Every once in a while I stop for a moment and think to myself “How the hell did I get this job? How could I possibly be getting paid (albeit not much) for this??” This past week contained a surplus of those moments.
I was asked to help lead a sea-kyaking trip for seven of my students. Those of you who know me well would know that while I have lead many trips in my life, I have no formal training or experience in sea-kyaking. In fact, I do not think I’ve ever actually done it. Nonetheless, I was asked to assist in leading a trip around Muscongus bay, off the coast of Maine, due east of where I live in Wiscasset. We spent four nights island hopping, camping out on three different islands and exploring others by foot during the day.
The first evening we spent on an Island called Black. The campsite was nice; mossy grass on the ground to soften our beds at night and, of course, a beautiful ocean view.
The night was marked by excitement when our leaking whisper light stove almost set the island ablaze (my co-leader Eric aptly described it as a “very big deal” as he asked the kids to slowly back away from the burning wooden table). The kids camped outside while I spent the night shivering in a tent of my own. The next morning we awoke with sun and paddled seven miles down to another Island, Thief.
Thief (can be seen on a map, along with the other islands, here) is marked by unique mossy growth (called colloquially “Old Man’s Beard” for obvious reasons) on most of its trees (see pictures below), as well as gorgeous rocky cliff views.
I won’t go into too much detail but those cliffs made for quite a nice “Loo with a View,” if you will, especially when facing west at around 6:30.
Sunset on Thief
We stayed on Thief for two nights. On the day in between we paddled to Loud’s Island, which apparently was the last Island to actually become part of Maine. The last full-time residents moved off the Island in the 1960s when the U.S. Postal Service began refusing to bring mail there on a daily basis for such few residents. That, combined with the lack of electricity and cold coastal winters proved difficult for the more modern Mainer. But people maintain summer residences there so homes are present, though few and far between. Three main dirt/grass roads run along the Island intersecting at various points. They lead to an old graveyard with family graves spouting poetry about lost loves. They lead to the old run down foundation of what was once the town school. They lead to an old church which is still open to the public. We snuck inside and played the harpsichord and some piano. I was especially intrigued by the church library, complete with multiple volumes of Danielle Steele novels. The church was outfited with “rugs” which were literally painted on the old wooden floor beams.
The 1920s seemed to have brought some modernization to the Island. Cars were brought to Louds and they remain there today, although in quite a different capacity. Mostly they sit in the woods growing moss or holding wood for non-existant winter fires. But the lack of inhabitants combined with the old, rusted, 1920s Fords scattered throughout the place certainly lend themselves to the island’s surreal appeal. Think the movie Pleasantville, but in color.
After leaving Louds, we sailed back to Thief by rafting our kayaks together and attaching a tarp to two paddles. We made it 4.5 miles in an hour and a half. Pretty damn good sailing for sea kyakers, if I do say so myself!
The sunrise the next morning on Thief was spectacular, and we got moving pretty quickly in order to sail out and find a Lobsterman friend of Eric’s. He sold us some lobster from right off the back of his boat which we put in the aft hatch of Erics boat (along with some seaweed to preserve them) and saved for a Lobster Chowder we made later that night.
Sunrise on Thief
All in all, beautiful weather, gorgeous islands, and a good time to just sit back and relax and meditate about life. Check out pictures if you like!
Barnacle on a Tree
