Category Archives: Gloucester sunrise

WHY IS THE CREEK AT GOOD HARBOR BEACH CLOSED TO SWIMMING AND RECREATION?

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Bad times as Good Harbor Creek closed by high bacteria levels

Ipswich Local News

John P. Muldon

GLOUCESTER— The Gloucester Health Department has said that the creek at Good Harbor Beach will stay closed for “the foreseeable future, due to high bacteria levels.”

“The closure is restricted to the creek only; Good Harbor Beach itself remains open and swimming can safely continue,” the department said in an update on Monday afternoon.

Good Harbor Beach and its creek are tested weekly to ensure water quality and safety. Recent testing shows higher-than-safe levels of enterococci bacteria in the creek, which can cause infections, bacteremia, and endocarditis.

“Enterococci are bacteria that live in the intestinal tracts of warm-blooded animals, including humans, and therefore indicate possible contamination of streams and rivers by fecal waste,” according to the federal EPA’s website.

“These pathogens can sicken swimmers and others who use rivers and streams for recreation or eat raw shellfish or fish,” it said.

“Other potential health effects can include diseases of the skin, eyes, ears, and respiratory tract. Eating fish or shellfish harvested from waters with fecal contamination can also result in human illness,” the EPA said.

“Important clinical infections caused by Enterococcus include urinary tract infections, bacteremia, bacterial endocarditis, diverticulitis, meningitis, and spontaneous bacterial peritonitis,” Wikipedia said.

The creek was initially closed for the day — “out of an abundance of caution” — on June 3, then temporarily on June 10 and 11, and was closed for the foreseeable future on June 17, the health department said.

“A preliminary survey of the shoreline upstream from the creek has revealed no obvious signs of pollution,” it added.

The city will sample water upstream to narrow the possible source(s) of the problem. Results will be shared with the state Division of Marine Fisheries, which also conducts sampling in the area due to active seasonal shellfish beds at the north end of Good Harbor.

Signs will be posted along the creek informing the public about the ban.

BONAPARTE’S GULLS AND BRACE COVE SUNRISE

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Beautiful Bonaparte’s dancing in the waves at sunrise, Brace Cove

GOOD MORNING FROM GOOD HARBOR!

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Despite the pandemic heartbreak, along with the social and economic hardships so many are experiencing, the summer of 2020 been a beautiful season of sunrises and sunsets. This one is from several days ago.I’m so behind in posting local wildlife stories while trying to prepare all the ancillary materials needed to send my film to APTWW, a huge back log of stories really. But I did want everyone to be aware that there is a a great flock of juvenile Laughing Gulls on our shores right now. They are fishing feeding with juvenile Herring Gulls as well as with adult Laughing Gulls. The Laughing Gull juveniles are smaller than the Herring Gulls and have a very distant scallop pattern on their flight wings. Will try to post some more photos later today 🙂Laughing Gull juvenile

BEAUTIFUL SILVERY VIOLET FOGGY SUNRISE AT GOOD HARBOR BEACH

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Good Harbor Beach is sunrise central for me currently as there is so much beautiful wildlife to film and photograph happening right now all around on our shores and neighborhoods. You have to be there by 4:45 to catch the beautiful light. Lots of good stories to share, just need to find the time to organize 🙂 A sunrise photo will have to do for now.

POSTING MONDAY – BEAUTY BY THE SEA EPISODE #8 and PIPING PLOVERS MATING!

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Slight delay in posting episode 8 but lots of good things to talk about, including excellent clips of Piping Plovers mating as our Piping Plover Chronicles continues. See you then <3

Beautiful rainbow sherbet skies sunrise sequence Friday morning

NEW YOUTUBE SHOW – BEAUTY BY THE SEA EPISODE #7

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Timelapse Sunrise Twin Lighthouses at Thacher Island

To clarify about My Blog. Several friends have written with confused questions re my blog. I have been writing, filming, designing, photographing, and painting all my life. I started my own blog long before I began contributing to a local community blog. I both wrote and illustrated a book on garden design, Oh Garden of Fresh Possibilities!, which was published by David R. Godine, and have written many articles for numerous publications including a weekly column on habitat gardening. Here is a link to my blog and to my book, Oh Garden of Fresh Possibilities! Notes from a Gloucester Garden.

If you would like to follow or subscribe to my blog, click the Follow button in the lower right hand corner. Thank you so much if you do! http://www.kimsmithdesigns.com.

Baltimore Orioles arrive when the pears and crabapples come into bloom in our garden. Great idea for an Oriole feeder from friend Robin!

Shadblow (Amelanchier canadensis) question from Morgan Faulds Pike

Caffe Sicilia reopening May 20, Wednesday. What are you going to order?

We Love the Franklin Cape Ann

Castaways Vintage Cafe

Gloucester Fisherman’ Wharf

Cedar Rock Gardens

Piping Plover Chronicles –

Piping Plover Smackdowns

Still no threatened/endangered species signage. Please write to your councilor.

