Caitlin and Ethan Spaulding and their son Forrest pose on the shore of their Islesboro farm. PHOTO: TOM GROENING

Working Waterfront

Crab to bird—invasive species becomes chicken feed

Two years ago, Ethan Spaulding, 30, his wife Caitlin, 26, and their son Forrest, 6, left the rich soils of Indiana to start a farm on a rocky island off the Maine coast. They knew logic wasn’t on their side, but they believe their God is. “We knew nobody out… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Collaborative marine science researcher retires

When Bob Steneck came to the University of Maine in 1982, there were few marine ecologists in the state, and none interacted with fishermen. He was among the first in Maine to work with lobstermen on research, traveling with them on their boats, diving to the seafloor to study lobsters,… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Evidence of insanity: Black swans and B-O-A-T

I’ve been a boat owner for well over 50 years. So I should know something about the rocks and shoals that lie in wait for someone like me, right? The costs? The heartbreak? The disasters that lurk out there on, in or under the water? I thought I did—all of… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Port Clyde’s loss is seared in pain

We can watch live satellite images of a typhoon on the other side of the planet. We can record thousands of photographs in a device not much bigger than a deck of playing cards. We can inject a genetic replica of a virus to boost immunity. But something as elemental… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Maine islands are the frontier

For those of you who track island life, you’ll likely know there are 15 year-round, unbridged islands along the Maine coast. Distinguished by their differences more than their commonalities, these islands span the coast from Cliff Island, the smallest of the Casco Bay islands, to Matinicus, the most distant island… SEE MORE

The approach to the Fox Islands Thorofare. FILE PHOTO: TOM GROENING

Working Waterfront

Mariners call for navigational aid maintenance

Lighthouses and buoys aren’t the only navigational aids on which mariners rely for safe transit. Structures known as day shapes or beacons, often built on ledges, also warn boaters away from danger, and some mariners have complained that as they deteriorate, the Coast Guard is failing to maintain them. Rep.… SEE MORE

Newschäfer at Lyman-Morse boatyard in Thomaston in September 2020. PHOTO: ROBERT MITCHELL

Working Waterfront

Solo sail around the world—for the win

On a solo round-the-world sailing race, Kirsten Neuschäfer had a teammate—her boat the Minnehaha. More than a tool, her boat was a partner in a race that takes incredible skill, determination, and a large dose of luck, she explained. It’s dubbed a race for “those who dare.” Neuschäfer dared and… SEE MORE

Aaron Bourassa, project manager overseeing the stabilization project at Fort Preble on the Southern Maine Community College campus. PHOTO: CLARKE CANFIELD

Working Waterfront

Fortifying Portland Harbor’s sentinel

[caption id="attachment_38490" align="alignnone" width="700"] An aerial view of the Southern Maine Community College campus, built within the confines of Fort Preble. PHOTO: COURTESY SMCC[/caption] Workers have moved three-ton granite blocks and taken measures to mitigate erosion and improve drainage in an effort to stabilize Fort Preble, a historic fortress… SEE MORE

Strike at Bath Iron Works, July 1, 1985. PHOTO: GEN WILLMAN

Working Waterfront

Shipbuilding legacy strengthened by unions

Maine’s proficient, hardworking, and regionally low-paid laborers helped to secure a competitive edge in the shipbuilding industry of the 19th century, contributing to the state’s significance as a center of American shipbuilding and fleet ownership. Like many historic narratives, this shipbuilding prominence has often been examined through the lens of… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Alive in the time of herons

On an overcast August day, my teammates and I set off on a training swim down the Millstream. We were building up mileage ahead of our 5K fundraiser for LifeFlight of Maine, our fourth such venture in as many years. As we passed the waterfront house that serves as our… SEE MORE