Life on Penobscot Bay

There’s alot of things I put off doing “until I have time to do it right”…like blogging Searsport Shores life lately…I didn’t realize the extent of my procrastination until I down loaded some pictures today…OMG…there were photos fresh from 3 weeks ago.

So it’s 8:47 PM…I’m closing the office in 13 minutes but I thought you might like to play a little bit of catch up…(I’m doing this instead of knitting a Victorian lace collar for my new shawl…with handspun yarn dipped in dye made from summer flowers…but that’s another posting too)

We felted treasure pouches over beach stones

330 crabs were gathered on one weekend...for the UM research project

Megan taught a successful friendship bracelet class

Steven succeeded in producing strawberries, raspberries,and blackberries...all in September, all at the same time

Emma taught a whoppie pie class down at the beach

Heather's mermaid swam to the billboard...

We did a Channel 5 news piece on Fiber College

Norma harvested 100s of heads of garlic from the gardens

And the cat witnessed it all...

In my defense (for what it’s worth), I’ve been writing 5 and 6 days/week on the Fiber College Blog for the past month…check that out for pretty pictures…

Yesterday’s beach seine (a fine mesh net designed for live catches and research) survey at Searsport Shores Campground:

Volunteering with a cause...if only they weren't so slippery

One haul at low tide and one haul at high tide of the 60 foot beach seine.

Results:

516 mummichogs at high tide.

At low tide about 60 silversides and 4 crangon shrimp.

mummichogs

The campground is still running on laughter, exploration, art projects and beach time…but I’ve been putting my writing energies into our other blog…Fiber College on Penobscot Bay.  It’s an event we host each year for those who are interested in quilting, spinning, carving, knitting…and all that sort of thing.  For the next few weeks, my second job is to spread the word to the newspapers and encourage people not to wait until the last minute to sign up for classes…it keeps the instructors happier which in turn makes my life easier (always a goal I admit).  So bounce over to the other blog and check out the cool people who come to Searsport Shores to spread their passions and their addictions.

It’s early afternoon, the temperature’s perfect, we’re making giant toadstools again tonight…and over my iced coffee I was thinking about the variety of questions I answered today:

Where can I find orange, purple and green string?

Where can I buy a bikini that’s not cut too high?

I need shrimp…not cooked but kicking…

Do you have a recipe for Dilly beans?

How long will it take me to paddle to Sears Island?

Where can I buy dairy-free butter?

How long will it take me to get to you?

What language are they speaking on that freighter in the Bay?

I need a basket for my bicycle, do you have any you’re not using?

Can I rent some space in your refrigerator?

Is this the Atlantic ocean?

Why are your green beans yellow?

Roy takes great pictures. You may have read his posting a couple of week’s ago…and we wanted you to see a few more of his photos:

This is a hula hoop training session.

Getting ready for the lobsterbake.

A tanker unloading.

Storm over Islesboro.

Full moon over the bay.

The start of the Harbor to Harbor trip. - Searsport Harbor

A blue herring in Searsport Harbor.

Heading towards Belfast.

The kayak trip director.

Going into Belfast Harbor.

Arriving at the Weathervane.

LUNCH!

Getting ready to go back to Searsport Shores.

Last to return to Searsport Shores Campground.

Things are crazy busy these next couple of weeks…we’re filled with great families and lots of energy…but the energy is channeled into real life instead of computer life…so the next couple of postings will just be pictures…you fill in the narrative…Thank you

Thursday there was a Jello Eating contest:

Greasers met hippies at the Searsport Shores Campground 1950s & 60s weekend, a fundraising event for the Pine Tree Camp of Rome, Maine.  Part 2; Continued from last posting.

sharing a root beer float

Saturday featured an entire day of activities including a horseshoe tournament and a dunking booth where Bob, ever the good sport, splashed down in icy water about thirty times.

Campers were more than willing to buy $5 blocks of ice for the tank to support the cause along with the softballs to throw at the target to dunk Bob. Laughter abounded as Bob teased the pitchers and often paid the consequences but all in good fun.

The Friday Night Hula Hoop Champs

Also on Saturday afternoon were a hula hoop practice and a second Jello eating contest.  That night, the movie “American Graffiti” was projected on a big screen drive-in style for folks to enjoy while munching on fresh popcorn.

