As a veterinarian on Cape Cod in the summer, I sometimes feel as if I am spying on visitors who are probably here for a short time and trying to […]
Visual Stories
THE SCUTTLEBUTT
A Chill Arrives and Fish Stop Biting
Flounder fishing and whale watching remain good
We got our first hint of fall this past weekend as a tropical storm passing to our east ushered in a much cooler and damp air mass from the north. Relentless […]
BEYOND THE TURNIP
To Market, to Market in Eastham?
Residents plant seeds of support for local food and community
EASTHAM — For several years, the outer reaches of Cape Cod have been home to weekly farmers markets, where a wide variety of locally grown fresh fruits and vegetables, dairy, […]
BEHIND THE WHEEL
A Lot of Neglected Service
Covid means more reasons to get your car checked before you hit the road
“I’m driving my parents’ 2008 Subaru to college in Ohio.” The daughter of some regular customers was pretty excited when she told me about the drive she’ll be making next […]
WORK PODS
Performing in a Pandemic Requires Improvisation
Inseparable performers work a socially distant stage
TRURO — Teddy Ment and Eleanor Getz, the two halves of the acrobatic performing duo Teddy and Eleanor, have spent the past six summers at the helm of Payomet Performing […]
ULTIMATE PUTTS
A Tour of Outer Cape Mini Golf
Ranking the courses for skill and amusement
It’s a sport that requires strategy, patience, mental fortitude, and an ever-gentle touch. It’s one of Cape Cod’s most popular and traditional summer activities, one that can either boost budding […]
Right Whales Are Now ‘Red Listed’
Scientists fear the worst as whales are designated ‘critically endangered’ by IUCN
Population trajectory is very simple, so simple a fourth-grader could calculate the formula, according to Center for Coastal Studies scientist Stormy Mayo. Take the number of animals born and subtract […]
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. 18, included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]
MILLION-YEAR PICNIC
How to Watch the Earth Spin Through This Summer’s Stardust
Averted vision can bring a fading comet into view
A few nights ago, I stood on a deck in Truro that looked east over the National Seashore. In the distance, I could hear the Atlantic surf; from the opposite […]
NAVIGATING BY THE STARS
In Virgo Season, Be Ready for a Half Sweet, Half Salty Harvest
The mood is sunny and soothing, but with a bite
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 […]
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 […]
