SOUTHWEST HARBOR — On a recent afternoon after school, teenagers swoop around in two-person sailboats on sun-dazzled waters. The Mount Desert Island High School sailing team’s veterans train in Rondar 420s, a new type of racing dinghy. Novices use older Club 420s. The Rondar group circles the coach boat, practicing roll tacks—heeling, rocking to windward,
Sea stories, including a close encounter with a manatee
Midcoast public transportation can boost local economy, advocates say
MIDCOAST — There is a renewed push to study public transportation options in the Midcoast area, and it includes an online survey for area residents and visitors. In February, the Mid-Coast Planning Commission posted the online survey and publicized the year-long study. The survey most likely will be online until July. The goal is to
The promise of a rose garden, lost in battle
OK, it was a serious lapse in judgment, but he was desperate. It was Mother’s Day and he was unprepared. At first blush, some might regard it as admirable that men of a certain age do not connect Mother’s Day and their wives in the same thought. Wives are forever young and beautiful in their
Dirty laundry on Swan’s Island
Time to talk about Swan’s Island’s dirty laundry! This isn’t knitting group gossip; I mean that literally. As a member of a generation with notoriously poor housekeeping skills (or is it just me?), I’m pretty proud when I get my laundry attached to the line securely enough to keep the sea breeze from lifting it
Island caretakers essential to local economy
ISLESBORO — The feeling of escape Mike Boucher enjoys when he retreats to his hunting camp near Moosehead Lake is not very different from what the owners of the island’s many mansions feel when they arrive here in the summer. They treasure the time they can step out of their busy, typically urban lives for
Camden school’s Murphy harnesses student power
ROCKPORT — At the end of a long school day in May, Margo Murphy’s classroom at Camden Hills Regional High School filled with students after the dismissal bell. They were freshmen eager to check the progress of their attempts at creating self-contained eco-systems, Murphy explained above the noise during a telephone interview. She believes in
Eastport projected to lose almost half of residents by 2030
EASTPORT — A projected 40 percent drop in population by 2030 presents a scary scenario for a community whose boosters see it bustling with new energy. The 40 percent decline from Eastport’s population of about 1,331 in 2010 was projected by Maine State Economist, Amanda Rector. “This projection is a reflection of current and recent
Helping Maine groundfishing families through hard times
I had the privilege of visiting several Maine seafood businesses in March at the Boston Seafood show, where I was proud to announce that Maine’s lobster fishery had received the prestigious Marine Stewardship Council’s Sustainable Seafood Certification. Last year, the harvest generated $338 million for lobstermen, thanks to record-breaking landings of our state’s favorite crustacean.