Mr. Sandman
06-25-2004, 01:59 PM
Below is an snippet from the MV times about beach issues (I added my 2 cents in the ( ).
Beach closures
It is the time of the year when fishermen need to check ahead before heading out on the beach. Norton Point beach, the barrier beach that connects Katama and Chappaquid#^&#^&#^&#^&, and the long stretch of Chappaquid#^&#^&#^&#^& beach managed by The Trustees of Reservation (TTOR) are subject to beach closures to protect nesting shorebirds.
Current information on TTOR closures is available by calling the Trustees bird line at 508-696-0731, or checking with the rangers. It is more difficult to get timely information about Norton Point.
In recent years, county beach managers have made an effort to notify both Island newspapers and local tackle shops when the beach was about to be closed. But be cautioned that the information does not always get around quickly.
It is one thing to drive to the Katama entrance to Norton Point beach only to have to turn around because the beach is closed. But the options become much slimmer for a fisherman heading home from a Chappy beach after the ferry stops at midnight and finds a sign announcing that Norton Point is closed. (:eek: ...cell phone call...uh, honey.... I will be here longer then expected, I'll catch you at breakfast, this has happend to me twice...the next day I go into the tackle shop only to hear...Hey! they closed the beach)
Rob Culbert, county beach manager, said he has two nests with eggs about to hatch which will result in a beach closure. The first set of eggs is expected to hatch sometime on June 30. The second set is due around July 5 or 6, he said. (for two nests? :af:
Rob said he will get the word out to Island tackle shops as soon as there is some news. It is still smart to check ahead.
Despite years of beach closures and countless hours (and money) devoted to erecting chicken wire plover beach cabanas, commonly referred to as exclosures, piping plover chicks have not fared well on Chappy and Norton Point beaches. (:smash: OK...this is NOT working so let lets try REMOVING THE BIRDS AND NESTS and put them on NOMANS)
According to the folks who get paid to watch over the birds and the beach, the main threat comes from natural predators, particularly gulls and crows. My guess is the crows have the edge and have learned to identify exclosures with the presence of a plover snack. (:rocketem: ....don't forget the sunks which were introduced by a tree hugger over here)
A few years ago a fellow at Cottle’s Lumber thought his buddies were playing a trick on him because his lunch sandwich kept disappearing from his truck. It was a crow.
Chris Kennedy, TTOR regional supervisor, said it is not unusual to see crows perched on an exclosure apparently waiting for a chick to wander outside the protective barrier. When I spoke to Chris last week he said the trail to Wasque was closed to protect some recently hatched chicks. Depending on where they begin feeding, the beach-side trail could be reopened, but it is still best to check ahead. Fishermen who want to fish Wasque Rip still have the option of parking in the fishermen’s parking lot and walking down the boardwalk.
There is also a pair of nesting plovers with eggs due to hatch along the elbow past Cape Poge. Given the large colony of nesting gulls at the tip of Cape Poge any chicks that do hatch are unlikely to survive.:happy: bye bye birds :wavey:
Air station at Katama
Off-road vehicle drivers have come to appreciate the free air station maintained by The Trustees on Dike Road adjacent to Mytoi Gardens. Two hoses and a powerful compressor make the job of reinflating tires a snap for people planning to bypass Norton Point and take the Chappy ferry.
People who chose to run Norton Point must drive with deflated tires to a county-owned, coin-operated air pump maintained by the sheriff behind the jail in Edgartown.
In an effort to provide a more convenient alternative and help decrease the number of vehicles waiting in the ferry line, TTOR has spoken with the county’s beach manager Rob Culbert and offered to share the cost of creating a conveniently located air station in Katama. According to TTOR, so far nothing has come of the idea.:rolleyes:
I spoke with Rob Tuesday. He told me he has been discussing :chatter: a location for an air station with Edgartown officials.:rolleyes: (Come on...its not like you are building a bridge to the mainland...If you want people to air down and everyone should....put in the air station!...)
The creation of another air station in Katama is a good idea. Perhaps it is a project the Derby committee and the Surfcasters Association could help push through.
