Virgo season is upon us, and with it, the season of the harvest. Virgo’s crop is mainly nightshades, like potatoes, tomatoes, eggplant, and peppers. Their genus, Solanum, may refer to their […]
Visual Stories
LOST & FOUND
Combing the Beaches for Art
Found objects become design when they bring back memories of favorite walks
I found it along the shoreline: a wooden board with blue paint flaking off to reveal layers of underlying paint colors. With a long and triangular shape, it couldn’t be […]
Summer Is for All Stripes
On a walk down Commercial Street, the horizon line of Cape Cod Bay meets the sky in such a way that a demarcation of blue lines is the whole town’s […]
FAMILY
Covid Changes Connections Across Generations
Ironically, it’s harder when grandparents and grandchildren live near one another
Every Monday night, Sue Eldredge meets her daughter and granddaughter over Zoom for dinner. In a way, that’s a lot more togetherness than they had before the pandemic, when she […]
RESILIENCE
Nonprofit Groups Adapt and Persevere in a Crisis
Virtual services and fundraising aren’t easy, but there are a few surprising benefits
Updated Aug. 18, 2020. When the lockdowns of mid-March first hit, the Cape’s nonprofits were faced with a series of questions. Organizations like the AIDS Support Group of Cape Cod […]
TRANSITIONS
A Decision Well Beyond Their Years
How Outer Cape eighth graders choose a high school
For Jen Rhodes of Wellfleet, it was obvious where her eighth-grade son, Jack, should attend high school in the fall. She’d sent two daughters to technical schools, and knew that […]
CANDY
The Chocolate Sparrow Flies Away
A beloved store is now a sweet memory
WELLFLEET –– On Main Street, there isn’t much to do if you’re under 10 years old. Sure, there are art galleries, coffee shops, and clothing stores, but those are pretty […]
LOCAL LORE
On Outer Cape Cod, Legends Buzz
A review of three of the most enduring tales
From pirate ships to alien sightings, folklore is part of life on the Outer Cape. The tales have long traveled from person to person, and it’s a tradition to bring […]
YOUNG VOICES
Hope For Local Journalism
Student stories in this week’s issue: We’ve written about how local businesses and town governments are coping with the coronavirus pandemic, but Garrison Guzzeau reached out to nonprofits from Eastham […]
BACKYARD PANTRY
Wild Cherry Cough Syrup
Collect native black cherry bark now for a homemade winter cold remedy
Earlier this summer, I discovered a wild cherry tree growing off my back porch. I noticed one variety, then a second, and learned from a friend and Cape Cod National […]
MEET THE MAKER
Chair Caning for the Generations to Come
A seat weaver matches the material and weave to the chair designer’s vision
My great-grandmother Bernice Newcomb did chair caning out of her home in Wellfleet in the 1920s and ’30s. I grew up in that house, where my mother did chair caning, […]
VIEW FROM THE HIVE
Late Summer Jobs for Field Bees
Carrying water in a dearth, then making white wax for the new nectar flow
Most people know that honey bees collect nectar and pollen from flowers. But field work for honey bees is much more diverse than that. Field bees suck nectar from the […]
RARA AVIS
This Week’s Bird Sightings
Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Aug. 11, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]
THE SCUTTLEBUTT
A Good Bite on the Backside
The bonito are bigger, and the fluke just might be back
The dog days of summer blaze on, bringing water temperatures up to the mid to high 70s. The lack of rain also contributes to the almost tropical feel of our […]
THE COURT WILL RISE
Provincetown Tennis Serves Up a Tourney During Covid
Fans may be absent, but participation is more popular than ever
PROVINCETOWN — The Provincetown Tennis Club members’ tournament is underway this month, and the format looks a little different this year due to coronavirus protocols. Usually, the tournament would be […]
