John’s Point Landing

Description

This small watercraft launch site is part of the Gloucester Blueway Water Trails.  John’s Point is a lovely tidal marsh location with common waterfowl, which is enlivened in the winter with diving ducks, bufflehead, horned grebe, and loons. Great egrets, ospreys, bald eagles, great blue herons and kingfishers can also be seen here. Diamondback terrapins are common in the area and fiddler crabs and fossils can be observed in the sandy beach sites along the shore.

An interpretive sign provides educational information about the surrounding habitat and a shoreline protection project by Gloucester County and VIMS, in which they protected the eroding bank using a “living shoreline.” Living shorelines protect eroding banks by using planted marsh grasses and other vegetation, often in combination with low rock sills or segmented breakwaters.

A sandy put-in area is available to launch canoes/ kayaks, providing access to Free School Creek and the Severn River.

A fishing pier, when not in use by anglers, provides a look out point. (Birders should yield use of the fishing pier to anglers.)

Directions

Location Coordinates: 37.332254, -76.444871

From Gloucester, travel south on Main St, then turn left onto State Rt 629/ T C Walker Rd and stay on State Rt 629 for 4.6 miles. Turn right onto State Rt 614, momentarily, before turning left  onto State Rt 629/ Warner Hall Rd. Continue onto Eagle Point Plantation. Turn left onto State Rt 629. Turn right onto State Rt 657. Turn left onto John’s Point Rd, following it all the way to the end of the road at the gravel turnaround where the landing is located.