Though swimming weather may be waning by the day, there's one place where you won't be able to take a late-season dip.
Crane Beach in Ipswich, Massachusetts, has imposed a swimming ban through the end of October. The Trustees of Reservations, who oversee the beach, say it's because of persistent great white shark sightings.
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A swimming ban had already been in effect for several weeks after a series of shark sightings.
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Crane Beach remains open for walking and hiking. It also opened to dog walking on Oct. 1, but dog owners are being encouraged to keep them out of the water.
The beach was first closed to swimming on Sept. 17 when a great white shark sighting was confirmed off the east end of Crane Beach. Police said sharks were seen in about 5-7 feet of water.
Ipswich police shared video of the sharks on their Facebook page:
The Atlantic White Shark Conservancy's Sharktivity app showed five separate shark sightings off Crane Beach that day, and at least one photo showed two sharks swimming side by side. Sharks have been observed in the area on several occasions since.
Shark season in Massachusetts typically runs until September or October before they begin making their way south for warmer waters. But sightings off the North Shore are relatively rare, and these ones had marine biologist Greg Skomal, one of the leading Massachusetts shark experts, scratching his head.
"Certainly, you know, we expect to see white sharks around Massachusetts. I just don't expect to see numbers like we're seeing on the North Shore right now, so that's something we're really curious about," he said two weeks ago.
