Brooklyn · Kings County
Plumb Beach
NYC Parks
- Location
- Belt Parkway at Plumb Beach Channel, Sheepshead Bay / Manhattan Beach
- Size
- 28 acres
- Hours
- Dawn to dusk
- Type
- NYC Parks
Plumb Beach is a wild shoreline area along the Belt Parkway in southeastern Brooklyn, providing one of the few natural beach environments remaining in the borough and a critical habitat for horseshoe crabs.
The beach is one of the most important horseshoe crab spawning sites in the New York area. Each spring, thousands of horseshoe crabs emerge from Jamaica Bay to lay their eggs on Plumb Beach, a spectacle that has been occurring for millions of years.
Plumb Beach is also one of the premier kiteboarding and windsurfing locations in New York City. The consistent winds off Jamaica Bay create ideal conditions for wind sports, attracting enthusiasts from across the metropolitan area.
The beach faces erosion threats from storm surge and sea-level rise, and the Army Corps of Engineers has undertaken major beach restoration projects to protect both the shoreline and the adjacent Belt Parkway.
Plumb Beach offers a genuinely wild shoreline experience within the city limits, where ancient horseshoe crabs, extreme wind sports, and the raw forces of ocean and weather create an environment unlike any manicured city park.