Right Beaches › Cape Cod › South Chatham
Forest Beach
4.6★ · 104 Google ratings · South Chatham, Massachusetts
✓ Parking✓ Short walk✓ Free
At a glance
Parking
20 ft away · free · fills up
Walk
50 ft · under a minute
Cost
Free
Water
74°F · modelled, no buoy nearby
Tide
4 ft range today
Length
0.9 miles of shoreline
Sand
175 yd from the water to the back
Water quality
Good · all 26 samples clean · 2025
Crowds
Quietest Wed 8am
Map of Forest Beach
Guide
Good to know
Free parking reported
Visitors report no charge to park here.Mentioned by 6 visitors · 2016–2026
Best for shell collecting
Visitors consistently find abundant seashells and rocks, making it ideal for beachcombing and nature walks.
Arrive early or after 2pm
Parking is extremely limited with fewer than a dozen free spots that fill quickly on sunny days.
Wear water shoes
The beach has many rocks, shells, and cockle shells that make wading uncomfortable without foot protection.
Bring bug spray in summer
Some visitors report painful biting flies, particularly in peak season, though one June visitor noted bugs were hardly noticeable.
Conditions
How it is right now
Air
69°F · partly cloudy
Water
74°F · modelled, no buoy nearby
Waves
1.5 ft · 5 s apart
Wind
4 mph from the WSW
Shelter
Cross-shore · wind running along the beach
UV index
5 peak today
| Time | Tide | Height |
|---|---|---|
| 05:56 | High tide | ↑ |
| 11:35 | Low tide | ↓ |
| 18:10 | High tide | ↑ |
Last updated Sep 4, 3:43 AM.
Crowds
When it gets busy
| 8a | 9a | 10a | 11a | 12p | 1p | 2p | 3p | 4p | 5p | 6p | 7p | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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QuietBusy
Practical
Plan your visit
📍 Forest Beach Rd, South Chatham, MA 02659, United States
🅿 Parking 20 ft from the listing
🌊 Water 50 ft away, under a minute walk
Nearby
Other beaches close by
475 yd away
0.7 miles away
1.1 miles away
1.6 miles away
2.2 miles away
2.3 miles away
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Questions
Common questions
Where do you park at Forest Beach?
The nearest mapped parking area is 20 ft from the listed location. Positions come from OpenStreetMap, not from review text.
How far is the walk to the water at Forest Beach?
50 ft in a straight line from the listing to the mapped shoreline, under a minute. Soft sand and dune make the real walk longer than the straight line.
Does Forest Beach have restrooms?
No restrooms are mapped within 600 m on OpenStreetMap. That means nobody has mapped any, which is not the same as there being none.
When is Forest Beach least busy?
Google visit patterns put the quietest hour at Wed 8am and the busiest at Sat 3pm.
Measured from OpenStreetMap, public aerial imagery and live conditions data, and counted from visitor reviews. Every source, in full.
