Working Waterfront

The islands explode into bloom

Everything Everywhere All at Once is the title of an award winning movie I have yet to see. It also is a perfect description of the frenetic time of year in the Cranberry Isles between the middle of May and the middle of June. Our island populations are about to… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Hybrid ferry is a ‘half attempt’

I was greatly disappointed to read that the new ferry being built for Islesboro has gone from an all-electric boat to a hybrid. With global warming affecting the Gulf of Maine faster than most other bodies of water in the world, I believe we need to make our best effort… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Stonington’s ‘Discovery Wharf’ open

In the heart of Stonington, Maine’s highest lobster landings port, fisheries come alive at 13 Atlantic Avenue, home of the Discovery Wharf, Maine Center for Coastal Fisheries’ vibrant interpretive center for visitors of all ages. The MCCF Discovery Wharf provides interactive experiences ranging from hands-on learning about sea creatures in… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Winning and losing, frugal and green, and the coffee connection

If you win, I lose? To the editor: I’m glad you wrote “Pondering the poverty question” (Rock Bound, June issue). I agree with everything you said, and hope to read Poverty, by America. I think it’s important to point out the costs to everyone, not just the poor, of our… SEE MORE

Sen. Angus King converses with Friends of Acadia staff at the groundbreaking event for Acadia National Park's new maintenance facility.

Working Waterfront

Acadia breaks ground on new facility

Deputy Secretary of the Interior Tommy Beaudreau visited Acadia National Park in April to join federal and local leaders at the groundbreaking of a new year-round maintenance facility at park headquarters, made possible with a new $32.6 million investment from the Great American Outdoors Act. [caption id="attachment_37419" align="alignleft" width="500"] Environmental… SEE MORE

Gov. Janet Mills held a ceremonial bill signing for LD 574, a measure sponsored by Rep. Morgan Rielly, D-Westbrook, and cosponsored by Rep. Vicki Doudera, D-Camden, that would expand the language of working waterfront covenants to include nonprofit corporations and charitable trusts that are authorized to hold conservation easements, further protecting Maine’s last remaining miles of working waterfront.

Working Waterfront

Land trusts can now protect working waterfronts

A bill sponsored by Rep. Morgan Rielly of Westbrook (LD 574: An Act to Amend the Laws Governing Working Waterfront Covenants) has been signed into law, greatly expanding opportunities for protecting Maine’s remaining working waterfronts. “Maine’s fishing industry accounts for nearly $1 billion in annual revenues, and it’s an industry… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Island landscapes, island stories

Vinalhaven—Portrait of a Maine Island Photos by Joel Greenberg, Narratives by Phil Crossman Vinalhaven—Portrait of an Island is a wonderful, wonderful book. The beautifully composed, nuanced images of Joel Greenberg together with Phil Crossman’s stories are the threads that weave these lovely images together into a fully realized rare experience.… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Anatomy of a failure: Who killed Quoddy?

Moondoggle: Franklin Roosevelt and the Fight for Tidal-electric Power at Passamaquoddy Bay By Mark C. Borton, Downeast Books (2023) A rival to the Hoover Dam in Eastport? That could have been the Quoddy project to generate electricity from one of the highest tides in the world. For Mainers, the ghost… SEE MORE

Visitors enjoy Popham Beach in Phippsburg in 1886. PHOTO: MAINE MARITIME MUSEUM

Working Waterfront

Beach recreation is relatively new

The practice of beachgoing is more modern than one might expect. In fact, it wasn’t until the turn of the 19th century that a cultural appreciation for beachgoing gained solid footing in European society. Popular medical texts touted the benefits of ocean air and dips in frigid waters. At the… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

They’re back—cruise ship season underway

Maine’s cruise ship season began April 23 with the arrival in Portland of Holland America’s Zaandam, carrying about 1,400 passengers. A smaller cruise vessel, the Ocean Navigator of the American Queen Voyages line has been in Eastport with crew only since April 10. A live, real-time schedule of cruise visits… SEE MORE