Ferry Dock Marina Webcam – Catch Burlington Bay Sunsets

The Ferry Dock Marina Webcam looks west from the downtown waterfront in Burlington, Vermont, over the marina’s floating docks and Burlington Bay to the Adirondack Mountains on the New York side of Lake Champlain. In season, motorboats and a few sailboats fill the slips in the foreground. Behind them a long breakwater runs across the whole width of the picture, with open lake beyond it and a wooded point closing off the right-hand edge. The camera faces the afternoon sun, so the view changes most late in the day, when glare spreads across the water and the mountains turn into a dark outline against the sky.

About Ferry Dock Marina and the Burlington Waterfront

Ferry Dock Marina sits at 1 King Street Dock in downtown Burlington, on the eastern shore of Lake Champlain. The marina says it has been in business for more than 100 years. It has 294 wet slips, most of them held by seasonal members, and takes visiting boats up to 70 feet (21 meters) long on its transient berths along A dock. A 100-foot (30-meter) fuel dock sells non-ethanol gas and diesel, and pump-outs are free. Spot on the Dock, a lakeside bar and restaurant, shares the same dock.

The dock gave the marina its name. Lake Champlain Transportation, which has run boats on the lake since 1826, still gives the King Street Dock as its Burlington address, but its two current crossings run from Grand Isle, Vermont, to Plattsburgh, New York, and from Charlotte to Essex, New York. Neither leaves from downtown Burlington.

The low line across the middle of the frame is the Burlington Breakwater, which shelters the harbor from the open lake. It was finished in 1854 at 1,000 feet (305 meters) and lengthened several times as wharves spread along the waterfront. Today the main section runs 3,793 feet (1,156 meters), with a separate 364-foot (111-meter) section to the north beyond a 200-foot (61-meter) channel. Wooden lights first marked its ends in 1857, and the replica lighthouses that stand there now were lit on September 12, 2003.

Lake Champlain itself is 172 kilometers (107 miles) long and up to 23 kilometers (14 miles) wide, and it reaches 120 meters (400 feet) at its deepest point. It drains north through the Richelieu River into the St. Lawrence. Burlington is the largest city on its shores.

Weather and Climate in Burlington

Winters here are long and cold. January averages a high of -1.7 C (28.9 F) and a low of -10.6 C (12.9 F), and about 222 centimeters (87.5 inches) of snow falls in an average year. Parts of Lake Champlain freeze every winter, and in the coldest years the entire surface ices over, which is known as the lake closing. With most boats out of the water for the season, the winter view from the marina is far emptier, and on a cold, still day the bay can lie flat and gray, or white with ice, under snowy Adirondack peaks.

Spring comes slowly. April highs average 12.9 C (55.3 F), with nights near 2.2 C (35.9 F). By July the average high is 28.0 C (82.4 F) and the low 16.9 C (62.4 F), and the slips are usually at their fullest. October brings highs of 14.9 C (58.9 F) and lows of 5.4 C (41.8 F), as boats start to come out of the water. The marina’s ship store opens from mid-May to early October.

Things to Do Near Ferry Dock Marina

ECHO, Leahy Center for Lake Champlain, the city’s lake science center, stands about 200 meters (650 feet) north along the shore at 1 College Street. Burlington Waterfront Park is a short walk along the same shore, and the Burlington Bike Path follows the lake through the city from Oakledge Park in the south to the Winooski River in the north. Its Island Line extension carries walkers and cyclists about 6.4 kilometers (4 miles) out into the lake on an old railroad causeway.

Church Street Marketplace, a four-block pedestrian mall in the center of Burlington, is a few blocks uphill to the east and holds festivals through the year. Visiting boaters can book a transient slip at the marina itself, and Spot on the Dock serves food and drinks at the water’s edge on the same dock as the camera.

Similar Webcams You Might Like

For more of Vermont and the New England waterfront, try these cameras.

• Church Street Marketplace Webcam
• Beverly Harbor Webcam
• Killington Webcam

Frequently Asked Questions

What can you see on the Ferry Dock Marina Webcam?

The camera faces west over the marina’s docks and boats to the Burlington Breakwater, the open water of Lake Champlain and the Adirondack Mountains in New York. A wooded point fills the right edge. Downtown Burlington and the ECHO science center just to the north are out of the frame.

Where is Ferry Dock Marina located?

At 1 King Street Dock on the downtown waterfront of Burlington, Vermont, on the eastern shore of Lake Champlain. The New York shore lies across the lake to the west.

Does this webcam show Church Street or the Burlington airport?

No. Both are behind the camera, to the east. Church Street Marketplace is a few blocks uphill from the waterfront, and Burlington International Airport is about 5.5 kilometers (3.4 miles) east in South Burlington. The site’s Church Street Marketplace Webcam covers the pedestrian mall.

Can you watch the sunset on the Ferry Dock Marina Webcam?

Yes. The marina runs it as its sunset cam, and because it faces west across the lake, the sun goes down over the Adirondacks in or near the frame for much of the year. The last hour before sunset, with the light low across the water, is the best time to tune in. After dark most of the detail disappears.

Is this a good Burlington VT weather cam?

It works well as one. About half the frame is sky, so cloud, showers over the lake and fog all show up, and the Adirondacks act as a visibility marker: if the ridge is sharp, the air is clear. Whitecaps beyond the breakwater are a fair sign of a strong wind.

What is the weather like in Burlington, Vermont?

Burlington has cold, snowy winters and warm summers. January averages -1.7 C (28.9 F) by day and -10.6 C (12.9 F) at night, July 28.0 C (82.4 F) and 16.9 C (62.4 F), and about 222 centimeters (87.5 inches) of snow falls in a typical year.

Does a ferry still leave from the King Street Dock?

Not on a regular crossing. Lake Champlain Transportation still lists the King Street Dock as its Burlington address, but its two current routes run from Grand Isle to Plattsburgh and from Charlotte to Essex, New York, so the boats on camera are mostly pleasure craft from the marina.

Does the webcam keep running in winter?

Yes. The current broadcast has run without a restart since June 2025, through the winter months. Expect a much emptier marina from late fall until spring, with ice on the bay in a cold year.

Source: Ferry Dock Marina