jeffrey byrnes jeffrey byrnes

Personal Work:

Seasons in New England are like the tide, the come and they go, bringing in waves of change. Our summer, my wife and I that is, starts out with Memorial Day on Cape Cod and ends with Labor Day on the cape. This year we did not start our summer on the cape because our wedding took place the weekend of Memorial Day. That didn't stop us from closing out an incredible summer with a weekend on the cape over the Labor Day holiday. Since I have known my wife this has been a tradition for us. 

Throughout the summer we take weekend trips and occasionally a week or so and slow life down by spending as much time as we can on the beach. For me, I find extreme peace and some times solitude when I am out making photographs, while we are the cape. When I am out meandering the shores, dunes, backroads, tidal pools, I am searching for what I have never seen before, things that I have yet to encounter. I grew up going to the cape every summer. I have seen a lot, yet there is still so much I have yet to see, which is why I always have my cameras with me. Always in tote, my camera is never far unless I am in the water or doing such things as digging for clams. 

This year in addition to spending a few hours on the boat checking the lobster pots, my father in law taught me the art of clam digging. Prior to Labor Day weekend any time I found a clam was in chowder or in a grocery store and once in a great while I would step on one just under the surface during walks in low-tide. Like the generation before him, he learned to dig for clams by walking the bay of the cape. Regardless of how much money I will make, I will always enjoy pulling clams out of the sea as much as lobsters.

This past Labor Day weekend we got in the boat and navigated out about 7 miles till we got to the location of the pots. I watched in anticipation as they came up. The second biggest lobster I have seen came up in one of the pots. Roughly 5lbs. The largest I have ever seen was sitting in a cooler and weighed in at about 17lbs. From what I have heard, when a lobster is to large, it is to "tough" and isn't that good. Unfortunately the 5 lb-er went back into the water, as she had a large amount of eggs underneath her. If they have eggs, back home to the deep waters they go. 

I am happy to say we did get some lobsters and they were delicious. Next time I spend some time on the boat I will make some more photos and then show the end result. If you have never been to the cape, I suggest you book a week or two for next summer. If you aren't a fan of lobster, I suggest you give it another try, not because I am suggesting it, but because they are just swell!

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