A Great Boatride and Viewing Protected Land in Maine
Maine Coast Heritage Trust (MCHT) conserves and stewards Maine’s coastal lands and islands for their renowned scenic beauty, outdoor recreational opportunities, ecological diversity, and working landscapes. MCHT promotes the conservation of natural places statewide by working with land trusts, communities, and other partners. Founded in 1970, the trust was a pioneer in the use of conservation easements as a way to protect land. Since then, MCHT has worked to protect more than 130,000 acres in Maine, including more than 275 entire coastal islands.
Last Thursday, MCHT, the local land trust for Mount Desert Island (MDI), hosted a boat tour with me as their guest. The tour departed from Bartlett’s Landing on MDI destined for Frenchboro and Rich’s Head, Long Island in Blue Hill Bay. Also on board was Kurt Klebe – Chairman of the Board, Richard Rockefeller – Board Member, Lillie Johnson – Council Member, Tim Glidden – President, Bob Deforrest – Project Manager, and Billy Helprin – Regional Steward. Along the way, as the fog rolled by, I was able to view several MCHT properties that are protected in perpetuity thanks to gifts from the many friends and supporters of the land trust. I, for one, am extremely grateful for such wise and thoughtful generosity.
1 This is Lillie Johnson’s 40-foot Hinckley Talaria, Astrea, coming to pick me up at Bartlett's Landing on Mt. Desert Island. We were destined for Frenchboro and Rich’s Head, Long Island in Blue Hill Bay.
2 That morning, the fog kept coming and going in great rolling misty masses, making it extremely difficult to see anything. Navigation in such weather is difficult and dangerous and instruments on board are very important.
3 The north shore isthmus to Rich’s Head is a long, narrow spit of land, which is covered in round and oval rocks, worn smooth in a roiling sea bed for thousands of years.
4 The rocks are so uniquely shaped and everyone spends a long time looking down, examining the most evenly shaped specimens.
5 This is a good view of the rocky shore.
6 The beach is littered with driftwood and there are thousands of little spiders living amongst the rocks.
7 Richard Rockefeller on north shore of Rich’s Head - This isthmus was recently gifted to MCHT by David Rockefeller along with a major portion of the land that makes up the rest of Long Island. It is approximately 192 acres with 14,000 feet of shoreline.
8 There is a massive bank of driftwood along one edge of the isthmus. The entire isthmus was cleared of most of sea detritus in the last year.
9 We took a short hike along one side of the isthmus finding gorgeous views, clusters of pine trees, and even grassy fields.
10 This is MDI Regional Steward, Terry Towne pointing to where trash and 3.8 tons of fishing gear had been removed and hauled away from Rich’s Head last summer by MCHT Stewards.
11 This is what the shore looked like before the cleanup. Photo Courtesy MCHT
12 This is the garbage barge that was used to haul all of that netting, styrofoam, lobster pots, broken buoys, etc., leaving the beaches much more pristine and beautiful. Photo courtesy MCHT
13 This is what the area looks like today. Photo courtesy MCHT
14 There are cranberry bogs, blueberry fields, and spruce and pine groves on the island.
15 As on my trip around Jordan Pond that same week, there were hundreds of spider webs everywhere in the trees.
16 Here I am walking through Rich's Head with Kurt, Richard, and Terry. Photo courtesy MCHT
17 Because there is so little soil covering the granite island, tree roots grow shallowly. High winds and storms cause blowdowns everywhere as a result. A good thing is that the blowdowns actually create great habitats for sea birds.
18 The south shore of Rich’s Head is extremely rocky and nothing much can grow along the rocky shores of such an inhospitable place.
19 Further inland, the rocks are covered with decorative lichens, like these.
20 The coast was very notched with many little coves, like this one.
21 An errant thistle growing amidst the sea grass
22 As we walked, the round rock beaches were replaced by broken and shattered stone shores.
23 Such rocky, uneven shores made garbage removal very dangerous and tedious.
24 Bob Deforrest, Billy Helprin, and Richard Rockefeller on the south shore of Rich’s Head
25 I love coasts like this, as do so many artists who flock here to paint these scenes.
26 The rocks are now flat, thick rectangles, which are great for stonewalls and buildings! Of course, they're far from where a contractor can access them.
27 With the dense fog and soaring trees, the shore is mysterious.
28 Oftentimes, there are balanced rocks, like this one which looks man made but obviously is not.
29 Walking here is difficult - ankle twisting terrain.
30 Kurt, Richard, Terry, Bob, and Billy pause on the rocks.
31 Folks finally got a glimpse of the sun, as the fog is burned off to make way for a beautiful day on the water and land.
32 Our hike ended where it began on the round rock shore.
33 I was surprised to see so much shore and beach, which was all obscured by fog when we arrived.
34 Beach combing - Photo courtesy MCHT
35 This is my favorite photo of the beach.
36 We used a dinghy to get back to the boat. Photo courtesy MCHT
37 Did we forget someone?
38 Back on board the boat, we were served a great lunch that Lillie packed - a platter of fresh vegetables from Lillie’s home garden - the beans and carrots were especially tasty.
