Articles
How will global warming impact puffins?
Although the restoration of puffins and other seabirds on some of the Gulf of Maine islands has been a great success, Project Puffin Director Dr. Stephen Kress is concerned about the implications of global warming and the increase of ocean temperatures and how these factors will affect the puffins. Kress is also the leader of
Well Traveled BaitMaine worms reach a global market
Worm diggers spend hours at low tide, stooped over their rakes in the search for bloodworms buried in the mud. This is their livelihood, and the length of each worm and the number of worms they catch are crucial to the diggers’ success. They sell the worms to a bait company for an agreed-upon price
Brunswick gets a public boat launch site, finally
After years of controversy, Brunswick will soon have a public deep-water boat launch. The Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, which owns the Mere Point Road site, submitted its final development plan to Brunswick’s Planning and Development Department in late July. The department approved it, the Zoning Appeals Board upheld the decision in mid-September,
Summer Crunch: Parking, security, conflicting uses keep harbormasters busy
Black Horse builds light, fast powerboats for the luxury market
Howard Hagar, general manager of Black Horse Yachts in South Harpswell, is pleased with the 33-foot and new 29-foot power yachts the company builds. Six years ago, J. Stark Thompson bought the company after he had purchased a yacht from the former owner. Today there are five employees, and a naval architect, Geoffrey Dickes, designs
Project teaches skills through boatbuilding
The Compass Project, started four years ago by Pat Ryan and John McDonald, is a boatbuilding school for 12- to 14-year-olds in Portland. It serves “at risk” students who attend middle schools in Portland and the neighboring communities. Students attend two-hour classes weekly for 12 weeks, where they build Bevin skiffs, dinghies or small sailboats.
Maine’s boatbuilders create a network to promote their industry
Three years ago, Nigel Calder sent a “white paper” to Gov. John Baldacci about the importance of Maine’s boatbuilding industry. Based on a model from New Zealand, Calder pointed out that what Maine needs now is a network to promote boatbuilding and ancillary industries, encouraging cooperation among builders. Then the industry could soar, both nationally
East Boothbay yard builds Navy prototype
Hodgdon Yachts in East Boothbay, along with the help of Steve Von Vogt, president of Maine Marine Manufacturing in Portland, and researchers at the University of Maine, is building a Navy medium-range craft called the Mark V.1. While the Maine boatbuilding industry is a leader in the recreational boat market, it has not constructed small
Making It Simple – Writer explains technical systems for boat owners
Nigel Calder, formerly a resident of Alna, Maine, and now hailing from Maryland’s Eastern Shore, grew up in the English countryside. During grammar school he didn’t care for rugby and football and happily found a dinghy to sail in a nearby pond. So began his love affair with boats. After graduating from Exeter University, he
Maine researchers find evidence of abrupt climate change in the Mideast
Two researchers at the Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences in Boothbay Harbor, Joaquim Goes and Helga Gomes, published an article in the journal Science last April reporting research findings with far-reaching effects. As a result of less snowfall on the Himalayas during the past seven years, the monsoon winds that blow northeast across the Arabian