thacher island boat tour

Thacher Island

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Introduction

Thacher Island gets its name from one of the earliest and still more poignant shipwrecks on the Massachusetts coast. In August of 1635 two young families sailed from Ipswich in a small pinnace bound for Marblehead, just over 25 miles away. John Avery was the newly appointed pastor in that already notorious town — “because many there (the most being fishermen) were something remiss in their behavior.” Avery’s cousin Anthony Thacher was aboard, along with the two men’s wives, their ten children, and other relatives, passengers, and four mariners, for a total of twenty-three.

According to Thacher’s account in a letter to his brother in London, two days into the voyage (!) the pinnace’s old sails blew out, and the sailors anchored for the night.

But before light it pleased the Lord to send so mighty a storm as the like was never known in New England since the English came, nor in the memory of the Indians. It was so furious that our anchors came home. Whereupon the mariners let out more cable which at last slipped away. Then our sailors knew not what to do, but we were driven before wind and waves.

The pinnace fetched up on a small rocky island just east of Cape Ann, where:

The waves came furiously and violently over us and against us. . . but beat her all to pieces. Now. . . consider my misery who beheld the ship broken. . . my goods and provisions swimming in the seas, my friends almost drowned, and mine own poor children. . . before mine eyes drown and ready to be swallowed up and dashed to pieces against the rocks by the merciless waves, and myself ready to accompany them. {all quotations ECP pp.6-7}

In the event, Thacher and his wife Elizabeth washed ashore and survived. All ten children from the two families were drowned, along with the other adults, and the sailors.

Afterwards, with an act of almost cruelly ironic generosity, the Massachusetts General Court gave to the Thachers the title to the island which still bears their name.

The identical north and south towers on Thacher Island are the last remaining example of twin lights on the Atlantic coast. Once an important method of distinguishing between nearby locations, twin lights became obsolete as rotating, timed flashes served the purpose more efficiently. In fact, when the current lights on Thacher were built to replace deteriorating twins in the 1860s, the justification for a second tower was described as “entirely sentimental” and ascribed to “Cape Ann conservatism.” {ECP, p.97}

“. . . this island and its twin lights are the keys to Boston Harbor.”

This observation by an agent of the Portland Steam Packet Company in 1853 {ECP, p.48} must have been at least half true throughout the great ages of both sail and steam navigation. Boston-bound vessels from the Gulf of Maine, the Canadian Maritimes, and northern Europe would all pass close by Cape Ann. Just as the lights at Minots and Little Brewster guided mariners into Boston from the south, the lights on Thacher did the same from the north, as they still do today.

Arriving from the south, you can cross the bar between Milk and Thacher Islands with about 10 feet at low. Run a course to or from the nun on Oak Rock to keep in the deepest water.

The jumble of ledges north of the island and outside Sandy Bay are mostly visible and well enough marked for clear weather but can be tricky to navigate in the dark or fog.

East of Thacher is the low-lying “Londoner”, marked by a not-very-distinctive pole. The rocks are covered at most tides and break only slightly in fair weather, but there is plenty of deep water to pass between the island and the ledge.

The north tower sits on land that is now a National Wildlife Sanctuary. The light was decommissioned in the 1930s; today it shows a privately maintained fixed yellow light.

This pole sits on the Londoner, a ledge just east of Thacher Island. Most first-time navigators to the area have trouble identifying the beacon on the water and finding it on the chart.

The obvious spot to anchor, just west of the boat ramp in the middle of the island, is off limits; it’s a cable area that’s been in use for over a hundred years. Otherwise, the water around Thacher is either deep, steep, and rocky or completely exposed. This is not a place you’ll feel comfortable anchoring and leaving the boat.

There are a couple moorings for visitors just off the boat ramp with at least 10 feet of water at low. The island’s keepers request that you call ahead before picking one up to be sure it’s available

The moorings are a great convenience for a short island visit, but they are too exposed for an overnight stay.

Not for navigation. Charts are not updated. 

Going ashore.

