Working Waterfront

The pulsating kaleidoscope of Jill Hoy’s world

If we could see the Maine coast through Jill Hoy’s eyes, it might be like looking through a broken kaleidoscope. You’d still be able to make out the shapes of rock, tree, sea, headland, and boat, but their angular components would become saturated and vibrate with color. In a lively… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

A new bridge, and new beginnings

Reflections is written by Island Fellows, recent college grads who do community service work on Maine islands and in coastal communities through the Island Institute, publisher of The Working Waterfront. “Why would a young woman like you want to come here?” This was one of the first things said to me… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Port authority wins $4 million grant

The Maine Port Authority has received a $4,098,360 grant through the U.S. Department of Transportation Maritime Administration. The port authority sought funding from a port infrastructure program for improvements at the International Marine Terminal in Portland. “The International Marine Terminal has experienced a significant increase in volume in recent years, and… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Researchers track deadly ‘blob’ in Cape Cod Bay

In the fall of 2019, lobster fishermen off the coast of Cape Cod pulled up traps and discovered a ghastly find—dead lobsters. An invisible force had snuffed the life of the crustaceans while still in their traps, along with the life of any other marine life unlucky enough to be… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Maine climate assessment provides dire numbers

A new assessment of climate change and its effects on the state provides concrete numbers that confirm what many here already sense—Maine is warming. The average temperature is 3.2 degrees Fahrenheit warmer than in 1895; the Gulf of Maine is 2.9 degrees warmer. The weather has become more extreme and… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

The sublime joy of sailing, courtesy the Apprenticeshop

When power boats supplanted sailboats, the argument could be made that mariners were free of the reliance on the vagaries of the wind. But does that freedom to travel wherever and whenever outweigh the freedom one feels when gliding across the water in a sailboat? Those at the Apprenticeshop in… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

The man is gone, but the story remains

I never met Stephen H. Robbins Jr., a legendary offshore lobsterman of Stonington who passed away in July of this year. However, I do know Randy Olson, a marine-biologist-turned-filmmaker, who made one of his first movies about Stevie and his family, nearly 30 years ago. I watched this film again… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Seaweed, shellfish aquaculture are thriving on Hancock County coast

Seaweed, mussels, and scallops—these are some of the farmed seafood products that are enjoying great success among small aquaculture operations off the Hancock County coast. And business owners continue to innovate as they look to expand markets, share their technologies and know-how with newcomers, promote aquaculture as a sustainable industry,… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

The ocean and its feast for our senses

The ocean is a place for the senses. Living in the city, amidst the frenzy and the noise, the operative function is contra-sensual, a mix of cacophony and nonsense. We are blinded by the lights, insensitized by the feel of the urban space, and deafened by the chaotic mix. We… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

One man’s seaworthy seagull companion

As a lobsterman who’s spent six decades on the water, John Makowsky knows the meaning of lasting relationships—with the sea, with his boat, with his crew, and with his best friend of 16 years: a seagull named Red Eye. Makowsky hails from Long Island Sound in Connecticut, where he grew… SEE MORE