How can you help raise the next generation of PiPls? It’s a great deal to ask of people during coronavirus to care for, and write letters about, tiny little shorebirds, but people do care. For over forty years, partners have been working to protect these threatened creatures and it is a shame to put them at risk like this needlessly.  We have been working with Ward One City Councilor Scott Memhard and he has been beyond terrific in helping us sort through the problems this year; however, I think if we wrote emails or letters to all our City Councilors and asked them to help us get signs installed it would be super helpful. Please keep letters kind and friendly, or just simply copy paste the following:

Subject Line: Piping Plovers Need Our Help

Dear City Councilors,

Gloucester Plovers need our help. Please ask the Conservation Commission to install the threatened species signs at the symbolically cordoned off nesting areas and at the entrances at Good Harbor Beach.

Thank you for helping these birds raise their next generation.

Your Name

Link to all the City Councilors, but I believe that if you send one letter and also cc to Joanne Senos, a copy will be sent to all the City Councilors. Her address is: JSenos@gloucester-ma.gov

Piping Plover Smackdown

ODDLY BEAUTIFUL SUNRISE AT GOOD HARBOR BEACH

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These photos were taken several days ago. I haven’t had time to sort through photos from today, but I think this morning’s sunrise was even more beautiful 🙂

NEW YOUTUBE SHOW “GOOD NEWS CAPE ANN!” EPISODE #4

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Good News Cape Ann! 

Topics Episode #4

Thank you Friends for watching! Links to topics provided below

 Timelapse sunrise over Salt Island (see end of video)

Ospreys catch a Skate!

Coronavirus – Sending much love and prayers to my family of friends who are suffering so greatly.

Nicole Duckworth’s birthday parade

Time to put your hummingbird feeders out -how to attract hummingbirds and keep them coming to your garden

Cape Ann List of ToGo Curbside Pickup TakeOut Restaurants

Fisherman’s Wharf Gloucester and Sole Amandine Recipe

Gloucester Bites

Allie’s Beach Street Café

Turner’s Seafood

Castaways Vintage Café

Melissa Tarr’s Naan bread

Monarch Butterflies Mating

Piping Plovers nestling

Project SNOWStorm shares

Turkeys in the morning sun and Turkey bromance (correction – there was one hen with the group of toms).

Chocolate-dipped almond biscotti recipe

Please write if there is a Good News topic you would like to share. I am thinking about changing the name of the show to Finding Hope, what do you think about that?

GOOD MORNING! BROUGHT TO YOU BY TODAY’S PAINT BOX SUNDAY GOOD HARBOR BEACH SUNRISE

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Sunday’s sunrise

KIM SMITH MONARCH BUTTERFLY CONSERVATION PROGRAM SATURDAY OCTOBER 5TH AT THE STEVENS COOLIDGE PLACE ANDOVER

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These magical creatures never cease to amaze and surprise. Early one morning I went looking in the butterfly trees for an overnight roost. Instead I found them sleeping like a dream in a golden field.

The light was pure rose gold for a few brief moments, casting a pearly pink glow over the butterflies, too.

I’ve seen a small cluster of sleeping Monarchs on a wildflower branch before, but never a field full. The wind was strong; perhaps they felt safer roosting closer to the ground.

It was funny to watch them awaken. Some flew off, but most stayed in place and began drinking nectar. Bees do this, they sleep in flowers, but it was a first to see Monarchs sleeping in their breakfast.

Come join me Saturday morning at The Stevens Coolidge Place in Andover for all things Monarch. I will be giving my Monarch conservation program at 10:30. For more information go here.

Male (left) and Female Monarch Waking Up in Goldenrod Field

GOOD HARBOR BEACH NORTH LIGHT SUNRISE SEQUENCE

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Good Morning! Brought to you by Thacher Island’s North Light sunrise.

GOOD HARBOR BEACH ROSE GOLD

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Good morning, brought to you by today’s Good Harbor Beach magical rosey gold sunrise.

Sunrise Spectacular on the Last day of 2018 (Harbor Seals and American Wigeons, too)!o

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The last morning of 2018 began with a gorgeously hued sunrise, and then, as so often happens on the wild and wonderful shores of Cape Ann, there were several chance and up close encounters with our local creatures. Nearly everyday I am reminded of the astonishing beauty that surrounds, from my East Gloucester neighborhood, to the natural habitats all around Cape Ann and Massachusetts. What a magnificent Planet we share!

Happy New Year and wishing you much love, joy, and beauty in the coming year.

Buffy gold juvenile Harbor Seal in the golden light of sunrise -an amazingly nonchalant, young Harbor Seal was close to shore this morning, sleeping, stretching, yawning, and scratching. More photos tomorrow when I have time to sort through all.And a duo of American Wigeons (both male) were foraging on the sea lettuce floating around the rocky coast. More about them, too. 🙂 Notice their electric green eye patches and baby blue bills.

JUST ANOTHER GLORIOUS GOOD HARBOR BEACH SUNRISE SCENE

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Turning violet to orange, within moments, a glorious Good Harbor Beach third day of summer sunrise.

Magnificent Summer Solstice Sunrise

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Joyous Summer Solstice Sunrise!