The northern part of Thacher is a Federal Wildlife Sanctuary and the southern part is owned by the Town of Rockport. In the center, near the south tower, is the (private) caretaker’s cottage with an adjacent small but nicely executed museum focused on island and lighthouse history. There are also a handful of reservable campsites. A system of trails emanating from the boat ramp provides access to most of the island.

Thacher is home to a good-sized seagull population. During their nesting season from May through July they are very aggressive defending their eggs and their fledgling, still-flightless chicks. As you get much away from the center of the island the gulls get denser and the trails less hospitable — especially when there is a gull chick hopping along the trail ahead of you

Pulling a kayak up the boat ramp.

A narrow railroad and wooden path helped move supplies from the boat ramp to the buildings inland.

One hour ashore.

An hour is about right to tour the island.

Off the Beaten Path

Most evidence of current and prior human activity on Thacher is concentrated in the triangle bounded by the north tower, the south tower, and the boat ramp. Follow trails off to the southwest corner of the island to reach an area that’s been allowed to grow in more “naturally”. But be prepared — the gulls are if possible even more vociferous down here.

Maritime History

The original twin lights were first lit in 1771, under direction of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Cape Ann Light Station was, depending on how you count, the tenth or eleventh or twelfth light in what is now the United States, and the last established in the colonial era.

Visiting Thacher in the fog and rain of a northeaster would give you a heightened sense of its historic role. But the little museum can only offer fifteen minutes or so of indoor distraction.

Land your dinghy on the boat ramp, then pull it up the ramp and off to the side. Groups of kayaks frequently paddle to the island from Rockport, and a custom landing boat makes regular visits as well, so the ramp must be kept clear.

There is a restroom off the museum’s gallery and a privy near the campsites.

Fitting Out

There are no supplies or services on the island.

Island Keeper 617.599.2590

Thacher Island Association TIA is a non-profit dedicated to the preservation and upkeep of the island. [email protected]

If you have updated information, corrections, or contributions to this harbor, please share them below. Comments are moderated by Boston Sailing Center. 

Thank you for this detailed and fascinating guide to Thacher Island! I especially appreciate the history, navigational information and beautiful photos. We very much hope to visit by sail.

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A visit to Thacher Island, where tragedy and beauty meet

Located about a mile offshore from rockport, it is open to the public and rich in seafaring history.

In 1635, Englishman Anthony Thacher was sailing his vessel, the Watch and Wait, around a small island off the coast of Massachusetts, when a nasty, quick-moving storm hit. The Watch and Wait was wrecked, and 21 people perished, including Thacher’s five children. Thacher’s cousin the Reverend Joseph Avery, and his wife and six children, also died. The only survivors were Thacher and his wife, Elizabeth.

The General Court gave Thacher the island “at the head of Cape Ann” in sympathy and to help compensate for his losses. The small outcropping was dubbed Thacher’s Woe, and, understandably, he didn’t want much to do with it.

Today, Thacher Island, located about a mile offshore from Rockport, is open to the public, and a lovely place to visit, rich in seafaring history and abundant scenic beauty. The 52-acre island is home to two towering, pre-Civil War lighthouses, lightkeepers’ homes, a small museum, a wildlife refuge, and 3 miles or so of trails. US Fish and Wildlife Service owns part of it; the rest is under the stewardship of the town of Rockport. But it’s the all-volunteer Thacher Island Association that maintains the trails and buildings and raises the funds necessary to continue its preservation.

We visited on a late spring day, before the visitor season kicked off, traveling with a group of volunteers and a cage of chickens (fresh eggs for the island’s volunteer summer staff). It was a choppy, 15-minute or so ride aboard a rectangular-shaped steel boat, resembling a tiny D-Day landing craft, with a ramp that folded down for easy access and egress. We listened to the friendly chatter of the crew, talk of families and friends and projects that needed to be completed on the island before the season started.

