Painted rock snake grows in Fairhaven with community's help and creativity. Catch it while you can.
FAIRHAVEN — On one rock, the word Love with the infinity symbol underneath and signed M.S. + D.C., speaks to their love.
Another rock reads “Be Kind,” while others speak to people’s love for their pets and life along the coastline.
Fairhaven’s Carol Alfonso started a set of rocks featuring two smaller stones painted with eyelashes and a larger rock in between, the one everyone sees at the beginning of the snake rock she started in the middle of June.
Alfonso does a lot of painting and has always enjoyed painting rocks so she was inspired to start the rock snake with a sign stating, “The rock snake — add a painted rock to see how long we can get it.”
Today there are over 520 rocks, and the number is still growing.
Find your zen: New park benches at Fairhaven's Fort Phoenix overlooking Buzzards Bay
As the snake rock gets closer and closer to the house around the corner, she plans on doubling back along the snake train.
“It has been really overwhelmingly,” she said. “There are more rocks than what I expected, but it’s so great.”
Snake grows with community's help
Throughout the summer, more and more incredible painted rocks have been added to the rock serpent snaking its way through the West End of Fort Phoenix.
It reaches right from the bottom of Green Street along the wall to Fort Street and then around the corner. As the rocks get closer and closer to the house around the corner, she plans on doubling back.
She said people are struck by what they see, and she often hears, “oh, my grandkids love this” as they add their decorated rocks. She said there are so many talented people out there of all, from kids to the elderly, and she knows this because she checks in periodically.
The last of his kind: New Bedford cobbler Scott Amorin marking 45 years in business
“A couple of ladies walk every day, and one day they said they had a wine party, brought rocks and painted the rocks to add to it,” she said.
With Fort Phoenix such a popular destination for walkers, swimmers, pickleball players and other visitors, Alfonso hoped it would take off, but she’s still surprised by the response.
Alfonso said the rock snake couldn’t have turned out as long as it has without all the contributors from the community and the teamwork that allows it to continue on, at least until colder weather comes.
It will then be time for the rock painters to retrieve their rocks if they wish. Then she plans on removing the rocks that have not been picked up.
“I'll put it out there first if anyone wants to take a rock," she said.
Other ways Fairhaven rocks
Residents Ann Richard and Anne Morton Smith have also started a ring of rocks around a flower garden in Livesey Park in Fairhaven.
“That one's going along pretty good, too,” Alfonso said.
Standard-Times staff writer Kathryn Gallerani can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her on X: @kgallreporter. Support local journalism by purchasing a digital or print subscription to The Standard-Times today.
This article originally appeared on Standard-Times: Don't miss the rock snake in Fairhaven — and add to it, too