On the Cove: April 2005

Striper Season

That's it. Reported in the Gloucester Daily Times, the first striped bass was cause yesterday. That starts the season, a time when local recreational fishermen go a little crazy. I haven't seen anyone fishing from the breakwater yet, but I'm sure they will. Last year we saw the herring run in Rockport harbor. Amazing to see so many fish right off the docks. The stripers follow the herring. I think the minimum catch is 36"--a pretty big fish.

House on Lanes Cove

Spring Comes Slowly

A bit more rain this morning, but they assure us clearing by this afternoon. With the recent rain and warmer weather, the forsythia is blooming and the grass is becoming a very deep green color. The trees are starting to bud and the magnolias are in full bloom. The grass along the edge of the cove is also starting to show strong signs of life. Ah, spring.

Sunset on Lanes Cove

Welcome to Lanes Cove

This is a diary about living on Lanes Cove. Lanes Cove is a unique location on the western side of Cape Ann Massachusetts. Located in Lanesville, a village in Gloucester, Massachusetts, the cove has been a working port for close to two hundred years. First as a fishing port, then later as a granite loading port and now for lobster and pleasure boats.

Last night a ship archored off the cove in Ipswich Bay. Though I couldn't make out the her configuration in the dark, it was clear she was a buoy tender. This morning, it was quite clear--it was USCGC Willow (WLB 202). I think that Ipswich Bay, especially near the mouth of the Annisquam river, provides a calm and protected anchorage, especially from weather from the south and east.