About the island volunteer crew: These are mostly seasoned folks, who have been dedicated to the island’s preservation for years. The Thacher Island Association was formed in 1981 to raise funds to save, restore, and maintain the island. At the time, it was destined to be abandoned, and its lighthouses and buildings destroyed. The Coast Guard, which owned it at the time, was done with it. Today, about 75 volunteers put in hours of work each year, including lighthouse keepers, boat crews, maintenance and project workers, fund-raisers, and docents who are on island during the summer to guide visitors.

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“We’re just a bunch of old men and women playing,” one volunteer on the island told us later, as he sanded and painted a door to the keeper’s house. “But we’ve been at it a long time.”

Paul St. Germain, president of the Thacher Island Association for 23 years and author of “Twin Lights of Thacher Island, Cape Ann,” had agreed to show us around. Our first stop was the keeper’s houses, now housing a small museum of artifacts, furniture, and photos that help tell the story of Thacher Island. There are two renovated keeper’s houses on the island.

“At one time, in the late 1800s, five families were living out here, with 13 kids,” St. Germain said. “The keepers would have to row the kids across Loblolly Cove and then walk a mile to get to school.”

If the weather turned bad, they’d stay at a boarding house on the mainland, sometimes up to a week. Eventually, the town of Rockport provided an on-island teacher, who didn’t last long, as she ran off with an assistant keeper to be married and live at another lighthouse.

We continued to the south tower and climbed the spiraling stairs to the top of the 125-foot tower. The parapet was closed for repairs, but we still had gorgeous views through windows and doors. On clear days, you can see Mount Agamenticus in Maine to the north and the Boston skyline to the south.

Twin lighthouses were originally built on Thacher Island in 1771. They were the last lighthouses built under British rule in the colonies and known as the Cape Ann Light Station. They marked the ends of the dangerous Londoner Ledge, and guided mariners safely around the island. Eventually the federal government and the Coast Guard took over the island and new towers were built in 1861. These still stand today, and the Cape Ann Light Station, including the towers and historical buildings, are designated a National Historic Landmark.

We walked along partially restored tram tracks, once used to haul supplies and coal to the lighthouses, and then headed out to the southern edge of the island, walking along Annie’s Way trail. We had company, lots of company! The proprietary seagulls were everywhere, protecting their nests and roosting territory. We walked past several nesting great black-backed gulls, the largest gulls in the world, and were serenaded (and dive-bombed) by others as we meandered the easy-to-do trail.

At one fork, St. Germain led us down a side trail simply marked Grave, to a pile of stones. “We believe this could be a grave of a Thacher child,” St. Germain said. “We’ve read Thacher’s writings, and he describes the location of this site. We’ll get an archeologist out here to confirm it someday.”

Back on the trail, we headed to the edge of the island, with a steep drop-off to a rocky beach and open ocean. We had views out to Milk Island, where cows once grazed, and watched a lobster boat crew set traps.

“We keep losing the island,” St. Germain said, pointing down the cliff and to the obvious results of erosion.

But for now, the island remains for us (and the seagulls) to enjoy.

If you go . . .

Thacher Island Association offers boat trips to the island Wednesdays and Saturdays, June through August ($30 adults, $10 under 12). Trips are limited to six people at a time, with a two-hour stay on the island. Docents are available to offer information and guidance. You can also take your own kayaks and dinghies to the island ($5 landing fee) and there’s a small, rustic campground (donation of $5 per night, per person is suggested). Trips are also offered on Tuesday mornings to Straitsmouth Island, a nearby 31-acre island, largely owned by Mass Audubon and maintained as a wildlife refuge, and home to a historic 1896 lighthouse.

Diane Bair and Pamela Wright can be reached at [email protected]

Thacher Island National Wildlife Refuge

National wildlife refuges offer us all a chance to unplug from the stresses of daily life and reconnect with our natural surroundings. Located just thirty miles north of Boston, Thacher Island NWR is home to herring and great black-backed gulls. Established in 1972 to provide feeding, resting and nesting habitat for migratory birds, the refuge claims the northern 22-acres of the 52-acre island, located approximately one mile off the coast of Rockport, Massachusetts. Thacher Island also has a rich cultural history, perhaps best symbolized by the twin lighthouses that continue to grace its rocky landscape.