Sunday featured a delicious Maine blueberry pancake breakfast served on the beach.  Later in the morning there was a hula hoop contest in which the winner was able to hula and walk on shore about 50 yards down to the water line and then into Penobscot Bay.

This was followed by a mega-Twister game on an original game carpet created especially for the event.  Sunday’s events were captured by WABI TV Bangor and complementary short interviews with Bob and Astrig ran on the 6 and 11pm news.  Perfect summer weather accompanied throughout.

Bob’s original fundraising goal was $1000 but all the events were so successful more than double that amount was realized.  Plans are already underway for next years fundraising 50s and 60s weekend scheduled for July 2011.

Mark Aubertin and Friend from Monroe

The organizers would like to thank the following for their generous donations in making the weekend an outstanding success:

Family Traditions Restaurant

Hideaway Diner

Belfast Variety 52

Captain Shorty’s

Searsport Automotive

Searsport Shores Oceanfront Campground

Pepsi Co.

Gifford’s Ice Cream

Bangor Savings Bank

Tozier’s Market

Anglers Restaurant

Happy Campers

Searsport Police Dept.

Searsport Fire Dept.

Outdoor Sportsman

Mark Aubertin

Greasers met Hippies at the Searsport Shores Campground 1950s & 60s weekend, a fund raising event for the Pine Tree Camp.  Part One.  Reported by Ken

More than five hundred people participated in this past weekend’s events which raised more than $2300.00 for the Pine Tree Camp of Rome, Maine.

For 65 years Pine Tree Camp has provided the summer camp experience for Maine people with disabilities.

The weekend was the brainchild of Bob…you know Bob…our security guy, general help out guy, good friend to all and camper extraordinaire… Bob’s organized winter snowmobile fundraisers for the camp and knew that they had received less help than usual this year…so he thought, “why not bring a summer event with a lot of fun to raise money for the Camp?”

The weekend kicked off Friday July 30 with a late afternoon vintage car show where campers and automobile enthusiasts enjoyed viewing more than 125 classic cars in the upper field at Searsport Shores.

Along with the music of the 1950s and 60s spun by DJ Bob many folks in costume enjoyed drive-in food including root beer floats. At 6pm there was a Jello eating contest where kids went toe to toe with adults.  Later people enjoyed a dance featuring a 1950s style twist dance contest.

Lances at the beach...commonly mistaken for eels

Yesterday, Ron Huber, executive director of Penobscot Bay Watch came to the campground to count the marine species that happened to be on our beach that afternoon.

With the help of my Steve and camper Heather Nadeau from Mapleton, they seine netted 14 sand lances ranging in length from 2-6 inches in a 20 minute exercise.

The journal notes read:

I’ve lived here almost 20 years and I’m sorry to say that I didn’t know what a sand lance was…Wikipedia to the rescue:

“A sand lance or sandlance is a fish belonging to the family Ammodytidae. Several species of sand lance are commonly known as “sand eels” or “sandeels”, though they are not related to true eels. Another variant name is launce, and all names of the fish are references to its slender body and pointed snout. The family name (and genus name, Ammodytes) means “sand burrower”, which describes the sand lance’s habit of burrowing into sand to avoid tidal currents.

Sand lances are most commonly encountered by fishermen in the North Pacific and North Atlantic, but are found in oceans throughout the world. These fish do not have pelvic fins and do not develop a swim bladder, staying true to their bottom-dwelling habit as adults. Both adult and larval sea lances primarily feed on copepods. Larval forms of this fish are perhaps the most abundant of all fish larvae in areas such as the northwest Atlantic, serving as a major food item for cod, salmon, and other commercially important species. As adults, sand lances are harvested commercially in some areas (primarily in Europe), leading to direct human competition with diving birds such as puffins, auks, and cormorants. Some species are inshore coastal dwellers, and digging for sand lances to use as a bait fish has been a popular pastime in coastal areas of Europe and North America. Other species are deep-water dwellers, some of which have only recently been described to science, and most of which lack common names. Sand lances have chameleon-like independent eye movements.”