News and Events for Nantucket Island
As fall arrives on our island, we welcome fewer people, crisp fall air, and the start of our hunting seasons. Hunting is a time-honored tradition, part of Nantucket’s cultural heritage just as fishing is. But it is also an important management tool for our conservation organizations and property owners.
Hurricanes make for wonderful metaphors but lousy forecasts. Hurricane Erin came a’ creeping up the east coast and ruined a lot of late August plans. Number one on my list was the Derby Day fishing event, wisely cancelled out of an abundance of caution. High winds, rip currants, and huge ocean swells are not conducive to a great family beach day. On the bright side, some of the surfing pictures and videos that came from the southern shores of Nantucket are flatout amazing. The good with the bad, right?
Nantucket Atheneum Pass(port) Program The Nantucket Atheneum is expanding its educational offerings with the launch of The Pass(port) Program, a new initiative offering free museum and experiential passes to library patrons. Library cardholders — both year-round residents and visitors — can borrow passes for complimentary admission to select island museums […]
Nantucket Island is as beautiful during the Quiet Season as it is during the heyday of summer. Share your autumn, holiday, and winter photos by entering our 2024 Nantucket Photo Contest. To participate, email your high resolution photos of Nantucket that depict our island and island life to ackphotocontest@gmail.com. Enter […]
It’s been almost a month since the awesome August Blues tournament ended, and my butt is still sore from getting beat out on the Gator Blue prize for the biggest bluefish. A fine young fisher named Gray Malitsky knocked me to the canvas and stood over me like a young Cassius Clay (aka Muhammad Ali) did to Sonny Liston, beating me with his 36.5 inch monster blue. In the weeks since my humiliating, soulcrushing, “…to the death! No, to the pain” style defeat, I have learned some things about Gray, this mysterious young champion. And what I’ve learned is far too great to not share with you all, so here goes.
Unsinkability. Is that a real term? Well, I’m going to say yes, seeing how my spellcheck feature didn’t draw a red line under the word. But what does it really mean to be unsinkable? It’s not always a positive term, of course. The Titanic was said to be unsinkable, and that didn’t go so well. But in my lexicon, if I feel that someone is considered unsinkable, it’s high praise.
This summer Egan Maritime Institute is offering free daily family programs at the Shipwreck and Lifesaving Museum Monday through Friday outside on the Museum’s grounds from 10 am to 3 pm. In addition to tried-and-true favorites, like rope making and knot tying, they have added new and updated activities for different ages and learning styles. These activities include a focus on art and design, as well as opportunities to learn about traditional boat building.
Be prepared! Ah, yes, the old Boy Scout motto. No better time to be prepared than when you’re out on some remote beach, far from what passes for civilization on this little island of ours. It’s important to remember the 6 P’s: Proper Prior Planning Prevents Poor Performance! Here’s a couple entries from my fishing log that illustrates the importance of preparedness.
