“Survival is not all physical,” says John McMillan, who conducts his U.S. Coast Guard-approved one-day survival-training course all over America’s coasts and waterways. In fact, physical strength has less to do with survival than knowing what to do and how to do it. In other words, like the old joke, “How do you get to
Fledgling Camden seafood company wins big in Boston
Thousands of fish products vie for attention at the annual International Boston Seafood Show every March. Each year, hundreds of those products are new to the market. Many producers of the new ones believe their product is unusual enough, offers an added convenience, or simply outshines someone else’s older version. Those producers enter their products
From the Deck: DISCOVERY
I stepped into a shop at The Boothbay Harbor Shipyard and came short up against what I took at first for a very large vessel in frame. She was heavily built of double-sawed 6″x6″ frames set close together. The two halves of each frame were held together with locust treenails, wooden pegs, a tip-off that
Snow crab price down, quota cut
When the Northern cod fishery in Atlantic Canada collapsed, many fishermen looked to the snow crab fishery as an alternative way to earn a living. Now the snow crab fishery is in difficulty on two fronts. The market value of crab is down, and the federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans has reduced the quota.
Ships, Old and New
Over the past two months Working Waterfront has reported on the launchings of two replica ships, DISCOVERY in Boothbay and GODSPEED in Rockport. Both reflect a growing and commendable willingness to invest in “living” history; both were built in Maine yards because that’s where the skills are. Meanwhile, Portland is about to welcome The Cat
Hard Times: Closures, budget limits stress Maine’s clam diggers
Local clam diggers are struggling to keep their heads above water, after last year’s repeated closures for red tide and heavy rainfall forced some others right out of the business. The owner of Marina’s Seafoods, located in Waldoboro, has been buying clams for more than 25 years. She reports that last year was one of
How to While Away the Day in the Ferry Line
Waiting for the ferry you can: Become a Parking Nazi and monitor all tourists’ attempts at getting in the correct line. You can chose to be either moderately helpful by pointing out with ambiguous hand gestures where the line begins and ends OR you can treat day trippers like pets and watch the funny things
The CAT comes to Portland: CAT spokesman: Portland operations will be safe and reliable
Donald Cormier came to Portland again last week to work with city officials and assure others that The Cat ferry service between Portland and Yarmouth, Nova Scotia, will be efficient, environmentally responsible and above all, safe. The Cat, a high-speed catamaran, expects to start the run on Friday, May 26. Cormier, Vice President of Operations
On the street
The aluminum hull fabricated at Lyman-Morse in Rockland for Chebeague boatbuilder Michael Porter and his wife, Barbara, voyaged over land to South Thomaston in early April for further work prior to launching. Porter will build the boat’s interior at his own shop on Chebeague. The Porters are planning a voyage to Europe, where they will
The Future of Ice: A Journey Into Cold
Vintage Books, 2005 On a Crash Course with Creation When Gretel Ehrlich’s publisher asked her to write about climate change and the effects if we become “deseasoned,” she was living for six months on a Wyoming glacial moraine — snow pressing in on her tent. Ehrlich’s reflective journey in The Future of Ice encompasses Tierra