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The bridge at the end of a summer day. People do jump, as the figure on the right shows; the signs say not to and the current through the channel is strong. The sand below is the place to watch the sky from.
Sengekontacket Pond in Oak Bluffs is a 745-acre coastal pond on Martha's Vineyard and a favorite spot for kayaking and birding.
Sengekontacket Pond covers 745 acres between Oak Bluffs and Edgartown: a tidal, brackish lagoon stretching 2.5 miles with an average depth of just 3–4 feet on the flats. Separated from Nantucket Sound by State Beach and Beach Road, the pond is one of Martha's Vineyard's richest ecosystems for birds, kayaking, and shellfishing.
Current note (updated October 2, 2026): the state closed Sengekontacket to shellfishing on July 8, 2026 after the July storm and reopened it on August 28, once water tests came back clean. Before the September 26 nor'easter the state closed every shellfish area in Massachusetts as a precaution, and as of October 2 Sengekontacket was not yet on its reopening list. Majors Cove has its own seasonal closure, and the pond closes again for a while after heavy rain, so the Oak Bluffs shellfish department page is the one to check before you dig. A shellfishing closure is not a swimming advisory.
Filmed June 2023The island moves on: shops, signs and prices may differ from what you see here. The text of this guide was checked October 2026.
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The American Legion Memorial Bridge ("Jaws Bridge") spans the larger of two tidal inlets at the Oak Bluffs/Edgartown town line. In Jaws, the shark swims through this channel into the pond while Chief Brody's son watches from a sailboat. Two kids with a cardboard fin distracted the beach guards, allowing the shark to pass, one of the film's best-known scenes. Chief Brody (Roy Scheider) sprints along the stone quay perpendicular to the bridge, which is still visible today. Caution: posted signs prohibit jumping and diving from the bridge, and the tidal current through the channel is strong, so watch the water from the sand.
The Entering Edgartown sign at the Oak Bluffs town line on Beach Road, the bridge and the pond just behind it.
The meadow at Felix Neck Wildlife Sanctuary, on the pond’s western shore
Felix Neck Wildlife Sanctuary (a 194-acre Mass Audubon property at 100 Felix Neck Drive, Edgartown) borders the pond and has recorded over 100 bird species. Key species include: osprey (over 100 nesting pairs on the island), great and snowy egrets, herons, federally protected piping plovers and least terns, cormorants, barn owls, and kingfishers. Bioluminescence is visible on select summer nights. Felix Neck trails are open dawn to dusk ($4/adult, free for Mass Audubon members).
A sandy path through the beach roses to the pond side of Beach Road, the rules posted at the entrance.
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One of the best kayaking spots on the island due to calm, shallow, sheltered waters:
State Beach on a summer morning: sand, calm Sound water, and the pond just across the road behind you.
Bay scallops and quahogs are the primary shellfish species (town permit required). Scallop season: each town sets its opening day in the fall. In 2024 Oak Bluffs opened Sengekontacket to recreational scallopers on October 14 (its 2026 date had not been posted by early October), and Edgartown's family season opens October 1. Hand harvest and diving only; no dragging. From May through September the pond is only conditionally open: more than 0.2 inch of rain closes it for five days, a big storm can close it for weeks until state tests come back clean, and Majors Cove has its own seasonal closure. Striped bass, bluefish, and scup are caught near the inlets, especially during the annual Martha's Vineyard Striped Bass and Bluefish Derby (September–October). Permits, limits and the island's other shellfish waters are in our oysters and scallops guide. The island's other ponds, and the science behind the closures, are in our ponds guide.
For the full car-free guide, State Beach and Sengekontacket Pond are accessible via VTA Route 13 and the Beach Road bike path.
Exploring the town? Start with our complete Oak Bluffs guide: food, beaches, parking and the local rhythm, all in one place.
Step 1 · WhenMonth PickerTwelve months compared on NOAA numbers, crowds, prices and what is open. 
Step 2 · DaysDay-by-Day Trip PlannerMorning, afternoon and evening sketched for every day, events dropped in, emailed to you. 
Step 3 · CostTrip Cost CalculatorFerry, beds with the rooms tax, meals, getting around and activities in one honest range. About 745 acres between Oak Bluffs and Edgartown, a tidal brackish lagoon stretching 2.5 miles with an average depth of only three to four feet on the flats, separated from Nantucket Sound by State Beach and Beach Road.
Yes. The American Legion Memorial Bridge, the “Jaws Bridge”, spans the larger of the pond’s two tidal inlets, and the shark swims through this channel in the film. Posted signs prohibit jumping and diving from the bridge and the current through the channel is strong.
It is one of the best kayaking spots on the island: calm, shallow, sheltered water. Island Spirit Kayak rents singles and tandems at Little Bridge on State Beach.
Felix Neck, the Mass Audubon sanctuary on the pond’s shore, has recorded more than 100 species: ospreys, great and snowy egrets, herons, piping plovers and least terns, cormorants, barn owls and kingfishers. Trails are open dawn to dusk, $4 an adult.
Yes, with a permit from the town whose side of the pond you dig, Oak Bluffs or Edgartown. The pond was closed from July 8 to August 28, 2026 after the summer storms, and the state closed it again with every other shellfish area before the September 26 nor'easter, reopening areas in stages as tests come back clean. Majors Cove has its own seasonal closure, and the pond closes for a while after heavy rain, so check the Oak Bluffs shellfish department before you dig. Each town's permit and limits are in our shellfishing permits guide.
Island tip of the day Food No. 19 of 86 New tip at midnight, island time
Espresso Love (17 Church St, Edgartown) opens at 7 AM daily. Excellent coffee, $5–12 for breakfast. One of the few places open early on the island.
The Martha's Vineyard Songwriters Festival, September 17 to 20, 2026: a free kickoff at Nomans and three nights of Nashville writers at the Strand Theatre in Oak Bluffs, with our photographs from inside the Strand, the night-by-night lineups and practical notes for next year.
The Feast of the Holy Ghost in Oak Bluffs, held every third full weekend of July since 1928: the Queen Isabel legend behind the free soup, the Sunday parade from the ferry up Circuit Avenue, the crown blessed at Our Lady Star of the Sea, the sopas at the Portuguese-American Club, the club the rest of the year, and how a visitor should behave at the island's Portuguese feast.
Rip currents, tidal channels, sharks, bacteria closures, wartime ordnance and cold water: the Martha's Vineyard beach safety guide, with the 2026 incidents (the Long Point drowning, the Norton Point possible shark bite, the Lucy Vincent sighting), which beaches have lifeguards and when they leave, how to escape a rip, and where the hospital is.
East Chop Lighthouse in Oak Bluffs: the 1878 cast-iron tower on Telegraph Hill, the Sunday sunset openings run by the Martha's Vineyard Museum, the semaphore and Chocolate Lighthouse history, and the bus stop and parking below the hill.
Shearer Cottage, Dorothy West, the Inkwell and 30 marked sites across the island: how to walk or tour the African American Heritage Trail of Martha's Vineyard.
Which Martha's Vineyard beaches are open to visitors, which need stickers or permits, and what everything costs in 2026: town by town, gate by gate.
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