Saturday Night of the Schooner Festival

It’s been a busy day at the Schooner Festival Weekend. The night ended with the Parade of Lights and fireworks.

In closing, as I mentioned earlier, the Paint Factory has been sold. The building has a thermometer and is lit up.

The Schooner Roseway and Chebacco Boat Fame

Finally, we had the Schooner Roseway and the Chebacco Boat Fame come into port. The Fame arrived with a cannon salute.

Preview of the Parade of Sails, Schooner Virginia Sails out of the Harbor.

Most sail boats do not sail out of the inner harbor. This morning, the Virginia came out of the inner harbor heading upwind in a true demonstration of seamanship.

The Lewis H Story and the Maine

The Lewis H. Story from Essex sails into the inner harbor as the Maine from Gloucester sails towards Stage Fort Park.

Schooner Westward returns to Gloucester

The Schooner Westward from Rockland, Maine has returned to Gloucester. Here she is at 8:30 this morning.



While out whale watching last Wednesday, we encountered The Westward sailing across Stellwagen Bank.

American Eagle and the Sea Harmony

This morning I spied a Schooner that I was not familiar with. It took a little photo editing and some internet searching to figure out who she is. It's the American Eagle. We're happy to have her in the harbor for the Schooner Festival Weekend.



As the light was getting low, I spotted the Sea Harmony entering the harbor under full sail.

Schooners Lettie G. Howard, Alabama and Estrela arrive in Gloucester

Schooners Lettie G Howard, Alabama and Estrela arrive in Gloucester for the Schooner Festival Weekend. I couldn't find a website for the Estrela, but she is from Prudence Island, RI.

Lettie G. Howard rounds Tenpound Island.

The Schooner Alabama rounds Tenpound Island.

The Schooner Estrela passes Rocky Neck.

The Bluenose II arrives in Gloucester

There is a feeling of excitement in Gloucester today as the Schooner Festival Weekend begins. The Bluenose II came into Gloucester Harbor this morning escorted by The Thomas E. Lannon.

Schooner Virginia arrives in Gloucester Harbor

It’s Schooner Festival Weekend here in Gloucester. The Schooner Virginia came into the Habor this afternoon.







I’m jazzed. Wooden boats with sheets unfurled makes for a pleasant weekend. Life is good. Stayed tuned, you know I'll be shooting my universe this weekend.

Humpback Whales Feeding

I got out for a whale watch this afternoon. The whales we encountered were feeding. This is quite a spectacle. In order to make the posting a reasonable size, I put together a slide show with comments. The comments can be turned off and on by clicking the icon on the bottom left. Enjoy.

Tenpound Light gets a Face Lift

There has been activity on Tenpound Island for the last couple of days. The light has been getting some maintenance. The light was serviced, the windows cleaned and she got a new paint job.

This is the result of today’s work.

Three Provincetown Lights

We encountered three lighthouses as we came out of the north from Gloucester towards Cape Cod. The first is the Race Point Light.



Further south is the Wood End Light.



At the very end of Cape Cod is the Long Point Light.

Day trip from Gloucester to P-Town

As summer draws to a close, we thought that we should hop the P-Town ferry before she shuts down for the season. Provincetown gives a photographer a lot of opportunities for shooting. Yes, there is a flamboyant side of P-Town that is world famous, however it is a beautiful town with its Pilgrim Memorial icon and sea side atmosphere.



The ferry leaves Gloucester at 8:30 am and arrives in P-Town at 11:00. The return trip boards at 4:00 giving you about 5 hours if you’re on a day trip. This has you in town during the glaring sunlight hours, but there are still lots of fun things to photograph.



Here are three shots of Officer Thomas, the Provincetown dancing traffic policeman. Although he is very animated and fun to watch, he has no patience for drivers puttering at his intersection. “Hey, before Labor Day. Come on, let’s GO!” It’s more than being entertaining. In the middle of a busy intersection, you have to be the most eye catching thing or you could get hit.









Walking around the streets, you will see well groomed gardens. This flower is about eight inches in across.

The Wilder Side of P-Town

No, not THAT wilder side...This is a wildlife photo blog.



I caught a little motion out of the corner of my eye. Then I couldn’t find him until he moved again. This little crab has tried to make himself look as uninteresting as possible.



This Semipalmated Plover was on the beach right in town.

More adventures on the way home.

The Laura crosses Stellwagen Bank and will stop to view whales encountered on the return trip. This humpback whale was photographed on the way back to Gloucester.



Bring your binoculars. Although this was not a birding trip, I saw Cory’s Shearwaters, Manx Shearwaters, Greater Shearwaters, Laughing Gull, Great Black-backed Gull, Herring Gulls, Ruddy Turnstone, Semipalmated Plover, Common Tern without any difficulty.

Something I've Never Done Before

An accomplishment that I have never achieved before today. In 32 years of photography I have never taken a good picture of an American Crow before. I suspect that these are jufiniles.

Gloucester Harbor's Common Terns

My first posting was a photo study of Least Terns from Cranes Beach. Later in the summer, Common Terns come into Gloucester Harbor. Common Terns are slightly larger and have more of a glide in their flight pattern. This adult Common Tern has red legs, a red bill with a black tip and a black head. This one has been banded as part of a study.



Terns patrol up and down the harbor as they hunt for small fish that are swimming near the surface.



You will see terns hovering or “kiting” in the wind, looking down before they dive for a fry.

Something about Nature Hates a Barn

There is something inviting about an old barn. We would play in such barns in our youth, building forts in the hay and climbing on the post and beam framing. For boys, barns can be places of great adventure.

Something about Nature hates a barn, trying to pull it to the ground removing all shape and structure as if to reclaim her timbers. She will send armies of insects to gnaw on timbers, dampness to cut the legs out from underneath and wind to remove the roofs.

It is good to see a barn well cared for. Nature will someday have this barn, but not today.

Marine Industrial

It always amazes me to see how many artist come to “The Fort” to paint and photograph this part of Gloucester. There is beauty in just about everything, even this building which once was used by Birdseye. Good Harbor Fillet is now on Great Republic Drive on the other side of town. Perhaps this will be a Marriott Hotel in the near future? Get real.

Mary & Josephine, Christina Eleni, Miss Trish and Razzo

The view from Saint Peter’s Square as the sun goes down.

Man at the Wheel

Some say that a lone sea gull is the spirit of a fisherman lost at sea. Many people visit the Man at the Wheel and pause to read the names of lost souls. Others are just happy to have a photo taken by this world famous icon.

Lest we forget, fishing was a hard life. Yes there was adventure, but in a world without GPS, satellite weather and marine radio, many were lost to Old Man Sea.

Note: The gull here is a Ring-billed Gull. He is a winter resident here in Gloucester.

Tenpound Island

Northern Canyon

The Northern Canyon came into Gloucester Harbor this morning. This is a Remotely Operated Vehicle support ship. The Northern Canyon offers technically advanced ship systems, crew and client amenities with multiple work ROV system options. The vessel has been built to new “Clean Comfort” standards and features “quiet” thrusters, modern working and living facilities.


This working boat assists in ROV operation, oil field activities, pipeline construction, deep water project support and fir fighting. Her crane can lift 50 tons. She can birth 48 crew and clients in 14 single and 28 double cabins.



She came in at 5:00 this morning. You can get a sense of scale by comparing it to the Coast Guard rescue boat.



At 6:30, with the sun rising at her stern, she headed back out to sea.