Great Herring Pond Boat Ramp
Launch a boat from Great Herring Pond Boat Ramp, in Bourne, for a day of fishing and exploring on one of the largest and most ecologically significant freshwater ponds in upper Buzzards Bay. This small state-owned boat ramp is a great place to launch paddle crafts or shallow draft boats, as well as a popular fishing spot.
Note: The Town of Plymouth issued a cyanobacteria advisory for Great Herring Pond on July 31, 2020. At this time, swimming in the pond, or drinking from it, are strongly discouraged.
Features
In addition to being a great spot to launch a small boat, the Great Herring Pond Boat Ramp is also popular with fishermen, who wade into the clear shallows in pursuit of perch, pickerel, and bass.
Boaters and fishermen alike will find a recreational oasis in the waters off of Great Herring Pond Boat Ramp. This long, narrow pond, historically known as Lake Manomet, holds 376 acres of shallow waters, which are usually warm and remarkably clear. Boaters will find lovely views cruising along the pond’s over five miles of shoreline, scattered with woodlands and lakeside homes. Because this ramp is unpaved and shallow, it is best for hand-carried craft like kayaks and canoes. If launching trailered vessels with a shallow draft, we recommend doing so with a four wheel drive vehicle.
For anglers, Great Herring Pond has much to offer whether you’re casting from a boat or from shore. You can find great smallmouth bass and white perch fishing around the sunken islands in the center of the island, just off the end of Trails End Cove Road. If you’d rather keep your feet on solid ground, the Great Herring Pond Boat Ramp is a superb place for shore fishing. Wade into the shallow waters off the boat ramp to cast out for a variety of freshwater species. Just be sure to arrive early, as this is a popular spot!
Habitats & Wildlife
Great Herring Pond is one of the region’s largest bodies of freshwater and a home for a great variety of fish. Yellow and white perch, small and largemouth bass, pumpkinseed, and chain pickerel are just a few of the many species that swim these clear, shallow waters.
Great Herring Pond also supports one of the best river herring runs in Massachusetts. In the spring, these small but important fish swim upstream from the Cape Cod Canal along the Herring River, passing through the herring runs at the Herring Run Recreation Area and Carter Beal Conservation Area, to spawn in the waters of Great Herring Pond. The young fish that swim back through the Cape Cod Canal later in the summer and fall then attract striped bass, making the canal a striper fishing hotspot.
