Johnny O’Hara (Our Own Gloucester Legend) helping Cape Ann SUP train and condition members of the Essex Rowing Club to participate in the Blackburn Challenge Race schedule for July 25th 2015.
My View of Life on the Dock
Johnny O’Hara (Our Own Gloucester Legend) helping Cape Ann SUP train and condition members of the Essex Rowing Club to participate in the Blackburn Challenge Race schedule for July 25th 2015.
Joey-
Below is a blurb describing some graffiti removal work around Gloucester yesterday.
I wonder if your GMG readers might help us identify other areas around Gloucester for future clean-ups.
Nick, Cape Ann Trail Stewards
The Essex County Anti Graffiti unit was in town this Wednesday morning to clean up the Sawyer Library and sites in West Gloucester and at the Cherry Street entrance to Dogtown.
The clean up team, led by Sergeant Christopher Goudreault, uses a combination of high pressure water and baking soda to remove paint from various surface.
Here is a before and after view of a utility building along Concord Street near the new Exit 13 entrance to Greenbelt’s Tompson Street Reservation.
Below are before and after photos from the Bray Street entrance to Tompson Reservation and the entrance to Dogtown.
Thanks to Mary Devaney of Rockport’s Anti-graffiti task force and to the Gloucester Department of Public Works and Gloucester Police Department and Sawyer Library Director Fred Cowan for coordinating this work.
Nick Holland, President, Cape Ann Trail Stewards
Nicholas Holland
(617) 233-7332

Hey Joey,
Here are a few photos from the last few days.
Fishing has been fantastic at Yankee Fleet. Come join us for a great day on the ocean.
We added a new trip. Mackerel fishing Friday and Saturday nights from 5pm-9pm
Great fun, for the whole family.
Check Out The Yankee Fleet Website for More Info- http://www.yankeefleet.com/
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Friends of ours were sailing just outside the Eastern Point breakwater when they spotted this guy or gal! Before getting close enough to clearly identify it, they said that the huge head almost looked like a very small humpback whale calf. Upon closer inspection it was, without a doubt, a massive turtle!
For all the time I have spent on the water in this area, I have never seen a turtle like this!
Can anyone chime in? Is this pretty rare? I’m sad that the photo doesn’t do justice to what was, based on their description, a beautiful creature!
Good morning Joey!
The Friends of Coastal Elite Cheerleaders are asking for your help to spread the word about a fundraiser we are having at Jalapenos on Monday, July 13th. 10% of all dine-in & take-out orders (excluding alcohol) will be donated to our cheerleaders. We will also be holding a scratch ticket raffle & selling our ELITE Vacation Raffle tickets. All monies collected during this fundraiser will go to the cheerleaders of Coastal Elite to help them further their training or offset the costs of all-star cheerleading. We hope to see all of our families & friends come out for a great night to help us raise money for our outstanding athletes!
We have attached our flyer as well as a few pictures (some from your wonderful contributors!) of the girls in action & would really appreciate it if you could help us spread the word about this event by posting this info to your page!
Thank you so much!
~The Friends of Coastal Elite Cheerleaders
The United States Naval Academy (USNA) Offshore Sail Training Squadron (OSTS), aboard four NA-44 foot sailboats, will drop anchor on Friday July 10th in Rockport Harbor to take part in the Rockport Navy Weekend 2015. The midshipmen and their advisors will be joined for the weekend by sailors from the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery, Maine, the USS Constitution in Boston, Massachusetts and the Navy Band in Newport, Rhode Island.
The Rockport Navy Weekend is hosted by the Rockport Navy Committee, which is comprised of volunteers who have worked to bring the U.S. Navy to Rockport since 2007. The activities are planned to encourage the entire community to interact with and learn about the US Navy. The enthusiastic support and generous financial donations of the residents and businesses of Rockport helps make the Rockport Navy Weekend a success.
The Offshore Sail Training Squadron is a summer training option for midshipman that exposes them to seamanship, navigation, and small-unit leadership. This experience allows them to integrate skills learned at the USNA during their first year of study. First class and second class midshipmen can train to be skippers or executive officers providing further command opportunities.