Visitors to the refuge and island can walk along three miles of trails. Wildlife viewing and photography are popular pursuits. It is also possible to climb to the top of one of the lighthouse towers, where commanding views of the island and surrounding ocean makes the climb worth the effort!

A system of trails crisscross the island, traversing both refuge and town land. In all, there are about three miles of trails to enjoy.

Related Documents

This is the trail map and guide for Thacher Island National Wildlife Refuge.

Other Facilities in the Complex

Rules and Policies

We hope you enjoy your day exploring Thacher Island National Wildlife Refuge, which covers the northern third of Thacher Island.  Please obey these regulations for Thacher Island NWR to help protect the island's historic features and wildlife.

There are no refuge buildings on the island.

Although there are scenic trails on both the refuge and town-owned portion of the island, the refuge does not currently provide public access to the island. The island is accessible by kayak or small boats (under appropriate weather and sea conditions). During the summer months the Thacher Island Association operates a boat out of Rockport. Contact the Association at Box 73, Rockport, MA 01966.

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Thacher Island Twin Lights

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A Beacon Among Shipwrecks: Thacher Island

Thacher Island , located just off the coast of Rockport, is a tiny piece of land with a huge past. This island is not just any island; it boasts the distinction of being home to the only twin lighthouses still in operation in North America. Perched on the east side of Cape Ann, just south of Rockport’s Sandy Bay, Thacher Island has witnessed centuries of maritime lore and tales of tragedy.

Its name was etched into history in 1635 when the Thacher family, journeying from Ipswich to Marblehead, was ensnared by a fierce storm that wrecked their vessel upon the unforgiving rocks surrounding the island. Out of the 23 passengers and their children, only Anthony Thacher and his wife emerged as survivors. A cruel twist of fate, given that Thacher Island lies less than a mile from mainland Rockport.

Today, Thacher Island, with its iconic twin lighthouses and structures, is designated as a National Historic Landmark by the National Park Service. This honor recognizes the island’s profound impact on the nation’s maritime history. A substantial restoration effort took place in the summer of 2002, breathing new life into the brick two-story duplex assistant keepers’ quarters and a guest apartment. The town now rents the guest apartment, generating income that fuels further restoration endeavors.

A self-guided driving tour of Thacher Island is a unique experience. You can reach it by boat, and the island provides three moorings adjacent to its boat ramp. To secure a mooring, it’s advisable to contact the keeper of the island in advance, as they operate on a first-come, first-served basis.

Speaking of exploration, Cape Ann itself is a treasure trove of maritime history, and embarking on a self-guided driving tour like Cape Ann Harbor Tours can be a splendid way to uncover its secrets. Discover the region’s rich maritime heritage, explore coastal communities, and delve into the stories of resilience and courage that define this area.

So, why wait? Dive into the maritime history of Cape Ann, explore Thacher Island, and soak in the tales of shipwrecks and lighthouses that have shaped this coastal wonder.

For more suggestions, check out our  Massachusetts Self-Guided Driving and Walking Tours Bundle,  or subscribe to Action+  for unlimited access to over 100 other tours for a single yearly price.

Essential Travel Guide:

• Halibut Point State Park: A Family Adventure by the Coast
• What are the must-try coastal dishes in Cape Ann?

What is the big difference between a Cape Cod and Cape Ann?

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Boat Tour To Thatcher Island

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June 10, 2023 - August 26, 2023

If you are looking for things to do in Rockport, MA consider taking a boat tour to Thatcher Island during your next stay with us at Atlantis Oceanfront Inn hotel in Gloucester. The boat tour to Thatcher Island runs June through August and tickets for the Boat Tour To Thatcher Island for the 2023 season can be found on their website.

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Our Tour Guides

Our students are true thacher experts. here, this year's head tour guides discuss favorite classes, boarding school life, and what to know before joining thacher’s unique community..

Robinson '24

Francesca '24

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