Even though it was cloudy on Saturday, Good harbor never disappoints.
Tag: Good Harbor Beach
Motif Monday: Good Harbor Beach Bass Rocks and Sherman’s point #GloucesterBeaches
photo: Catherine Ryan
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Gloucester Smiles-1510
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Gloucester Smiles-1508
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Condo construction resumes at the corner of Witham and Thatcher
After a lull, construction has resumed across from Good Harbor Beach at the corner of Thatcher and Witham. The property is legally described as Assessors Map 184, Lots #5 and #9, also known as 70-74 Thatcher Road. (Brier Neck Shores project)
new sign
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Are you up for the 13-2 Gloucester beaches challenge? 13 beaches. 2 jumps. 1 city. Go! #Staycation #safecation #Covid19
Covid-19 and summer brought an old post to mind. Reposting summer 2020; First published in July 2016.
Are you up for a Gloucester beaches challenge?
A mid-week vacation day is the easiest. Oh, and you’ll need your resident beach sticker. We prepped our car with a picnic blanket for the seat, extra towels, and ice waters. Start early and grab a big “lobsterjack” breakfast because you’ll need the fuel. End late.
Let’s establish some base rules here.
First off, you need to spend at least 15 minutes at each beach. (You can tweak this a little if you want.) Next, you need to dive under. We suggest a ritual for each beach, e.g. ‘The Five and Dive’. Finally, you have to stop for ice cream and candy. Remember, you can do these beaches (or others or quarries in Gloucester) and jumps in any order. Be flexible for different ages and unexpected delays like staying at one beach for hours, or a friend asking you to drop off a sub (*cough* Joey *cough*). Most importantly, you have to do at least 13 beaches and 2 jumps in one day. Mind the tides. Be grateful we have so many choices.
The Beaches- partial list
alphabetical order
Annisquam lighthouse. Coffin’s beach. Good Harbor beach. Long beach. Magnolia beach. Niles beach. Pavilion beach (by Beach Court). Pavilion beach bonus (by the cut). Plum Cove beach. Rocky Neck Oakes Cove beach. Stage Fort Park (1) – Cressy’s beach ( our alt. title ‘sea serpent’ big beach). Stage Fort Park (2) – Half Moon beach. Wheeler’s Point. Wingaersheek beach.
The Jumps- partial list
Annisquam bridge. Magnolia Pier.
*We did this challenge at least once each summer. (In 2016) we started off with breakfast at Willow’s Rest and continued from there. Our timing was random especially as we spent hours at Wingaersheek. The second meal to get us through the day came from the sandwich counter at Annie’s by Wingaersheek. Yes, they have a sandwich counter.
Gloucester Beaches sandwich directory
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Beach Day! New safety signs at Long Beach #RockportMA. Residents only at Good Harbor Beach #GloucesterMA
Scenes from Long Beach
views from both the Rockport and Gloucester ends at about high noon (tide heading out)
Cape Ann SUP is set up renting paddle boards and lessons at Long Beach by the Cape Ann Motor Inn, and the Cow Mobile Ice Cream Truck. Dominic is too modest to mention but we know that he keeps an eye out there beyond his clients and has rescued swimmers. The rip tide sign reflects the corner of the cove. There was a rescue covered in the Gloucester Daily Times this week, “Friends pull 5 from riptide“. Afterwards a lifeguard chair has been relocated closer to this side and a new sign added at the entrance.
Scenes from Good Harbor Beach
about 11 and again at 4pm
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Crossing Good Harbor Beach in stride
11am July 2020
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Sandman Sand Sculpture Good Harbor Beach
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Clearing and surveying 41 & 43 Cliff Road | view from Thatcher Road #GloucesterMA #newconstruction
41 7 43 Cliff Road (Lots 176_1 and 2) near Witham and Thatcher Road Gloucester, MA (map across the street shows former Amelia’s or Olivia’s before the condos)
Just past the corner of Witham and Thatcher before Long Beach Dairy Maid, clearing and surveying underway on two lots across from the former Amelia’s/Olivia’s space.
photos below – BEFORE (2019 and earlier) Water run off used to ice over before DPW work along this stretch
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Massachusetts wildflowers & weeds | sweet beach pea vs. bittersweet nightshade, Good Harbor Beach dune plants
Beach pea (also known as sand pea) is a sweet native wildflower (Lathyrus japonicus) that’s easy to spot in the dunes– from any of the walkways.
sweet beach pea wildflowers Good Harbor Beach dunes
The flowers with the purple petals and yellow stamen daggers in the mix are “bittersweet nightshade” also known as climbing nightshade and woody nightshade. Solanum dulcamara is poisonous and invasive and thus weed.
