Fog signals before dawn

October

The bell buoy off the west breakwater starts up around four, well before the ferries move. In thick weather the sound carries strangely: two strikes close together, then a pause long enough to make you think it has stopped. The fishermen here say you can count the gap and know which side of the channel you are on. I have not tested that.

Repainting the dory

September

Three coats of topside paint, sanded between the second and third. The old name was still faintly visible under the first coat, which seemed worth leaving alone. The boat is hauled out behind the shed until the spring tide.

Low tide at the east slip

August

At the lowest water the slip shows a row of iron rings set into the concrete, most of them worn smooth. Nobody I asked could remember what they held. The weed line sits a hand's width above them, which gives some idea of how rarely the tide gets that low.