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Deer Island Slope Site Near Boston

David sent this in from The Granite Glider Guiders a southern New Hampshire area club.

Deer Island is just minutes from downtown Boston and offers both east and west facing slopes. The property is part of the Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area. Public areas are open dawn to dusk every day. Using the address 175 Tafts Ave., Winthrop, MA 02152 will get you close.  The parking area is at the end of Tafts Ave.


There are several paved foot paths but the direct route to the launch areas is a well worn, uphill dirt path from the parking lot. In addition to seagulls and other soaring birds, the site is often frequented by members of the Charles River R/C Club. One of their more video inclined members has posted a short clip of a soaring session at Deer Island during November, 2007.

When the winds are westerly you get a great view of downtown Boston and Logan Airport.

See a bigger, wide angle image here.

At the southern end of Deer Island is a $4 billion technological marvel, a wastewater treatment plant that has ended centuries of sewage discharges into Boston Harbor. For more information about the site, check the Massachusetts Water Resource Authority website.

One thought on “Deer Island Slope Site Near Boston

  1. There are two sides to Deer I.
    One side is good for winds that are around SW to WSW, which is the prevailing wind in the summer. This is the side that faces Boston, providing a nice backdrop. The slope itself is OK, but we don’t have much around here, so it’s good. This is a great place for a beginner because it’s a grassy slope and retrieval is easy. I took a 15-year-old first timer there and he was flying great within a half-hour.

    The other side has a much better slope – higher and steeper. The slope curves around, making it flyable for winds from NW to NE. N and NE are the best, whereas with NW, you’re dealing with some small trees. When it’s blowing N or NE, this place is almost as good as the Cape. The lift is great, and you get a nice, steady, smooth wind. This side is also great for photo shoots with the sun behind you lighting up the planes – I’ve taken some great shots here. There is a possibility for ending up in the water on this side.

    Parking is easy. There is a small lot, and when that fills up, people just park along the main road. I’ve never seen a ticket.

    This is a park with waling trails – please be considerate. It is a fairly popular place for walkers, so please, if you see someone below you, try to minimize the crashes. There are very few slope sites around here, and we don’t need to get kicked out of one of the best, easily accessible sites around.

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