7 November 2026

Storm surge

Monday, March 1st, 2010
Tidal surge, Rockland Breakwater, Rockland, Maine, 01 March 2010.

Tidal surge.

Last night was another windy one. I  mean serious, coarse, full-throated wind. This morning I awoke half-expecting to see snow (which was forecast), but no. No snow. Only more rain—not heavy rain, just enough to make everything wet. No ice at least.

And as the day progressed, the wind kept blowing. One time, I thought I saw a crow flap past my window. Then I spotted the crow-feeding jogger and craned my neck to count the birds—nine again, plus the herring gull. No, wait… two herring gulls this time. I guess no weather is wild enough to discourage either jogger or crow.

Surf, Rockland breakwater, Rockport, Maine, 01 March 2010.

Surf.

Today I kept watch on the clock. And at high tide, in late morning, I grabbed my camera and drove to the breakwater. Today’s tide was forecast to reach 12.4 feet, but I do believe it exceeded the forecast. The wind came strong again from the northeast, and I took my position at the foot of the granite structure and began snapping photos. The surge and spray impressed. At one point, a rogue wave splashed high enough to soak my jeans clear up the my back pockets. Chilly winter ocean water.

I saw a couple herring gulls hovering over the breakwater, but their must’ve been fruitless. The entire seven-eighths-mile length of it was getting overrun with swells. (I have evidence.) Yesterday’s flotsam got washed off, for sure.

On the way back, I stopped at Clam Cove. Its bowl was brimming, and its contents two-tone—near, a muddy brownish color, and far, a rich sea green.

The rain continued, light and intermittent, all day. The temperature never dipped below freezing. The daffodil shoots inched up a bit. Just another late-winter’s day in coastal Maine.

Today’s List

American crow
herring gull

Clam Cove, Rockport, Maine, 01 March 2010.

Clam Cove.

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Bird Report is a (sometimes intermittent) record of the birds I encounter while hiking, see while driving, or spy outside my window. —Brian Willson



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