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Bright sun sparkled on the deep blue waters off the coast of the Atlantic as we set off in a boat toward a tiny speck on the horizon, the Isles of Shoals. Earlier in the week, we’d arrived at the harbor in Rye, New Hampshire with fog and mist shrouding the shore, a common occurrence. But when Captain Sue Reynold, boat owner and lifelong coastal resident saw potential storms on the radar, it gave us pause. After a quick scan of the lobster boat turned ferry, I chose not to risk a “Perfect Storm” adventure on the high seas. With just the hint that this low pressure system might create squalls, we decided to wait. It might have taken awhile, as fog and rain can settled in, but we caught a break and in two days were awash in sun on the deck of the “Uncle Oscar.” Just nine miles from the coast, nine rocky islands make up the Isles of Shoals with exotic sounding names like Smuttynose, Star, Appledore and Malaga. It’s said Europeans first explored the deep waters in the 1500s, finding a bountiful harvest of fish. John Smith of Jamestown fame named this assortment of rocky reefs in 1614, ‘Smith’s Isles,” but the name didn’t stick. Fishing peaked during colonial times with over 600 residents living year round on island, but slowed after the Revolution, population falling to double digits. It was tourism that brought a resurgence of mainlanders back to the islands in the late 1800s; a grand hotel built in Victorian style. Little has changed today as we chugged into harbor on Star Island, the Oceanic Hotel standing before us like a “grand dame.” She still sports a sweeping porch with rustic rockers inviting visitors to leave behind the busyness of modern life and come sit a spell. Back in the day, artists came for summer stays to try their hand at seascapes. Writers such as Hawthorne, Emerson and Thoreau read, wrote and rested. And as we walked up the path to the hotel, there was little about the place to suggest the 21st century. I’d first read about the Isles of Shoals in Anita Shreve’s bestseller, “The Weight of Water.” In a story within a story, she tells of an actual event in 1873; the brutal murder of two immigrant women who had been slayed by an ax. Shreve’s description of the islands had an allure that beckoned. Now here I was, viewing those same rocky reefs. As we debarked from the boat, gulls shrieked overhead and the scent of sun-baked salt wafted through the air. Closer to shore waves sloshed in and out of tidal pools made of mussel- covered rocks. A tanned and fit fleet of hotel staff greeted us as we stepped off the boat. Eager for the tourist season to begin, the young women had traded flip-flops for sturdy boots, respectful of the rocky ground we were about to trod. Today the island is owned by a nonprofit corporation and is available to visitors for the day (our trip) or the week. Artists, musicians, writers and church groups still find the island a good place for workshops and conferences. A large assortment of shore birds; colonies of cormorants, ducks and snowy egrets, come and go as they please. Across a narrow channel is the island of Appledore, home to a marine laboratory operated by Cornell University and the University of New Hampshire. Found here also is a cottage and garden that was once home to poet Celia Thaxter. Whether it’s the moderate temperatures or the salty sea spray, something about the ocean deepens flower color and sweetens the aroma, especially with the rugosa rose.
An art barn holds supplies for students painting the stunning ocean vistas.
Photo at left: Nine miles from the New Hampshire coast, nine rocky islands make up the Isle of Shoals. Fisherman as far back as the 1500s once inhabited the rocky islands, now explored by tourists, and students and is the setting for a best seller by Anita Shreve. SUMMER 2012 | her voice
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