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South Beach/Monomoy Fuse???

4K views 31 replies 15 participants last post by  Paxton 
#1 ·
#2 ·
Thanks Fred... I would think that will not happen... any dredging is alowed... by the town..up by Chatham harbor , near tern island area... as long as the harbor has access... a dredging of the Southway does not seem to make sens..nor does it have any presidence.... If there is a merge..which is great for beach fishermen... the boaters will still have the tub and the the crib (although less currents will be evident), and ... the light house area with the closing in up to the channel may become a great area . Just my guess
 
#3 ·
Dear God,

I promise to be a very, very good man for the rest of my life. Please may I have the land bridge between South Beach and Monomoy?

And while we are at it, how about a crossing to South Monomoy as well.

Thank you

Your humble servant

;)
 
#4 ·
Juro...I think that's waht they mean... the steady unmistakable southward progression of south beach is aimed straight at south Monomoy...not north monomoy.... it is the entrance of the southway that would be closed up smack into the north tip of south monomoy.
 
#6 ·
Fish don't always lie in perfect long-cast-lies situations. I find more times they are where my casting position is highly restricted. Just cursious to see how other fishers handle these fishing situations.
My memory isn't all that great any longer, but I could swear that the water flowing out of Pleasant Bay/Chatnam Beach is pushing further and further south into the South Beach connector every year.
 
#8 ·
South Beach cut looking north...

While South Beach is getting close to South Monomoy, the channel that separates them is deep and the amount of water that passed through this cut is swift and substantial.
IMHO...Considering the flow, I can't see this "closing" any time soon.

The connection between North and South Monomoy is another issue...The relatively narrow channel that separates them has been getting tighter and the area shallower...the restriction is limiting flow and, at some spots, you can almost walk across at low tide.

I haven't seen the results of last weeks nor'eastah...
Change is inevitable and Mo' Nature is ALWAYS in charge!
(despite what we may think!):eek:
 

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#9 ·
A look south from over Morris Island...

At one point in time the Monomoys were one and attached to Morris Island...
Always changing...lots of shallows...channels filling...
WESHALLSEE!
 

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#10 ·
Pete... Absent any extrodinary occurances...the southerly drift of sand on south beach will push that sand up into the tub as a result of thet deep channel you mention... from there to the south of the crib will start to fill in is my guess... so access to south monomoy MAY be just south of the Crib...and north a bit from the entrance of the south way... after that.... the south tip of south beach will have an undistrerbed path further down south monomoy. So. I agree that the southerly push will not immediatly make it though that deep channel... but continue to create a "ball"..much like the expansion of the south tip of south Monomoy...That ball will hit south monomoy from south beach at some point...but I think access will be further north as the sand tavels around the south tip of south beach... look at the old pictures of the south tip of south monomoy... small spit into a large ball because of those currents similar to the one that is at the southway enterance right now...only my guess from looking at the nature of the sand drifts.
 
#12 ·
Lighthouse island connection...

Does anyone think that the newly formed island in front of the lighthouse may fuse with the mainland..? It appears that it could happen. That would provide access to fish that deep channel by the north cut and the shallow flats on the southern side.

Also, the channel between the monomoys, I have crossed it on several occasions the last few years(only to fish for a short period of time & once to help a stuck clammer).

More than one guide in the area has told me that the area fishes quite poorly as opposed to 10 yrs ago. The reason was lack of structure on the flats(flats getting flatter). I recall 3 yrs ago a great curved ridge about 18" high that curved on the west side of North for a good 50yds. You could stand there on top and watch fish after fish some days swim right along that ridge on either side of the moving water. The next year it was gone....
 
#13 ·
S.W.U.R.V. report...

There was a minor opportune intel gathering sortie today...
Out and about in the SWURV (Small White Urban Recon Vehicle) and I stopped by the Light (Chatham) for a looksee...
Timing was poor as the tide was HIGH...full moon...not optimal...I shall return...
The "shoal" right in front of the LightHouse beach was under water and VERY close...shoals out far looked about like last year...
There was a moon tide high but, in years past, there would still be some dry/damp sand out there...Not today!
I couldn't get a good look at the right corner bowl due to the high water...The wind brisk, the air salty sweet...
'Blitz in progress (NOT!)...in my dreams!...
The tombolo that separates the light house beach from the tub...Not much change from last year.
I'll have a much better story to tell when I can get down there during LOW tide...Next time...Soon!...

