Cape Ann has the best shore diving within an easy drive of the shop. Two sites carry most of it: one is where people learn, and one is the wall that divers come from across New England to see.
Why Cape Ann rather than closer
It is a drive from Hampton Falls, and the reason it is worth it is geology.
Cape Ann is granite, and that granite continues underwater as walls, boulder fields and ledges rather than petering out into sand. Structure is what holds life on this coast, so the sites with the most rock have the most to look at.
Our own shore diving guide covers the closer sites in New Hampshire and Maine. This is the trip you make when you want something bigger.
Folly Cove, Gloucester
Folly Cove sits right on the Gloucester–Rockport line at the northern tip of Cape Ann, under granite cliffs. It is the best-known shore dive in Massachusetts and the one most divers mean when they talk about diving Cape Ann.
The cove is really two dives, and which one you get depends on which way you turn after you descend.
| Left side | Right side | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | A sheer rock wall — the “great wall” | A boulder-strewn slope |
| Depth | About 75 ft | About 50 ft |
| What is on it | Frilled anemones, urchins, sea cucumbers | Boulders, kelp and the life that shelters in it |
| Suits | Divers comfortable past 60 ft | Newer divers, on a calm day |
Between the two the bottom is mainly sand, with one rock outcropping in the middle that is worth finding. iDive New England keeps a site entry for the cove with further detail.
Turn left for the wall, right for the boulders. It is effectively two dive sites sharing a parking lot.
Back Beach, Rockport
If Folly Cove is the destination dive, Back Beach is the one you actually do most often, and it is where a great many New England divers did their first unsupervised dive.
The appeal is entirely practical. Parking is metered and close, there are facilities, and you can walk in rather than scrambling. For a diver still thinking about their gear, that matters more than the site itself.
- North, or left, side. Follows a jetty, which gives you a hard edge to navigate along — useful when you cannot see far.
- South, or right, side. Large boulders scattered across a sandy bottom, which is where most of the life is.
- Depth. Shallow and gently shelving, so it is difficult to get into trouble with depth here.
The jetty is the underrated feature. A line of rock you can follow out and back removes most of the navigation problem, which is exactly what a diver rebuilding confidence wants — and why it suits anyone just back from a long break out of the water.
One further note on access. Both sites are working coastline rather than resort infrastructure, and they are shared with fishermen, walkers and boat traffic. Park where you are supposed to, leave the entry clear while you kit up, and fly a flag — on a busy weekend at Folly Cove there will be other people using the water and not all of them are looking for divers.
It is also worth having a second site in mind before you set out. If Folly Cove is unworkable when you arrive, Back Beach is a short drive away and often sheltered when the other is not, which turns a wasted trip into an easy dive.
Choosing your day
Both of these are exposed north-facing sites on an open coast, and both are ruled by weather rather than by tide alone.
Surf that looks moderate from the road is a serious proposition when you are carrying a cylinder over wet granite, and the entry is where shore diving on this coast goes wrong. If the swell is up, the honest answer is to go and get breakfast instead.
Visibility follows the weather too. A few settled days will do more for what you see than any amount of driving further.
What to bring for a Cape Ann day
Nothing exotic, but a shore day on granite has a few requirements that a boat day does not.
- Boots you can walk on rock in. The entries are stone, often wet and often weed-covered.
- A hood and gloves. Not optional here, whatever the air temperature is doing.
- A light. Even in daylight, the wall and the gaps between boulders are dark.
- Change for the meter, and a plan for where you will change afterwards.
- More warm clothing than you think. The car park is exposed and the wind comes off the water.
If you are missing any of the equipment, it is worth sorting out before the drive rather than at the site — our rental range covers the lot, including 7 mm suits with hood and gloves.
And if you have not dived in a while, Cape Ann on a rough day is not where you want to find that out. Back Beach on a calm morning is.
Going with someone who knows it
There is a shortcut to all of this, which is to let someone else make the decisions.
Jason McCarthy runs our local charters and typically dives sites on the Massachusetts North Shore. Listed times on those trips are placeholders — you are contacted a few days beforehand with the real one, once the weather has shown its hand.
For a first visit to Cape Ann that is the sensible route. You get the site chosen for the conditions rather than for your calendar, which on this coast is most of the battle. If you prefer to organize your own, our comparison of boat and shore diving covers the trade-off.
Frequently asked questions
Which site should I dive first?
Back Beach in Rockport. The entry is easy, the parking is metered and close, and the bottom shelves gently. Folly Cove is the better dive and the harder day.
How deep does Folly Cove get?
Roughly 75 feet on the left-hand wall and about 50 feet on the boulder side. That puts the deeper part beyond an Open Water certification, so plan the dive against the limit you actually hold.
Is Folly Cove suitable for a newly certified diver?
The shallow right-hand side, on a calm day, yes. The wall is a different proposition and it is not the place to find out how you handle depth for the first time.
Do I need a boat?
No. Both are shore dives. Jason’s charters run North Shore sites if you would rather have someone else pick the site and the day — see our local charters.
What is the parking like?
Back Beach has metered parking and facilities close to the entry, which is a large part of why it suits beginners. Folly Cove is more limited and fills up on good days, so arrive early.
Ask what the conditions have been
We hear how Cape Ann has been diving from the people who were there last weekend. Call before you drive.