Phillips Beach

[Free_Flow]

Does anyone know about diving Phillips beach in Swampscott

was over there and saw a couple divers and was wondering what the dive was like

Thanks
Russ

 

[jbarbara11]

Bumping a super old forum post... I spoke to a fellow North Shore Frogmen club member about this recently as I am interested in getting details on this potential dive site (although Fort Sewall is a lot easier to get to). She said she once dove off the south end as a friend of hers knew some residents at that end so she was able to park up there. There are plenty of rocks and stuff to see on the dive. It was a winter dive and she was looking for nudibranchs so it was not bug season when she dove. It had been a while and she did remember very much details.

I snorkeled off the public beach access and it is all sand. Someone told me that they used to snorkel at the south end in the summer and would come back with a bag of bugs. I did not ask if they were all legal as I imagine his bag was full of shorties and eggers . I would love to get a good beach cart and carry all my gear to the south end at high tide... but only if I get more details as it a long hike all the way down there.

If anybody has more information, please post!

 

[AfterDark]

It's 1/10 of a mile swim. Dive it.

 

[jbarbara11]

I finally got around to diving this site last Saturday, 8/22/2015. Since it was cloudy and cooler (for August), I was able to park (with my resident parking sticker) in the front spot at the entrance to the beach. In snorkeling this beach in the past, I found there were practically no rocks and therefore very little life in most of the water...but at the end of the beach, a 900 yard walk from the entrance, there is a rocky shoreline. So, I dragged my gear in/on a rolling cooler for 450 yards (my awesome non-diving wife helped). Donned my gear and entered the water to swim the additional 450 yards to get closer to Off Rock. Good diving there (interesting rock formations, lobster (too small), cunner, Jonah crabs, and moon snails just before the rocks in the sand) and if I had more energy and air after all that work to get there, my guess is that I would find some keepers around that rock. Maybe next time... and maybe a motorized cart or at least something better than a rolling cooler and start the dive from the end of the beach. Got to a depth of 21 feet, but was only about 250 yard from shore (just before Off Rock). Water was very warm... 65F. Felt hotter after all the work to get there.