I vote for a "FREE anchorages" sticky... there aren't many left and the few there are can be hard to find. ... I thought about just adding info to the Wiki and pushing for others to do the same but I think a lot of this is very subjective information not appropriate for a wiki....
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As I continue south I am please to say that New Bedford, MA 41, 36, 789N 70.54.256W, general anchorage 110.140 US Coast Pilot 2 seems to be a good holding ground. There's actually two anchorages here, one on the east side of the bay and the other on the west side, both are a bit exposed to a south easterly but otherwise it's a pretty good spot, and if it does get ugly there's the inner harbor just a few tenths of a mile to the north with their massive hurricane barrier.... There's a public dock a short row away where you can tie/lock up and there's no time limit posted. Right next to the public dock and ramp there's a restaurant bar, a few blocks away are basic convenience stores and most importantly a package store.... the only down side is that at dawn and dusk there is quite a bit of traffic in the nearby marked channel as the trawlers come in and out which causes a bit of rolling... but otherwise a good spot.
I was last in Hull, MA, 42.17.463N 70.53.375W. I was actually just outside the charted general anchorage B but I was there for almost 2 months and no one minded. there's a public dock with a posted half hour limit but I left the dinghy tied up over night a couple times and no one (official) bothered it. I did have some kids let it loose once (so i assume) so I recommend locking your dinghy up since it is a busy public dock. there's water key side that no one minds if you use and a local pub just up the street Steve's Place, great local spot. There's a Tedeschi's convenient store and a liquore store on the same corner... only draw back is that it's about a mile and half walk to the nearest small grocery and there is no major shopping nearby... if you get a local bus schedule however it runs hourly and there is also a local commuter ferry that will take you into Boston several times on weekdays.
I've had Cape Henlopen in the Deleware recommended to me as a free anchorage that is fairly remote.... As I continue south I'll continue to post what I find... I urge others (particularly those who know of good anchorages south of me on the east coast
)to add their knowledge.
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