Lobster Traps, Westport Point, Westport, Massachusetts, USA

They come in many size, shapes, and styles. They are constructed of wood, metal, nylon, or plastic parts.  Areas within the trap have fancy names like the "kitchen" and "parlour."  But still, it is just another trap to capture an animal.  That being said, it is still a clever and sometimes effective device if you are inclined to capture this particular critter.

These multi-color traps are about 3-4 feet long, 2 feet wide, and 1 foot high.

Here is the entrance to the "kitchen" where the lobster swims in to get the bait.

The lobster then attempts to escape but ends up in the "parlour" where hopefully, the lobster remains trapped until retrieval by the lobster fisher.

Some say that lobsters are not sentient creatures, they lack the ability to experience sensations or suffer.  I recall the last time many years ago I put a lobster in a stove top pot of boiling water.  That desperate scratching, scritching sound of claw on metal still rings in my head.  Food for thought for you animal lovers.

Westport and Westport Point, Massachusetts, USA

Westport is on the southern Massachusetts coast about 30 miles southeast of Providence, RI, and 60 miles south of Boston, MA. Its name comes from being the westernmost port in the Massachusetts Bay Colony in the mid 17th century. The town is now mostly residential, has a large farming community, and the Horseneck Beach State Reservation is a popular summer destination.

How is this for a sweeping lawn with a beautiful vista?

The quintessential New England look is common - weathered cedar shingles and white trim.

And roses bloom in November.  The town also has a winery and vineyard - not that Massachusetts is normally associated with wine-making but, the soil is dark, rich New England loam on well drained gravel, the climate is cool but moderated by the warm waters of the gulf stream, and it has the right amount of rain and sunlight. After all, southern France, northern Spain, and central Italy all share the same latitude with southern Massachusetts.

And dry-stack stone walls are everywhere, both in the town and throughout the countryside.

Many of the old restored homes along the main street contain placards citing the original owners - shipwright, home builder, shopkeeper, etc.  I wonder what qualified someone back then to be designated a "gentleman?"

The harbor area of Westport Point.

Art and/or myth, a mermaid watches over the docks.

Part of a stained glass window at a local church.

And from the mouths of babes.........

A beautiful day in a peaceful small town.