Wonderful place. We did both the red & green trails, took us 82 minutes. Its quite sandy, challenging, and is a nice workout if you keep a good pace. Parts of it are hilly, but some of the views are spectacular. The trails are well marked and maintained. The entrance is Crane Beach. Well be back.

Cranes Beach is one of the most beautiful beaches anywhere. Clean wide beach perfect for walking. Dogs welcome in off season. I visit from Naples Fl several times a year to visit family and we absolutely love Cranes.

Just love going here. From the sunrises/sunsets to the wildlife this place grounds me when I am stressing from my week. Stroll the beach, take the boardwalk trails. Watch turkey, deer, rabbits and of course the different species of birds. If its warm take a swim and just relax in the sand. Plum Island is an oasis only an hour from Boston or my home in NH.

A wonderful picnic on the backside of Crane Beach. Very tranquil today with little boat traffic and gentle waves. It was 3.8 miles of paddling (each way) from Essex to our destination. Best done at high tide to exploit some shortcuts only accessible then. Also for easiest paddling think about the flow direction during the mid tides. I ventured into the marshes looking for a new shortcut but I had to retreat back to the main channel. A could do this trip again and again!

Beautiful, serene, amazing vistas, great place to see water fowl, great place for kayaking.

Stunning views and perfect for bike riding along the salt marshes.

Its awesome but there are a lot of bugs :)

Great place to ride or drive, or walk for that matter! If you want to swim go early and hope the plovers arent mating, as beach space is contested and limited. Annual passes are only 20 dollars

Beautiful place, even in the winter. Small parking lots which would probably fill up quickly in season. Many people were walking & watching for wildlife. We spotted a Snowy owl in the dunes.

A wonderful place to escape

Beautiful nature trails and perfect for watching the sunrise and sunset.

This place is so beautiful I cant describe it. Once when we were there a thick fog descended upon us and it was just magical.The visitors facilities are really clean and well maintained.

5 stars for the foundation room! A great stop before the show. If you plan on getting food while up there, their menu is VERY minimal.

First time visitors. Very impressive facilities. Several parking areas. Many boardwalks to visit the sights without impacting the ecosystem. Major bonus for our visit was spotting and photographing the Snowy owl!

Nice place. Not that many people here in the cold winter, I had the beach to myself! Ive never seen shells that big...

Fascinating lectures, terrific history and learning center, very well cared for. Well worth the visit!

Love to visit! Beautiful beaches and the sunrise was absolutely gorgeous. Took a shohrt hike and say a deer. Great place for bird watching.

I saw more wildlife today than I have in the last 3 weeks combined; wish the visitor center was open and there were trail maps though. Entry is cash/check only, but only $5 for a day pass -- very reasonable.

The locals call this sandbar gilligans island no greenheads. its off of cranes beach, and way nicer. Oops I shouldnt say that, more People will come.

A lot of things to see. Good hikes. Great for bird watching.

Nice place for family, little cold water, great place to walk.

Beautiful place with awesome beaches. Greenhead flies are a big problem in the summer however.

Lovely area to drive

The best place for nature walks and bird watching. Been enjoying this peaceful sanctuary for years.

Beautiful sand dunes trails that were well marked and amazing semis vistas. We will definitely come back. Do it!!

Beautiful short and quick walk on a loop trail. Wonderful in the summer and tranquil in the winter.

Love this area of nature where you can see various birds, owls and other wildlife.

Great beach to walk, among many others things to do, became a member its less expensive

So cool today. Temps in the 50s made walking on the beach special.

This was definitely a great marsh. Im somewhat concerned about the environment there though. Check it out before its all under water.

Really cool place to visit if you love birds. Miles of opportunity to watch them with benches and observation towers, walking paths and parking areas. Try to visit at least once a summer.

Get out there at the end of Plum Island and and spend some time thinking about how lovely it is to be beside the sea and the marsh and history.

Out on the boat ride from The Trustees Castle Hill Estate. The trip is fantastic. It was about an hour and a half with local history narrative.

Love how beautiful and intact this marsh looked, any time of day a wonderfully important habitat!

Great place for hiking or bird watching

Beautiful!

Beautiful reservation and so many things to see

I always find an amazing variety of bird life whenever I venture here.

This is an amazing place to explore. Lots of wild life... and the sunsets can be brilliant.

A hideaway dont tell anyone its gorgeous feel like youre in the Caribbean

What a great time and place to relax and unwind with family and friends

Beautiful and protected areas yet same views throughout our 2hr paddle. A lot of marsh grass and not much bird activity. Plus it was greenhead season and they are nasty, nasty little jerks. Made it a less than great experience. Id suggest somewhere else especially during greenhead season.

Nice place to visitBut not so great to pick apples

A great place to experience a tidal marsh immersing yourself in the habitat.

Looks like a nice area to visit. I just wanted to take a quick drive through to take and look at what was available and noted that it would be a great place for the summer time. I was there looking for birding opportunities. You do have to pay to go in and so I wasnt planning on staying and was lucky enough that the individual let me take a quick drive through. This was offseason I wouldnt ask that during the summer.

