Witches on the Water rings in the spookiest time of year with their annual paddle for charity.

As the crisp autumn air rolls around, a group of witches annually trade in their broomsticks and cauldrons for paddle boards and make their way to the shores of the Cape. This group of women, known as the Witches on the Water, partake in a yearly tradition of paddling on the shores of Cape Cod while adorned in pointy hats to raise money for local nonprofits.

Witches on the Water started out as a pastime between two friends. Co-founders Susan Price and Jo-Ellen Erickson paddled with each other for over a decade. After seeing a picture of another woman dressed as a witch and paddling, they decided to try it for themselves. Alongside 13 other friends, Price and Erickson led their first paddle dressed as witches on the Town Cove in Orleans in October of 2019. “We had people and photographers showing up, and the Cape Cod Times somehow had gotten wind of it, and they put us on the front page of the Sunday issue the next day,” Price says. “We were just out having fun, and people started reaching out to us, and asking, oh my gosh, this looks like so much fun. What are you raising money for? How can I get involved?” Quickly, the two women realized they could transform their pastime into an effort to give back to the community. 

The founders settled on creating Witches on the Water as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. Each year, they dedicate their fundraising to a different Cape-based nonprofit. The witches do not shy away from leaning into their theme when selecting the newest charity: each board member places a candidate for the upcoming year into...