Rose Island Lighthouse
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- Category: Anchoring Your Boat with Style
- Published on Friday, 02 September 2011 21:01
- Written by George Boase
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Rose Island is a well known landmark in Rhode Island. It's also a great anchorage.
I recently spent the day at Rose Island to write an article for New England Magazine. I knew there was a posted anchorage area there, what I didn't know is there are two almost hidden mooring buoys. They're not the usual type of buoy and that throws people off.
Rose Island is a remarkable place. Close to land and small, it's never the less miles and centuries out of the mainstream. If you happen to enjoy history, there's more than enough here to keep you entertained for weeks or even months. Never mind a short weekend or overnight stay.
History begins on the Island during the American Revolution with remenants of the original fortifications still remaining. In fact the lighthouse itself was built in the 1870s atop a circular foundation of the fort.
During WWII the island was used by the Navy as an isolated location to store and work with high explosives used in torpedo manufacture. Fortunately there was never a mishap so the lighthouse and all the other historical buildings survived. Parts of the old Navy pier remain, although I have no personal experience in tying up there. I can't vouch for the depth or safety there.
The lighthouse first floor is open to the public and is exactly the same as it was when a keeper lived there in 1912. In most museums, there are signs all over the place telling you to keep your hands off the displays. Here, they encourage you to sit in the chairs, use the hand pumped sinks, heft the kitchen utensiles and you can even arrange to sleep overnight in the bedrooms.
Besides being a museum, the island is also a wildlife preserve for nesting seabirds. Keep in mind that from April to August 14th, much of the north end of the island is off limits to humans. There's still plenty of the 18 acres to explore and no shortage of history to explore. You can of course also kayak around the island if you want to observe the nesting areas.
The island is totally green. The electric for the lighthouse is generated from wind with a diesel backup. Water comes by way of a cistern that collects rainwater. The house pumps are hand pumps. The moorings, anchorages and even the dock has no electric or water and non is available on the entire island. When people visit for overnight or week stays, they bring drinking water with them. You would be advised to be well stocked if you plan to anchor there for any period of time. I would also note there is a $4 landing fee. Tours from 10 am to 4 pm are free and take around an hour to complete.
There are no fees for anchoring or mooring. The only mooring I would advise using is the one on the Newport side of the docks. That's the side the lighthouse launch uses. The other side of the dock is used by the water taxi. This is not a foul weather anchorage. I wouldn't advise using it in anything other than fairly calm situations. Having said that, it does offer some pretty decent holding with plenty of room and there is almost never anyone there. Probably because most people don't even know about it.
Another thing most people don't know about is, the dock used by the foundation launch is open from after 4:15 pm until 10:00 am. The official position is that the dock is not for public use. The chances of someone complaining are slim to none. There's no one other than those staying overnight in the lighthouse and they are guests too. If you happen to be spending the night in the lighthouse, you're welcome to use the docks during these hours. In fact they have kayaks and fishing equipment for guests to use during their stay. The majority of the time, the docks and moorings are free to use and the anchorage is always available.
If you have a shallow draft, using the dock as reference, the front part of the dock is 3 feet with the end of the dock being 6 feet. That depth continues along the beach allowing for yachts to anchor very close to the beach. It's not difficult to head bow in and walk a few feet in shallow water to shore. Definitely use a stern anchor to prevent swing.
Rose Island is one of the more interesting places to anchor and visit. What amazes me is how under-utilized it is. I hope I'm not ruining that by telling everyone.
