Everyone is being hit hard by the high cost of petroleum, noted Clive Farrin, President of the Downeast Lobstermen’s Association. “Just look at the number of things you touch with your fingers every day that are made with petroleum,” he said. Fishermen, with their reliance on boat and truck fuel, as well as traps, buoys,
Maine Lighthouses: Documentation of Their Past
Cypress Communications 219 pages A tradition of excellence, upheld The team of J. Candace Clifford and her mother, Mary Louise Clifford, has contributed a third volume to their outstanding efforts to capture the history of our nation’s lighthouses. Their first two books, Women Who Kept the Lights: An Illustrated History of Female Lighthouse Keepers (1993)
Charlie Oldham
Charlie Oldham, who has been responsible for the design and production of Working Waterfront since the mid-1990s, underwent a liver transplant at New England Medical Center in Boston in early April. Due to complications he remains in very serious condition at the hospital. Readers who wish to help the Oldham family defray its high expenses
The debate over sea lice and wild stocks clouds the farmed-salmon picture
A new study from British Columbia linking farmed salmon to dangerously high sea lice infections in wild juvenile stocks has refueled an intense, decade-long debate in Canada and Europe. Similar disagreements about the study exist in Maine, but the debate seems overshadowed by a drop in active salmon farming, continued declines in wild Atlantic salmon
Faraway Places: The Rebirth of Battle Harbour
Our Boston Whaler charges and smacks the waves rolling in from the northeast. There’s a pod of low-lying islands on the horizon. As we head for one of them, Battle Island, we maneuver around a giant chess set of carved icebergs. Closing in on a point of land, we hear the chatter of whitecaps around
The Long View – Island Networking
A central paradox of island life is that each island, whether in Maine or elsewhere, eagerly celebrates its differences from every other community, including other island communities, even though all islands share many common issues and interests. Whether these interests are maintaining small schools, or ferry and mail services, or emergency medical systems, the list
Famed Nova Scotia Shipyard to close
A significant chapter of Canada’s seafaring history ended in March with the announcement that the Smith & Rhuland shipyard in Lunenburg, Nova Scotia, will close. The yard was most famous for building the legendary fishing schooner BLUENOSE, which dominated American competition at the International Fishermen’s Races held during the 1920s. The yard also built the
Technology: The latest in onboard weather forecast systems
New England mariners are used to changeable weather, but even the most experienced vessel operator can use a little help in predicting nature’s next move. Boat owners in the market for a forecasting system have an ever-increasing array of devices and systems, so the biggest problem may be choosing among them. Devices range from the
Insure That Island Home? Maybe, But Bring Your Wallet
Ron Ames and partner Emily Rantala of Matinicus say they’ve solved the problem of high-priced homeowner’s insurance. They don’t carry any. “If the house burns down, we’ll just move into another one,” said Ron, a fisherman. He said soaring premiums for insurance policies led him to just hope he’ll be lucky. “I’ve been fortunate, that’s
Proposed Customs changes prompt concern in the cruise industry
An imminent change in the way U.S. Customs officials plan to clear cruise ship passengers this summer continues to inspire anxious meetings, strongly worded e-mails and logistic-laden telephone calls. The nightmare everyone is trying to avoid is the one where Maine’s float-in tourists, faced with long lines resulting from new disembarkment procedures, might never leave