Essex National Heritage Area Opens Bakers Island Boat Tours for a Third Season

View of Bakers Island, Essex National Heritage Area

NPS Photo

On June 17, Essex National Heritage Area (NHA) kicked off its third summer season with guided boat tours to Bakers Island Light Station. For twelve weeks from opening day through September 4 (Labor Day), a military style landing craft named the Naumkeag will disembark passengers on the beach at Bakers Island, a 60-acre island with a large summer colony in Salem Sound, MA. The 10-acre light station is located in the northwest quadrant of the island, and was owned and operated by the U.S. Coast Guard from 1798 until 2014 when the NHA took over stewardship of the site. The rest of the island is in private ownership; the Naumkeag, operated by Essex NHA, presents the only avenue for public access. Visitors can take a guided tour of the property, learn about its unique history, hike newly cut trails, play croquet and bocce, have a picnic, or just relax and enjoy the view.

“We are delighted to open up the light station for the third season and to welcome the new volunteer lightkeepers, Dave and Janet” said Annie C. Harris, Essex Heritage CEO. “We have new trips and experiences planned for this summer including lobster tours, en plein air painting trips, and wild edibles hikes.”

The Naumkeag transports visitors and delivers supplies to Bakers Island

Essex National Heritage Area

These summer excursions are the product of more than a decade of collaboration and negotiations between the heritage area, U.S. Coast Guard, and the National Park Service (NPS). In 2000, Congress passed the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act, recognizing the importance of lighthouses and light stations to maritime traffic and the historical, cultural, recreational, and educational value of these iconic properties. Shortly after, Essex NHA applied for stewardship of Bakers Island Light Station, and worked with Salem Maritime National Historic Site to obtain the Naumkeag. Following a decision to bar private landings on the island, acquiring the boat was a crucial step to making this historic resource available to the public; it is a large, open vessel with a bow front that drops down so passengers can walk directly onto the stone beach, circumventing the need for a dock. The first public tour of Bakers Island Light Station was held in 2015.

Peter Samuel, NPS Program Manager of the National Heritage Areas Program in the Northeast Region, joined the Regional Chief of Cultural Resources Shaun Eyring and NHA Director Annie Harris for a visit to the light station in mid-June, just before the official opening to summer visitors.

“Essex NHA’s stewardship of the Bakers Island Light Station is a wonderful example of the creative ways National Heritage Areas are engaging the public in historic preservation. We are excited to see how this program will grow.” Peter Samuel, Program Manager, NPS National Heritage Areas Program in the Northeast Region

(Left to right) Executive Director of Essex NHA Annie Harris, and NPS Staff Shaun Eyring and Peter Samuel aboard the Naumkeag just off the shore of Bakers Island

NPS Photo

Regular trips to Bakers Island Light leave twice a day from the dock adjacent to the Salem Ferry Landing. Trips depart at 10:30 am and 2:00 pm on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday for a 2 ½ hour adventure. The Salem Ferry Landing is located at 10 Blaney Street, Salem MA, just past the House of the Seven Gables. Free parking is available next to the dock.

Tickets are available for purchase online, and at the NPS Regional Visitor Center located at 2 New Liberty St, Salem.