On June 13, Capt. Charles Creaser departed Head Harbour, Campobello Island, New Brunswick, by way of Eastport, Maine, aboard the sardine carrier Bernadine. She was bound down the Atlantic coast to the mouth of the Hudson River and up the Hudson to the Great Lakes, eventually returning to her home port. The vessel was built
From the Deck: New Blood for an Old Class
New blood is flowing for an old class of boats. David Nutt is building two new Boothbay Harbor One Designs at his shop in Edgecomb, Maine. These lovely boats were designed by Geerd Hendel in 1937 for the Boothbay Harbor Yacht Club. The Club wanted a family boat, stiff enough to stand up to a
In the Middle
In the middle of its life, our fish house landed in the middle of the woods. Forty acres of woods. In a big mess of spruce blowdowns, crisscrossed over each other, littered with boulders right to our doorstep. Quite a change from our last front yard on the shore. Well, I guess we’ve got plenty
World-class garden proposed for Brunswick
Swords into ploughshares: the Brunswick Park and Gardens Project proposes to convert an undeveloped section of the soon-to-be decommissioned Brunswick Naval Air Station into a 500 acre world-class garden. The garden, according to the group’s estimates, would create more than 200 year-round jobs, attract more than a million visitors every year and pump some $30
On islands, trash talk is serious business
When the mailboat between Isle au Haut and Stonington docks on the mainland, it’s common to see passengers carting away some not-so-precious cargo. A recent island family reunion ended on the mainland with hugs, kisses, and a load of recyclables put into someone’s trunk. It’s the old island rule of physics: anything that goes onto
Ice cream is the favorite at Swan’s Island’s new market
Sheena Kennedy was concerned about what type of milk to stock at the new Carrying Place Market on Swan’s Island. She knew people who drank whole milk, and others who drank skim milk, and still others who preferred organic, but in the end her selection seemed to be just right. In 48 hours, the store
Swan’s Island Library becomes more of a community center
Nancy Davis joyfully washed the first item in the new sink of the Swan’s Island Library. Davis, a longtime volunteer, said that the kitchen in the library was missing something, “and now it’s not missing anything anymore!” The story behind the sink is more than plumbing and parts, though. It is about the community, and
The Cranberry Report: Bright Birds, Bright Graduates
On a recent mail boat trip to Northeast Harbor, Jennifer Westphal, a resident of Great Cranberry Island said to me, “Hey, you’re a bird watcher aren’t you? I want to tell you about something.” In early May she noticed a lemon yellow bird with a black head, black wings and a black tail. It was
Where Tradition Lives On, with a Sense of Humor
Gifford Island lies southwest off Indian Point, the eastern tip Mahone Bay, Nova Scotia. No ferry services the island; the only transport to run regularly is the work boat for the Clarence R. Heisler boatyard, the island’s only commercial enterprise. At 7:25 each morning a small group of men gathers at a dock on Indian
The “Codfather”A Martha’s Vineyard fisherman works to restore a “foundational fish”
Once, as they were in so many places, the codfish that formed the economic basis for the early colonies were plentiful all around Martha’s Vineyard. “The migrating cod would come between the Vineyard and Nantucket, all the way to Buzzards Bay,” said Tom Osmers of West Tisbury, a lifelong resident of the Vineyard and a