Great little spot to spend a summer day by the water.

This is my most relaxing place to be, walking the beach and taking in that sea air!

Doing better but needs work and money.

So relaxing and beautiful. The boat ride was amazing you can rent boats at perleys in rowley.

Terrific place to explore, learn, and relax. My children love coming here anytime of year. Birds galore, solitude, nature, and raw beauty

Close to home. Very well stocked. People very pleasant. Lines moved along quickly

Beautiful, but packed and no touristic infrastructure to support the high demand. Poorly planned access and parking, making the overall experience very unpleasant

Had to pay to gain entrance, never had to do that during winter time and could not go to end of Castle beach at the end of dirt road. ( closed to traffic or gated) Collector should at least had told me after taking the money. Indicative on how the state of Massachusetts takes your money.

A nice place to sit & relax

Beautiful area great for bird watching!

Breeze and cool temperatures were keeping the Greenhead flies down today. Not a beach day, but still great birding!

Beautiful place to be, so peaceful. I usually go in the off times such as the evening or in the fall and spring and you have the place to yourself. One of the best beaches around if your looking for a more natural experience. There is a small fee to park and during peak beach times they run out of parking

Great for kayaking or going to the beach on the tip of Plum Island. Greenheads are pretty bad though in July

The Parker river wildlife refuge on plum island is one of the best places to see birds in the Northeast. The area includes salt and freshwater marshes, salt pannes, beaches and forested areas. Great for biking along the road (mostly paved) and hiking through marshes (on boardwalks).

Visited on a warm day in January. Nice sheltered walks on the boardwalk trails through the dunes, though the marsh trail was closed. There were snowy owls there, but you needed a viewing scope or similar to actually see them.

Interesting

Beautiful marshland area, worth a visit.

Beach is awesome, horseflies make the experience hard at times. Parking is expensive.

Very nice walks thru sanctuary. Wooden walkways well maintained. Bathrooms available in numerous areas. Peaceful.

A real tranquil and beautiful place for familys to enjoy the beauty of nature at its finest.

I love Salisbury beach! Except the summer traffic and parking hassles!

Stunning place to go boating.

Beautiful nature! Great way to escape and take a walk! Very relaxing !!!

Cox Reservation in Essex. Greenbelt property. Beautiful marsh and river views. Osprey platform to watch too.

Great area and the beach is really awesome. Get there early and you can see small pools of fish and small crabs. Not commercialized at all and not too crowded. It has a changing area with food and drinks.

I love nature so this place was nice

Crane Beach with 37 mile an hour gusts is an amazing place to fly a kite.

Overall very marshy, 11/10. Plenty of mosquitos and green flies with a healthy selection of frogs as well. Watch out for ticks but enjoy the scenery.

Nice area to walk

Love this place. Beautiful and well kept. Plenty of sights to see

Beautiful dunes. Great beach.

I enjoyed the tower near the lake where you can watch birds diving for dinner.

What a treat to enjoy the beach on a warm sunny February day. A wildlife refugee plus nice bike and hike trails.

Beautiful natural will place. Bird watching mecca

Beautiful beach. It feels like you are on a deserted island. Parking is extremely limited (maybe 30 or so cars), which results in very few people enjoying a huge beach on the ocean. You may get to the parking area and find no spaces or find yourself at the end of a line of cars waiting for success. When we left the beach at about 3:30, there was a line of about 10 cars waiting for parking.There are no restrooms at this beach.Once youre in the national park, this beach is at the end of a very long, dusty road. The entrance fee is $5 - cash only.

Absolutely beautiful landscape!

Good nature walk!

Try to bike instead of driving. Nice scenery. Especially, if you dont want to wait in long line of cars, either bike or walk.

This is a great place to fish for stripers.

It is wonderful! A great peace!

A Beautiful beach and an amazing sunset. But one should be sensetive to the nature and try to minimize the human impact

Beautiful place, any weather, any season

A beautiful, natural treasure. Please go, and keep it funded. Tread lightly and carry out what you carry in.

Great area to walk around. We went during plum fest which was awesome because there were live bands at almost every house.

Beautiful Area! We are so lucky to have these special spots in nature to enjoy.

Great beaches and beautiful scenery. Views are spectacular. The bird blind offered views of at least a dozen species.

Its quiet there. Sometimes theres a lot of people, but when the breeze is ok, it feels quiet.

Cold quiet winter day

Very peaceful. The trails are well maintained. Lots of bird activity.

Precious place filled with nature which must be protected!

Beautiful area with lovely beaches. Mostly accessible by cars. Green head fly season can be difficult though

Glad there is a protected area like this but its smaller than what I thought it would be and we didnt know where the boardwalk into the marsh was.

Beautiful views best time to go is early morning the hellcat observation area is worth the trip

Just beautiful.

Nice place