The storms of this past winter did a lot of damage throughout the region but the east-facing shore of Southport took a serious hit. I am most familiar with the waterfront from Gray Homestead to the All Saints by-the -Sea chapel. That section of the shore was extremely vulnerable to the strong seas and surge from the southeast. Piers were destroyed, cottages lifted, and much of the shore wiped clean. All Saints lost its entire pier with serious damage to the porch area that surrounds the chapel. What the high tides didn’t damage, the surge did. I have heard that the water at high tide got to 14.5 feet, which included a two-foot surge. Bad enough for one storm’s damage, but we had three consecutive events. It was a mess and, in some cases, still is.

On the west-facing shore of Southport, I was surprised to see considerable damage, being somewhat in the lee of the southeasterly, the debris in coves at the end of Rand Road was astonishing. When the tide went out, after the storm, there was a ton of material littering the shore and cove. I think this became a real problem throughout the entire region as it became a battering ram with the coming and going of tides. I suspect, truth be known, the broken docks and piers and floats continued to damage structures that had survived the storms, causing even more damage.

Well, there is some good news to share now, at least for some. Case in point, as seen in the photograph shared today, the All Saints dock has been rebuilt by Hennessey Maritime. It’s nice to see at least a part of that shoreline recovering. There is still much to be resolved but progress is being made.

I forgot it was Sunday morning when I went over to check on a friend’s cottage just down the road from the chapel. When I approached All Saints Road there were cars lining both sides of Route 238 and parked in the woods! Looked like a full house. Fortunately the vehicle owners were all involved in Sunday service so I managed to pass through unimpeded.

While checking on some repairs to the cottage I admired the view, as I often do, to the north along the shore of Capitol Island opposite All Saints. And there it was. The spanking brand new dock with the low tide run pitched down to a boat tied at the float. It was a joy to see. I can’t tell you how many times I have landed and departed from that location over the years with wedding parties and friends. It has been very sad to see the empty space for the first half of this year.

The Reverend Kit Sherrill would have been pleased as I am sure Leigh and many others are. Kit was a great friend with whom I photographed many events. Our youngest daughter Morgan and her now husband Andrei were married at the end of All Saints dock with a small group of friends and family. Lots of  people have many fond memories of this place. We can only hope (and pray) that the new structure can withstand future storms. Time will tell.