Between the America’s Cup World Series in Newport, the WoodenBoat Show in Mystic, and the OpSail event in Boston, these days it seems like practically every harbor has a major boating event taking place. Which made it all that much more delightful to visit Padanaram Harbor, in South Dartmouth, recently and find it so positively relaxing. Sure, the mooring field was already boasting a healthy crop of Marshall Catboats and the docks at Davis & Tripp and South Wharf Yacht Yard were teeming with a mixture of fishing and sailing craft. And the crew at Concordia Company had cleared out all but the last restoration of a classic yawl. But Padanaram seems to have a pace of its own, one that is punctuated by the rise and fall of the tide, the opening and closing of the Gulf Road bridge, and the launching and hauling of boats at Arthur F. Dias Landing.
Here are a selection of scenes from around the harbor. If you’re anything like us, you’ll be planning your next visit to Padanaram as soon as you finish browsing through them!