Nature & Science
The ringed planet Saturn appears high in the western sky after sunset. Saturn outshines all the stars in the west; it is in the zodiacal constellation Leo and is moving toward the constellation Virgo.
Temperature: Precip.
Day Max. Min. Inches.
Fº Fº
July 3 71 63 .04
July 4 75 60 Trace
July 5 78 56 .00
July 6 77 59 .00
July 7 79 61 Trace
July 8 72 60 1.25
July 9 73 60 Trace
Water temperature in Edgartown harbor: 69º F.
Seashore Ramble
Chilmark native Conrad Neumann will present a free program titled Geo-rambles at Sea and Ashore in Pictures, Poems and Yarns: A Geologist/Oceanographer’s Travels at the Chilmark Public Library on Wednesday, July 15, from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m.
Mr. Neumann, who summers in Chilmark and lives in Chapel Hill, N.C. in the winter, taught geology and oceanography at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill for many years.
By MARK ALAN LOVEWELL
Tomorrow morning at 12:01 begins the 10th annual Fluke Fishing Tournament, hosted by the Veterans of Foreign War Post 9261. The two-day fishing contest is expected to attract more than 100 anglers.
There were 170 fishermen in last year’s contest, and with fluke in abundance, there is plenty of reason for anglers to put down the $20 entrance fee and join this year. Teenagers and seniors are charged $10. Youngsters 12 and younger are admitted for free but they must register.
Rainy weather — ah, let me see — a good book and a comfy couch are my tickets to staying dry and passing the time. But what do birds do? They also seek shelter but instead of a house they use leaves of shrubs, bushes and trees as a roof. If there are none of these available, unlike humans, they stay warm and relatively dry without shelter. The feathers of birds have developed rain shedding feathers through the evolutionary process. I watched a blue jay sitting peacefully in the pouring rain the other day. Once in a while he would shake off the rain drops that were resting on his feathers, but otherwise he seemed quite content. When the rain stopped, the blue jay fluffed up his feathers and dried them out in the sunshine. No electric hairdryer necessary as most of the moisture had been shed.
Friday, July 3: Mostly sunny. Deep blue skies overhead. Changing clouds overhead. Temperature rises to the mid-70s. Crowds of vacationers come off the ferry Island Home in Vineyard Haven late. Long lines of headlights speed up State Road.
Almanac
A comprehensive guide to weather and tides on the Island.
Vineyard Gardener
I guess this past week weather-wise is called a January thaw. We did not really experience it the last several years as December was unseasonably warm.
Farm & Field
Beige and brown and tan and black, with horns spiraled or semicircular or in undulating waves, a legion of goats marched up the hill toward us, bleating in anticipation of fresh grass and leaves.