Midshipmen on this training exercise are on the newest model of the NA-44, designed by Patrick Pedrick. The first boat of this series was delivered in 2007. The NA-44 has proven to be a very successful design, and a fitting successor to the famous Luder yawls which gave generations of Midshipmen a professional appreciation for wind, waves, weather and command responsibility, and introduced them to the pleasure and excitement of going to sea under sail.
As the undergraduate college of the Naval service, the Naval Academy prepares young men and women to become professional officers in the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps. Naval Academy students are midshipmen on active duty in the U.S. Navy. They attend the academy for four years, graduating with Bachelor of Science degrees and reserve commissions as ensigns in the Navy or second lieutenants in the Marine Corps. Naval Academy graduates serve at least five years as Navy or Marine Corps officers.
The Portsmouth Naval Shipyard’s primary mission is the overhaul, repair and modernization of Los Angeles-class submarines. Portsmouth Naval Shipyard provides the U.S. Navy’s nuclear powered submarine fleet with quality overhaul work in a safe, timely and affordable manner. A model of a nuclear submarine will be at various events throughout the weekend.
Saturday:
10:15 AM: The sailors and midshipmen will play kickball with pre-registered local children, ages 6-16, at Green Field. The children, sailors and midshipmen will be mixed together on the teams, no rivalries! The public is welcome to cheer the teams on.
11:00 AM-4:00 PM: A master gun team, in 1813 period uniforms, will be giving hourly demonstrations using a replica of an 1812 USS Constitution gun deck complete with a 5,800 pound late 18th century long gun on Bearskin Neck.
12:00 PM – 4:00 PM: One of the USNA’s 44 foot sailboats will be open for public tours on T-wharf. Midshipmen will be on hand to answer questions.
6:30 PM: Softball game: USN/USNA vs Rockport, Green Field. Live DJ. Refreshments will be available. The public is welcome to cheer the teams on.
Sunday:
8:00 AM-10:00 AM: Benefit pancake breakfast at Brackett’s Oceanview Restaurant, 25 Main Street. Enjoy breakfast with visiting midshipmen or sailors while overlooking beautiful Sandy Bay!
11:00 AM-4:00 PM: A master gun team, in 1813 period uniforms, will be giving hourly demonstrations using a replica of an 1812 USS Constitution gun deck complete with a 5,800 pound late 18th century long gun on Bearskin Neck.
12:00 PM – 2:00 PM: One of the USNA’s 44 foot sailboats will be open for public tours on T-wharf. Midshipmen will be on hand to answer questions.
3:00 PM The Northeast Navy Pops Ensemble will perform a free concert at the Rockport High School, 24 Jerden’s Lane. For ticket information go to http://www.rocnavcom.org.
The Northeast Navy Pops Ensemble is comprised of talented musicians from around the country and provides musical entertainment for audiences of all ages. Navy Band Northeast’s Pops Ensemble is a full concert band that performs a wide variety of musical styles including traditional band literature, popular standards and patriotic favorites.
Navy Band Northeast was established in 1974, and is one of eleven official bands of the United States Navy worldwide. Under the direction of Lieutenant Gregory Fritz, the band is attached to the Naval War College on board Naval Station Newport, Rhode Island, and serves the military and civilian communities throughout the Northeastern United States.
For more information go to www.rocnavcom.org or follow the Rockport Navy Committee on Facebook.
Hey folks,
We need your help on Saturdays, 10am to 2pm!
This week (7/11/15) we are continuing to build a cover over the vessel. This is vital, to keep the water out of the interior vessel as we open up sections for work.
We are also continuing work to remove the interior of the fo’c’sle once the cover is completed.
Please come ready to get dirty! Also, please bring your own hammer and flat bar (pry bar).
Float building will begin if time allows.
In the coming weeks we will be working on other areas:
7/18 – Float building and Wheelhouse restoration prep
7/25 – Scrape and paint bow!
If you have a group that would like to come work together – ie company volunteers, Scouts, student groups – please coordinate with AMY so she can plan accordingly!
We look forward to seeing you!