NORTH TRURO — The very first time I drove into Provincetown I took the shore road, of course. Right away, I knew I was entering another reality. At first, I […]
Visual Stories
OUTER CAPE PORTRAIT
Ingenuity on the Flats
NANCY CIVETTA / SHELLFISH CONSTABLE / WELLFLEET In early July, things are different on Wellfleet’s shellfish flats. Even as restaurants begin to open more fully across the commonwealth and country, […]
PORTUGUESE FESTIVAL
This Fleet Is Blessed
On a glorious day, a quiet ritual
The harbormaster’s launch returns to the pier on Sunday after a sunny midmorning on the rounds with the Rev. Hugh McCullough, affectionately known as Father Mick. Though the event was […]
ART OF TEACHING
Young People Discover Their Political Power
For the next generation of would-be voters, connection turns apathy into action
Massachusetts had the ninth-highest turnout of voters ages 18 to 29 in the U.S. in the 2018 midterms — a 17.3-percent increase over their participation in 2014. While that’s good […]
SWIMMING ALONE
Are We Becoming Pool People?
The pursuit of safety — from sharks, humans, or financial instability — makes waves
The ocean defines the Outer Cape, but by some reckonings, swimming pools are beginning to come in a close second. That would be an exaggeration, but whether it’s for fear […]
INDEPENDENCE DAY
Worries Over Illegal Fireworks Not Sky High Here
Close calls show amateur displays are a risky tradition
With social distancing regulations yielding no town-organized fireworks shows, local authorities expect to work extra hard this July Fourth to defuse illegal ones. In Wellfleet and Truro, particularly, the police […]
WILDLIFE
Giant Jellyfish Keep Scientists Guessing
Did they come to the Cape to eat other jellies?
The fictional detective Sherlock Holmes investigates a suspicious incident involving a jellyfish in “The Adventure of the Lion’s Mane,” a short story by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle published in 1926. […]
GRAVEYARD SHIFT
The Lost Crew: A Truro Mystery
Secluded Pine Grove Cemetery and its haunting secrets
Residents of and longtime visitors to Truro are surely familiar with a grisly, dark chapter of the town’s recent past involving Pine Grove Cemetery. Even now, decades later, just reading […]
THE BANANA MAGNATE
Wellfleet’s Most Famous Son and a Fateful Partnership
How Lorenzo Baker’s United Fruit Co. became ‘the octopus’
On a July day precisely 150 years ago, a Wellfleet sea captain unloaded a cargo that would shape the course of history. By bringing the first bananas into the U.S., […]
THE SCUTTLEBUTT
Big Stripers Are Caught — and Thrown Back
New rules put 35-inch upper limit on striped bass keepers
Things are beginning to look a little more normal on the waterfront. More and more boats are starting to open up and operate. The Bay Lady began sailing tours, and […]
RARA AVIS
This Week’s Bird Sightings
Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, June 30, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]
SAILING
In Nod to Normalcy, PYC Kicks Off Racing Season
Where social distance is a way of life, it’s full speed ahead
When the Covid-19 pandemic touched down in full force, it made quick work of the Provincetown Yacht Club’s summer calendar. Spring meeting? Canceled. Season kickoff? Canceled. Sailboat racing clinic? Zoom-ified. […]
MILLION-YEAR PICNIC
Beauty and the Beast
Look up at the wonders of Cygnus; just don’t fall in a black hole
The stars of summer have returned! Step outside after dark and look east, about halfway up the sky. You’ll see three bright stars that form a triangle. If you’re not […]
It’s a Sad Summer With (Almost) No Baseball
In the first round of this year’s Major League Baseball (MLB) draft, 35 percent of the players selected were alumni of the Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL). June 13 would […]
GALLERY
Take Home on the Road
Tents and campers for settling in under the stars
Remote work and distance learning have chained us to our devices and Zoom rooms. But now that it’s summer, camping offers outdoor low-tech liberation. Campgrounds are, by nature, well designed […]
