friday - Sunday. Weekday hours: 8 a.m. to 10 p.m..

The posted speed limit is 5 MPH from the Beach Ranger Shack to Crossover 1. The posted speed limit on the back road is after Crossover 1 is 15 MPH.

Due to the unpredictability of the avian activity, access to the Crossovers is determined on a day-to-day basis and is subject to change in terms of the total number of vehicles allowed, up to and including total closure of the area.

Crossover 1 and 3 allows LEASHED dogs only where vehicles are allowed and all dog rules apply.

CROSSOVER ACCESS PROCEDURE

Crossover 1 and 3 will open at 8:00 a.m. and vehicles MUST line up behind the gate in the Resident Lot.  Only those vehicle permit holders lined up behind the gate in the resident lot will be eligible for Crossover access. Please do not drive down the backroad and line up by the crossover. This will forfeit your spot in line and you will have to go to the end of the line in the Resident Lot. At that time, 60 permitted cars (30 resident and 30 non-resident) will be escorted to Crossover 1 and 100 permitted cars (50 resident and 50 non-resident) will be escorted to Crossover 3.

Once on the beach, cars must park close to one another to ensure the maximum access for other vehicles.  Please be sure to follow all directions from the Duxbury Beach Rangers closely as they will be on the beach directing on-beach parking and ensuring compliance with the regulations.  Driving is not allowed either north or south of the allotted parking spots due to avian activity in those areas.  Violations could result in the shutdown of the crossover(s).

Once access is full at the Crossovers, permitted vehicles may line up in the small lot behind the guard shack, on a first-come, first-served basis.  This small area has a capacity of only 20 vehicles - 10 resident and 10 non-resident permitted vehicles.  Please understand that there is no means to determine how long permitted vehicles will need to wait in the small lot behind the guard shack, or if visitors will gain access based on the “one-off / one-on” policy.

Typically, as a result of higher demand, beach access can become limited between during peak hours (approximately 9:00 or 10:00 a.m. until approximately 2:00 or 3:00 p.m.).  Once limitations on the beach are in place as a result of avian activity, and higher demand for access is created as a result of warmer weather, earlier arrival times by beach patrons may help to gain access.  We hope that this information will help to illustrate the importance of arriving early since access is provided on a first-come, first-served basis and can matter greatly if the weather is favorable for beach-going conditions.

Please be sure to monitor our Twitter feed for the most up-to-date information including any changes to vehicular capacity or operational updates:  https://twitter.com/BeachDuxbury

We understand that this limited access is far from what is preferred however, we are doing all we can to provide over sand access whenever possible.  We also know that it may be frustrating for those permit holders who do not gain beach access when they would like, but we ask that all beach patrons please be respectful to all of the Rangers and Monitors who are working on Duxbury Beach. 

Thank you for your patience and cooperation as we continue to work to maintain as much pedestrian and OSV access as possible while managing protected species.