Sakonnet Point RI

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AfterDark

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Location
Rhode Island, USA
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I was thinking of places where I could do some U/W metal detecting and remembered a place I used to go for bugs years ago. It's a long drive and I haven't been there in years but recent SAT photos show that access to the breakwater and cove is still public and diveable. The picture is marked where we went in at the breakwater with a red dot, the access and parking to the cove is marked with blue and green. The red circle is where I sat on the sand in 20FSW with 20+vis and watched a school of Blue fish decimate a school of Pokies. Pieces of fish were everywhere. A Blue ran into the back of my head almost knocked my mask off! It's all shallow 25FSW max if you find the hole.

InkedSakonnet Point harbor and breakwater_LI.jpg


So with the amount of boats moored there it might be a good place to metal detect. I'll probably go solo when I do it because it'll spur of the moment no doubt, when the conditions are right.

Have any other New England posters been diving there recently? Past 2-3 years?

There is another place where I went near there named Warren Point but I can't imagine that there is still public access there. Back then it was just park on the side of the road gear up and walk down a rocky hill into the water. That must be all no parking these days.

On a solo night dive there I learned not to point a light at a Goosefish, it attracts them. That fish turned 180 degrees and came right for the light mouth opened. I shined it away and saw it turn in the dim outer ring of the light. I turned 180 degrees and continued my dive. Ever see the teeth on a Goosefish? The fatal shark attack in Buzzards Bay in the 1930's was suspected to be a large Goosefish instead. I wouldn't doubt it.
 
I never have but your post made me want to look them up. Seems like a friendly little guy:

View attachment 560434

That's a little one. The one I encountered was a good 3' long, with a mouth about 1/3 of its body!
Look at that thing, rows of teeth like a GW except for the curves. Those and Conger eels is why you'll never see me with my hand in a hole. Both don't let go and the eel can wrap it's tail around a rock in the hole and not let you or the rock go!

This darling here is more the size of the one I encountered.


I can't imagine how big the one from the 1930's had to be to kill a man. If it was a Goosefish at all, the size required makes me doubt that it was a Goosefish.

I did see a Conger eel one night in a small "cave" near the shore between Kings Beach and Price Neck, that had a 3-4' eel hanging out of its mouth. Both my buddy and I agreed it couldn't have been less than 15' long. The head was enormous, we saw about 8' of head and body sticking out of the cave. We shut our lights down and got the F out of there. It's a cave for a fish and eels but I doubt a diver could go more than waist deep into it.

The cave is under the rock formation in the red circle. That was 30+ years ago maybe there's a skeleton there, or Conger eels can live more than 40 years so it may still live or dine there.
 

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I've been looking at the chart for this area, the cove looks very well protected from winds from any direction. It maybe a good fall back site during windy days; when ya really need to do a dive or two. The north shore of the cove looks like it might make an interesting shallow dive. Also heading out to the point of the breakwater and going around exiting at the start of the breakwater might be good also. Of course that dive would depend on the wind. With a rib divers could get a group of small islands near a light house to the SE.
The down side is it's a long boring drive to get there.
 
All the boats give me pause. Do you trail a flag?
 
All the boats give me pause. Do you trail a flag?

You can but diving in the spring and fall, off season is the best thing to do. After labor day the tropical fish are still there. I'm going to see if I can con the yacht club into letting me start from their pier on the right in the picture, that way I can dive among those rocks on the right side of the picture without swimming thru a bunch of boats.
 
willing to join you if you'd like. it's 10 min down the road from me.

Sure if you don't mind diving with a fossil. There'll probably be others from SB there, I'm pretty sure at least 3 others would like to go if the timing is right for them.

Have you dove there? It's been a long time for me I'm sure there's been changes. I can see the start of the breakwater isn't nearly as accessible as it was years ago. I doubt I'll be climbing up and down those rocks. The cove was a nice spot but time changes things. Do you have/dive from a kayak?
 
A said I'm down for checking it out
 
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