The area around Gay Head is a perfect stopover for birds migrating along the East Coast, making it a great place to spot rare species. On any given day gulls and shorebirds are a given, but lucky birders have also seen unusual overwintering visitors like harlequin ducks and razorbills.

Walk a stunning piece of Martha’s Vineyard’s northwest coast beneath the Gay Head Cliffs on the shores of Moshup Beach, also known as Aquinnah Public Beach. Surrounded by the sound of crashing waves, you’ll find a perfect summer beach day or ample year-round exploration on this secluded coast, jointly protected by the Martha’s Vineyard Land Bank Commission and the town of Aquinnah.

You can walk over a mile along the fine, sandy shoreline of Moshup Beach and below the colorful Gay Head Cliffs.

Part of the Aquinnah Headlands Preserve, the fine white sands and smooth rocks of Moshup Beach provide a beautiful place to walk along the crashing waves of outer Vineyard Sound and beneath the Gay Head Cliffs. You can explore for over a mile along this shoreline: though Moshup Beach itself is only about a half-mile, bordered by private land to the southeast, the town of Aquinnah permits access to the beach below the cliffs to the north and west. Please keep out of any areas marked with “no access” signs, and do not climb on the cliffs or remove any clay; these cliffs, owned by the Aquinnah Wampanoag Tribe, are under special environmental protection to prevent erosion.

You can access Moshup Beach via a short trail from the dropoff area along Moshup Trail. You can also get to the beach by walking the South Head Loop of the Aquinnah Headlands Preserve.
Habitats & Wildlife

The sandstones and clays of Gay Head Cliffs get their colors from the time of dinosaurs when the sandstones and clays you see were at the bottom of a shallow tropical sea. As you appreciate the swirls of deep purple, orange, brick red, and mustard yellow on the cliffs’ surface, in a way you’re looking back in time!

Seasonal restroom and parking fee.

The AllTrails website has a description and map of a hike at Moshup Beach.