News and Events for Nantucket Island
Have you noticed seals lying around on the beach? Do you know what to do if you see one? Are they ok? Should I pour water on him? Shoo him back into the ocean? Get up close and see if he’s breathing? Take a selfie with him because I can? None of the above! The answer is stay back 150 feet and call the Marine Mammal Alliance Nantucket Hotline (833-667-6626). Their trained volunteers will advise you, ask for observations and then send a teammate out to check.
“If you’re not real smart, you need smart friends.” I think this quote comes from Albert Einstein. Or maybe Yogi Berra. Who knows—maybe I said it. Regardless, there’s a lot of truth to this, right? Expert advice is a really great way to go when you want to get a question answered. And I am fortunate enough to have a bunch of smart friends, particularly when the questions involve fishing for striped bass. So it seemed like exactly the right time to ask them a bass fishing question. The question was as follows…
The text from my buddy Greg said, “The morning bite has been hot at Point O’ Breakers. Let’s hit it tomorrow.” Greg is a hard charger who puts in his beach time fishing for striped bass. I knew that his information was solid, so we agreed to meet around 4:00 a.m. and fish until we had to leave for work. This was in early June a couple of years ago and the striper fishing had been sporadic. Greg and I fished hard that next morning, with each of us picking up some short fish (less than the 28 inch minimum) in the darkness.
With FIGAWI in the rearview mirror, it really feels like summer is upon us on the island. As we all start to spend more time outdoors on our conservation trails, we come into contact more frequently with one of the few hazards we have on Nantucket. We don’t have skunks, bear, coyotes, or venomous snakes. We do, however, have ticks. Late spring/early summer is a boon time for ticks, but with a mild winter and temperatures rarely going below freezing, ticks on island have been active all year round.
The first Nantucket striped bass of the year is a very sought-after fish. That first striper signifies that it’s time to get your gear out and get ready for the onslaught of fish that follow. The first bass clearly says that the seasons have changed. The long winter wait is over, better times are coming. Yeah, that first striped bass is an important fish.
We’ve had a marvelous fall with warmer weather than ever before. This has led to many more outdoor adventures, longer hikes, and even some late fall ocean swims.
However, as we settle in towards real winter on Nantucket, the winds will whip up and the bitter cold will eventually set in. But that doesn’t mean you have to stay indoors. You might just need an excuse to get outside. In the dead of winter, as the sun sets earlier, I know that I sometimes need an excuse to walk a little further or to explore a new spot. One answer to this problem for me, especially when my son was young, was to go on a treasure hunt. Welcome to the wonderful world of geocaching!
To help with your holiday shopping (don’t we all have a few on our list who are difficult to shop for?), our staff has some suggestions from our advertisers. Here’s what we would choose from each business, though they all have much more in their stores and on their websites. […]
Labor Day weekend is a transition period for the island. The first Monday in September marks the end of summer—droves will have left the island by then. It’s also the start of school, the beginning of fall. Shopping at the Stop and Shop will tell you it’s Autumn for sure (the Halloween candy is already out). But don’t rush to put on boots and drink pumpkin spice lattes just yet or you’ll miss one of the best “seasons” on-island.