Calm Before the Storm

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Good Morning! Brought to you by Rocky Neck–from an exquisitely sunny and peaceful morning.

Mr. Swan Update Rescue #2

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Angel Swan Sleeping

Thanks to Lyn Fonzo, Dan Harris, Skip Munroe, Skip Hadden, Duncan, Stephanie, Lillian, a bunch more Eastern Point residents, Steve Monell and a pair of “angel” swans, our Mr. Swan has flown off the ice at Niles Pond. As Lyn shared earlier, two Mute Swans flew to Niles Pond, landing precisely at the same spot where Mr. Swan was resting. They must have been very tired because the mysterious swans immediately closed their eyes and took a nap while Mr. Swan watched over the pair. He eventually dozed off, too. After a long rest, all three departed the Pond, circling around and then heading over Brace Cove towards Rockport. Mr. Swan had some difficulty but perhaps encouraged by the presence of companions, he successfully took off.

Cape Ann residents please be on the look out for the three swans!

Without Dan and Lyn’s overnight vigilance against a coyote attack, our daybreak watch, and the angel swans I think it unlikely Mr. Swan would have survived this latest escapade. Our most heartfelt thanks to all who are keeping good watch over Mr. Swan and friends.

Notice the angel swans have black eyes. A friend asked if they could be Mr. Swan’s offspring. Possibly, but most likely not. Mr. Swan has blue eyes, which is not typically seen in these parts.

Mr. Swan is the tiny lump sleeping on the ice, toward the left. We don’t want to see you at Niles Mr. Swan until the Pond thaws!

GLORIOUS CHRISTMAS EVE GOOD HARBOR BEACH SUNRISE

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Daybreak Christmas Eve Good Harbor Beach

IT WAS A GOOD HARBOR BEACH DOOZEY OF A DAYBREAK!

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Good Morning! Brought to you by Good Harbor Beach.

The sky became increasingly dramatic as the sun rose under the thickening early morning clouds.

ONLY ONE CHICK SEEN THIS MORNING (*EDITED RE DOGS ON THE BEACH)

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Our one remaining Piping Plover chick spent the early morning in the vegetation at the edge of the dune.

Perhaps we lost the third chick to the tremendous deluge late yesterday that happened not once, but twice. Or perhaps to the crows. When I arrived at the sanctuary this morning there was a tremendous kerfuffle underway between two crows and both adults. As the crows were departing, after being vigorously chased away by the PiPl parents, I couldn’t see clearly whether or not they were carrying off a chick. Or perhaps, none of the above. There was an unleashed puppy on the beach, but after speaking with the woman, she and her dog departed. The PiPl were up by the sanctuary at that time so I am sure it wasn’t because of the puppy. I hope with all my heart we can don’t loose the one remaining chick.

*Comment added from my Facebook friend Susanne: Thank you to all for your kindness re the baby plovers. Yesterday after the downpour, I went to Good Harbor. No life guards and it was relatively quiet. There were three groups of people with dogs and two dogs were unleashed, One unleashed dog was near the piping plovers and too far from me to catch easily. I talked to two of the other dog owners. One said they didn’t know the rules and thanked me. The other said her dog is very old and this may be the last time she ever gets to walk on a beach. I love dogs and hope people have a lovely time on our beautiful beaches. I also wish they cared more about following our beach rules, which are common sense and about caring for others.

The adults and chick were acting oddly this morning, not wanting to venture too far from the symbolically roped off area. Papa Plover spent a great deal of time perched on the party rock and surveying the family’s territory (not usual behavior), and got into several times with the Interloper.

Thank you so much to all our volunteers who are trying their best to help keep these beautiful protected birds safe.

GLORIOUS GOOD HARBOR BEACH SUNRISE

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Today’s sunrise progression beauty treat from Good Harbor Beach.

Fire on Good Harbor Beach

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This morning I arrived at 5am to check on the plovers and two young guys were building a fire right next to the Piping Plover sanctuary. I watched from a distance for a moment as they built up the fire, and then they crossed the beach to leave. I called the police to come put out the fire and asked the guys, hey what’s up with the bonfire? Their mysterious response was that they were coming back to add more wood. They left via the footbridge and a few seconds later, the police arrived to extinguish the fire.

Building a fire where children will shortly be running around in the sand is a really, really dumb idea. Not only that, but the PiPl family were super stressed, which is not usually the case during daybreak hours.

At about 5:30, two crows entered the sanctuary, eating garbage that had blown in. The parents were very distracted by the crows. At an opportune moment, when the chicks were on the opposite side of the crows and garbage, I ran into the roped off area and removed the enticing chicken remains, and chased away the crows. Crows and gulls are only on Good Harbor Beach in great numbers because of the garbage left behind. If there were no garbage, there would be no gulls and no crows.

Pre dawn, and pre-arrival of the DPW, with lots of plastic littering the beach, which washes into the ocean each and every night.

GOOD HARBOR GOOD MORNING! Featuring Twin Lights, Two Lovers, a Photographer, and Sunrise

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Gorgeous good morning, from GHB.