:happy: (I hope this happens)
Beach closures
It is the time of the year when fishermen need to check ahead before heading out on the beach. Norton Point beach, the barrier beach that connects Katama and Chappaquid#^&#^&#^&#^&, and the long stretch of Chappaquid#^&#^&#^&#^& beach managed by The Trustees of Reservation (TTOR) are subject to beach closures to protect nesting shorebirds.
Current information on TTOR closures is available by calling the Trustees bird line at 508-696-0731, or checking with the rangers. It is more difficult to get timely information about Norton Point.
In recent years, county beach managers have made an effort to notify both Island newspapers and local tackle shops when the beach was about to be closed. But be cautioned that the information does not always get around quickly.
It is one thing to drive to the Katama entrance to Norton Point beach only to have to turn around because the beach is closed. But the options become much slimmer for a fisherman heading home from a Chappy beach after the ferry stops at midnight and finds a sign announcing that Norton Point is closed. (:eek: ...cell phone call...uh, honey.... I will be here longer then expected, I'll catch you at breakfast, this has happend to me twice...the next day I go into the tackle shop only to hear...Hey! they closed the beach)
Rob Culbert, county beach manager, said he has two nests with eggs about to hatch which will result in a beach closure. The first set of eggs is expected to hatch sometime on June 30. The second set is due around July 5 or 6, he said. (for two nests? :af:
Rob said he will get the word out to Island tackle shops as soon as there is some news. It is still smart to check ahead.
Despite years of beach closures and countless hours (and money) devoted to erecting chicken wire plover beach cabanas, commonly referred to as exclosures, piping plover chicks have not fared well on Chappy and Norton Point beaches. (:smash: OK...this is NOT working so let lets try REMOVING THE BIRDS AND NESTS and put them on NOMANS)
According to the folks who get paid to watch over the birds and the beach, the main threat comes from natural predators, particularly gulls and crows. My guess is the crows have the edge and have learned to identify exclosures with the presence of a plover snack. (:rocketem: ....don't forget the sunks which were introduced by a tree hugger over here)
A few years ago a fellow at Cottle’s Lumber thought his buddies were playing a trick on him because his lunch sandwich kept disappearing from his truck. It was a crow.
Chris Kennedy, TTOR regional supervisor, said it is not unusual to see crows perched on an exclosure apparently waiting for a chick to wander outside the protective barrier. When I spoke to Chris last week he said the trail to Wasque was closed to protect some recently hatched chicks. Depending on where they begin feeding, the beach-side trail could be reopened, but it is still best to check ahead. Fishermen who want to fish Wasque Rip still have the option of parking in the fishermen’s parking lot and walking down the boardwalk.
There is also a pair of nesting plovers with eggs due to hatch along the elbow past Cape Poge. Given the large colony of nesting gulls at the tip of Cape Poge any chicks that do hatch are unlikely to survive.:happy: bye bye birds :wavey:
Air station at Katama
Off-road vehicle drivers have come to appreciate the free air station maintained by The Trustees on Dike Road adjacent to Mytoi Gardens. Two hoses and a powerful compressor make the job of reinflating tires a snap for people planning to bypass Norton Point and take the Chappy ferry.
People who chose to run Norton Point must drive with deflated tires to a county-owned, coin-operated air pump maintained by the sheriff behind the jail in Edgartown.
In an effort to provide a more convenient alternative and help decrease the number of vehicles waiting in the ferry line, TTOR has spoken with the county’s beach manager Rob Culbert and offered to share the cost of creating a conveniently located air station in Katama. According to TTOR, so far nothing has come of the idea.:rolleyes:
I spoke with Rob Tuesday. He told me he has been discussing :chatter: a location for an air station with Edgartown officials.:rolleyes: (Come on...its not like you are building a bridge to the mainland...If you want people to air down and everyone should....put in the air station!...)
The creation of another air station in Katama is a good idea. Perhaps it is a project the Derby committee and the Surfcasters Association could help push through.
:happy: (I hope this happens)