Standing on the shoulders of the past, Sam Linnell looks to the future
When Tim Linnell bought his first fishing boat he brought his six-year-old son Sam up to Maine to pick it up. “He was climbing all over it,” Tim remembers, “throwing lines overboard.” Less than 20 years later, Sam brought his dad and another captain, Mark Liska, up to Gloucester to see the commercial vessel he was buying. “This is what I love to do...
Outsmarting ocean acidification
Although it was years ago, Dan Martino well remembers how hatcheries in the Pacific Northwest watched their shellfish seed die, ravaged by ocean acidification. “The shellfish basically dissolved in front of their eyes,” Martino says. “The ocean water had grown too acidic.” When Dan and his brother Greg got their oyster grant on Martha’s Vineyard in 2014, and became the first oyster farm in Oak Bluffs history, that memory became even more sinister...
Commercial fishermen from across the country share concerns, strategies
Commercial fishermen have lamented the lack of cod, an iconic fish challenged by everything from climate change to seals. Lately there is another concern: hobbyists. “Look at our cod fish, the recreational fishery was close to 300 percent over quota and there was no accountability,” says Tim Linnell, a long-time captain. The problem is not particular to the Cape...
The Three Harbors of Harwich
From a dusty racing track around a pond, a mill by a small river, and a marshy natural inlet, over the course of a century the town of Harwich crafted three important harbors opening to Nantucket Sound’s rich fishing grounds and sea routes. Allen, Wychmere and Saquatucket Harbors are strung along several miles of coastline in Harwich Port, and none of them originally offered full access to the Sound...
Cameras on deck
By John Pappalardo Cameras monitoring every fishing move -- isn’t that the very antithesis of what it means to be free and independent offshore? Believe me, I get it when people rail against what’s called EM, electronic monitoring, as some kind of Big Brother invasion of the fishery and its historic way of life. But I’ve become convinced that using cameras rather than humans to monitor our fleet not only is better and safer; it’s a crucial way to bring that celebrated way of life back to full health...
Ocean Farming Forum
Ocean Farming Forum is on Tuesday, Nov. 27 at 4 p.m. Learn about opportunities for offshore farming of oysters, bay scallops, mussels and sugar kelp in Massachusetts.
Shiverick’s ships: Wooden boats immortalized by stone
If you drive from Bridge Street in Dennis, crossing over Sesuit Creek and turning down a charming stretch of Sesuit Neck Road, you will find yourself at Sesuit Harbor, home to the town of Dennis’ docks, Northside Marina, and the popular Sesuit Harbor Cafe. Don’t be too intent on a pleasure cruise or lobster roll to miss a plaque embedded on a stone placed on the rise above the town marina’s parking lot...
Port study aims to protect, grow commercial fishing industry
Ice. Frozen water doesn’t seem like an enormously important item, but in the fishing industry it’s paramount and impacts both the bottom line and peace of mind. Bismore Park on Hyannis Harbor has no ice machines. So, in addition to perennial problems making room for all the fishing boats that need dockage, it’s possible that a fisherman – who was on the water at 3 a...
Captain Greg Connors makes a living on the sea, but keeps his eye on the pond
The talk is serious. Three crew members are musing about the dire situation; there is pain, embarrassment. During the depths of the discussion, Captain Greg Connors swings up to the fish pier in his boat the Constance Sea to pick up the three younger men. He hears the disgust and uncharitable comments; Jacksonville’s upstart quarterback Blake Bortles had thrown for almost 400 yards, Tom Brady was lackluster, and the Patriots looked bad and slow...
Climbing the ladder to DC, so the herring can run here
We’ve talked a lot about herring over the past few months, and it sure looks like all that talk is paying off: The New England Fishery Management Council is now calling for a 12-mile buffer zone off the coast from Montauk to Canada, to move factory-style mid-water trawlers away from inshore fishing areas. And just as important for our community, two more “boxes” east of the Cape would protect vital spawning grounds out to about 20 miles...
