gooseberry island.

Gooseberry Island is a mystical little treasure located just off the coast of Westport, Massachusetts. It's pretty magical.

I ended up here one Sunday after a rather tough night, when I woke up feeling like a solo drive to the coast and a meander around a new beach might soothe my heart. I headed for Horseneck Beach and rather serendipitously discovered this little island.

For my second visit this past weekend, I took my sister Mary along. It was a beautiful day, though extremely windy on the island and just a tad bit cold (hence Mary's very fashionable use of my scarf). We walked up one side along the beach, explored the dilapidated towers at the far end (they were used during WWII), and wandered our way back along the main path where it was less windy. We decided to picnic inside of the warm car instead of the beach and munched on olives, crackers, and hummus while listening to the wind howl.

We were so curious as to the island's history and did some sleuthing. From what I can tell, it used to be privately owned and was covered in little beach cottages for vacationers. It was used for lookouts during WWII after Pearl Harbor but didn't see much action. When the state bought it in the 1950s, they took over and moved all the buildings off the island -- but you'll still notice some concrete foundations in the brush, like the steps Mary is standing on above.

I like to think it has a very To The Lighthouse feel to it, and it seems magical to me. I think Virginia Woolf would approve. Now if only it allowed camping!