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Your corona empties might give someone corona- carry in, out and home will help #GloucesterMA beaches, city staff, friends and family
It’s likely low risk (I think?), especially on sunny days, but why make battling Covid-19 any harder?
At this point I realized I didn’t bring enough bags and was rescued by a friend with two commercial grade big bags. If the environment, oceans and wildlife aren’t motivating enough to take care of litter, how about caring for the people left to pick up and sort?
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Around Town #167
The Generous Gardeners working hard..and “What a difference a day makes makes!”
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On a beautiful, cold, windy Saturday afternoon
Pretty Good Harbor on Saturday.
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Around Town #153
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THANK YOU GOVERNOR BAKER AND THE MASSACHUSETTS DEPARTMENT OF CONSERVATION FOR PROTECTING PIPING PLOVERS AT DCR BEACHES!
So proud to live in Massachusetts, a state where the lives of threatened and endangered shorebirds that nest along our coastline, birds such as Least Terns, Piping Plovers, and American Oyster Catchers, are considered worth protecting.
Despite all that the state government is trying to manage with the pandemic at its very peak, a huge shout out to Governor Baker and his administration for continuing the fight to help protect Piping Plovers. The Governor’s list of essential workers includes natural resource workers and the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation has placed symbolic roping and threatened species signs on DCR beaches. For over forty years, people have been working to rebuild the Piping Plover population and it will only add to the coronavirus tragedy if we cease protecting threatened and endangered wildlife.
The PiPls are having a tough time of it this spring, largely because so much of their overwintering habitat was ravished during last year’s Hurricane Dorian. Let’s all work together to share the shore with wildlife and to protect our own Good Harbor Beach Piping Plover family!
Males and females are pairing up at local beaches
Male PiPl building a nest scrape and tossing bits of shells and sand into the scrape
Female PiPl keeping out of the path of gusty winds
Winthrop Shores Reservation ‘Five Sisters’
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#gloucesterma STORM PHOTOS – GOOD HARBOR BEACH, EASTERN POINT LIGHTHOUSE, DOGBAR BREAKWATER, BACK SHORE, TEN POUND ISLAND, BRACE COVE, MOTHER ANN
Scenes from around the eastern end of Gloucester – churning seas, leaden clouds, and great puffs of wind – the waves weren’t super, super huge at 4pm but there was still great crashing action over the Dogbar.
Herring Gull and Brant Geese taking shelter (and fighting) at the little cove at Easter Point Light
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PARKING BAN AT NILES BEACH AND NEIGHBORHOOD STREETS SURROUNDING GOOD HARBOR BEACH AND WINGAERSHEEK BEACH
New beach parking restrictions are being implemented by the Mayor’s office. These restrictions include Witham Street, Nautilus Road, Eastern Point Road (the road that runs along Niles Beach) and the neighborhood roads around Wingaersheek Beach.
Barricades were placed today in several locations and we imagine more will be forthcoming.
No barriers yet on Nautilis Road (we expect they are coming)
No barriers yet on Witham Street
New barriers at the corner of Witham and 127A
Walk-ons allowed and bike stand still in place at Good Harbor Beach
Good Harbor Beach this afternoon, in and out of storms
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COYOTES IN THE BLUE HOUR
Prior to dawn Monday morning, two Eastern Coyotes were spotted perusing Saratoga Creek and Good Harbor Beach. They appeared to be a pair; the huskier of the two was definitely the ‘alpha’ Coyote, with the smaller trotting after the larger. Before crossing the Creek, they both stopped to go pooh and pee in a pile of seaweed.
The larger (am assuming a male, but not entirely sure) has a more mottled snout with a black tail tip, while the smaller of the two has a very black snout and no black on its tail tip.
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FIERY SUBLIME SUNRISE GOOD HARBOR BEACH
Saturday morning’s sublime sunrise at GHB
Good Morning Gloucester 