In 4 months I'll be doing this armed with a sillystick!
 
#14 ·
Interesting and getting interestinger.

I am no geologist but I kinda doubt south beach and south monomoy could fuse without some other breach forming somewhere else first.

The basis for my argument is that there is too much "push" from the oceanside coming into the channel, far more than is present from the Nantucket Sound side, to close without some other force pushing the sand around from the "inside" as it were.

The force of the tides in and out between south beach and south monomoy is the main event and of great magnitude.

Another hypothetical way of looking at it is if the sand mass on SB moves south to close the inlet, then that vacates a lot of sand further north where the spit is quite narrow. Something's gotta give as they say.

From a beach angler's perspective to isolate from SB that has shifted to the south would be horrible... but then again it depends on what forms from the more active currents that would emerge closer to the parking lot. It could be very positive in that it would cut 2-4 miles of rather uneventful walking out of the average outing.

I guess I am very thankful for the incessant shifting of the sands, it makes each season full of discovery and it makes a shore guide more valuable to clients provided he is on top of the lay of the land in any given season or wake of any storm.

One things for sure it will be a very different place in a decade!

Yozuriman, I agree North Monomoy had moments of grandeur last season but for the most part was a dud in the usual places. The channel structures facing east from the north channel and tip down to the high banks was excellent however, much better than usual. Most people just walk right by.

I think the biggest difference last year to note was the absence of sand eels in shore, whether on the beach side or the flats. When they made an occasional push inside there were loads of fish with them. Most of the time they were 1-3 miles or more on the outside.

Another anomalie was the behavior of seals, herding stripers in a cattle drive manner right up to the beach - sometimes right to our feet. I'd not seen this before last year, most likely related to the lack of other food sources up inside.

We are so lucky to have such a gem of a fishing ground right there a short hop from Squires. Lots of great places to chase stripers but I will always be a Chatham Angler in my heart!
 
#15 ·
What follows is partly fact and partly anecdotal. Perhaps someone here can debunk or corroborate.

On Nantucket during the Perfect Storm of 1991, the tide washed through the long sand spit known as the Galls at the north end of the island, separating Great Point and the lighthouse from the rest of ACK. Now comes the hearsay. Apparently the federal, state, and local officials went up to the new channel and stood around wringing their hands and wondering what to do as the water rushed by. A couple of days later, some island fishermen roped together a bunch of old truck tires the width of the new channel. At slack tide that night, they rowed across the channel towing the line of tires and anchored the line on either side of the opening. Apparently the impoundment was enough to start sand building up and within weeks if not days, the gap was closed.

So if you guys really want a land bridge, maybe it's time for some midnight reconaissance and a little guerilla tire positioning. Just a thought. . .
 
#18 ·
Getting CLOSE!

The "shoal" (island?) directly in front of the Light (Chatham)...
At low tide you can send out a phly and have it land on damp sand! (12Dec03...0800 low tide)
 

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#23 ·
One More Day Dream Eye Candy...

The flatzz between Morris Island (left) and N Monomoy (right)...
Pretty skinny water last year!...

Way back when...joined together (as was N & S Monomoy)...that made for one long deathmarch/peninsula!
Who would'a thunk!?
Always changing and always a suprise!

For a little prospective...
Looks like Capt Keith driving the RipTyder past the Common Flats?!:eyecrazy:
 

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#24 ·
So much of what happens here is dependant on what goes on at Nauset.The beach is getting pretty thin in a couple of places and could breach in any big blow, creating another inlet. The lobe at the end of Nauset has been growing bigger every year and if the beach breaks we could end up with another land bridge at the stone wall. It never ceases to amaze me the changes from one year to the next.
Slinger
 
#26 ·
From MIT...

I love this shot!!! (taken from a bit higher than a certain '46 Cessna taildragger can get even on a good day)...

Look familiar?! A bit out a' date but it's a DOOZIE!
 

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