Shooting Near Water

I am doing a documentary on an artists' community that was at the mouth of a river here in Washington state. The location is exposed to sun and water 180 to 270 degrees. The river runs into salt water where I am shooting. It is common that there is a high haze. A year ago, I did some preliminary shooting at the location. I was shooting at roughly mid-day. (The area is accessible only by boat; we are limited in access time by tides.)The area is stunningly beautiful. However, the footage I got was flat and drained of color.

Suggestions?

Shoot late in day?
Use a polarizing filter? I understand that this knocks back some of the diffusion from the haze?
Your ideas?

Shooting with a PD150. Thanks in advance.