39 How nice! MCHT was prepared to celebrate my birthday (one day early) with a birthday banner, balloons, and cupcakes.
40 The lemon lavender cupcakes from the Morning Glory Bakery in Bar Harbor were a real treat! www.morningglorybakery.com
41 Here I am at the helm with Captain Jad, who was nice enough to let me try out this version of a Hinckley boat. I certainly could get used to this new boat, which is four feet longer than mine, but oh so much bigger overall!
42 With Lillie Johnson, our hostess and owner of Astrea
43 It was nice spending time with everyone, including Kurt and Tim. Photo courtesy MCHT
44 Our wake - Photo courtesy MCHT
45 Approaching Bartlett's Landing
46 Daisy Schwartzberg and Mike Fiore were waiting for me on the dock at Bartlett's Landing.
Martha Pins
Martha Tweets
It is great, Martha, that all that land is being protected and kept clean. Thanks for the tour.
Gloria G!!
Posted by: Gloria | August 9th, 2012 at 12:16 am
Great pictures of lovely boatride and shore visit. Best part is ttose waiting for you .Wish I had Mike here with me as also have a zoning meeting I need to attend. Oh.well, learned long ago "you can't fight city hall". Not that I want to fight but must take a stand.
Posted by: ann | August 9th, 2012 at 4:58 am
Thanks for the pictures of your boat tour with the local MCHT for Mount Desert Isand Martha. The coastline of Rich's Head is breathtaking! What a wonderful endeaver, caring for Main's coasts and Islands. Martha, you looked very chic in your nautical outfit, perfect for a day of boating and beach combing!
Posted by: Cindy F | August 9th, 2012 at 6:56 am
MCHT is doing wonderful things. There are like minded people across the world now. Here in Mattapoisett, we have the Mattapoisett land Trust which is doing a fabulous job obtaining and preserving land.
I love your photo of the small rounded rocks. They remind me of river rocks....smoothed by the current.
The larger rocks remind me of the ones that shape our 1830's stone wall along the perimeter of our property.
What a unique piece of nature. Thanks for sharing.
Posted by: Nantucket Daffodil | August 9th, 2012 at 7:10 am
What a treat for us bloggers, I miss the water since living in the Midwest (originally from Long Island). I just love the shore line, rocks (great colors) and take a trip on a boat. Happy Birthday...
Posted by: ga447 | August 9th, 2012 at 9:00 am
Martha,
Thanks for sharing this blog.
Posted by: KLBrown | August 9th, 2012 at 9:18 am
There is a similar group in the area where I was born, the Grand Traverse Regional Land Conservancy. http://www.gtrlc.org/ They have saved thousands of acres of land along Lake Michigan and nearby rivers and streams. I was so excited when they purchased my great-great grandfather's 1860s mill site as one of their preserves.
Posted by: homer | August 9th, 2012 at 9:28 am
Hi Martha, Thank you so much for taking all of your followers on such a wonderful, fantastic tour in Maine again in this beautiful protected area MCHT! How thoughtful that more of your great friends took you on this delightful tour the day before your Birthday! The weather started out very foggy and cloudy, but ended with such beautiful sunshine-reminds me of viewing our Puget Sound which is probably about 70+ miles from the Pacific Ocean that has similar weather! These photos of this terrific tour are awesome and your description of all of the improved areas are fabulous! I love seeing every bit of it and will add this tour to my list of places to visit someday! You look so fantastic in these photos and how nice to see your friends, also! I love seeing all of those beautiful stones and unusual rocks, the spider webs, your great friends, plus Daisy and Mike in #46, and you in #s34,36,39,41and42-awesome! Photo #20 reminds me of your beautiful Skylands area! Thanks again for sharing this beautiful blog and I will be back to enjoy it again and again! Hope you are having another great day! Off to see Dr. Pia's great protection for animals in such hot summer weather! Jan
Posted by: Jan Erickson | August 9th, 2012 at 9:45 am
Hi Martha,
We all need to pitch in to take care of our land. I have no use for litterers but I think they are here to stay and then the good hearted people have to clean up after them. What an enormous job that was to pick up and haul away 3.8 tons of fishing gear! I hope it stays clean for awhile and I’m sure the fishermen can’t help it if their lines break and their traps get damaged. I realize the work of MCHT goes beyond littering though and that is so utterly commendable. Picture #17 of the trees with shallow roots really caught my attention. The area is definitely not lush and green but if those trees provide a habitat for sea birds, then I see it as another kind of beauty, as God’s safe place for our precious birds. And then as Billy Helprin explained in your Kitteredge Brook Forest Preserve blog of August 15, 2011, “this decomposing wood eventually breaks down enough to become new soil, which will bring new life to the forest.”
~
I love rocks too as shown in your picture #35 which looks just like my rock garden, and as you say, they are ankle twisters. Whatever we put underneath them years ago to keep weeds at bay has eroded away and now the weeds have taken over. There is nothing more tedious than pulling weeds out of a bunch of rocks and so I’m bidding farewell to the rocks except for the bigger ones. I’ll use those in planters and to shore up my sprinkler heads – hmm, maybe I should paint a few of them.
~
Thanks for this tour of some of Maine’s shoreline that is under the care of MCHT. It must have been awe-inspiring to see it all in person. Trish
Posted by: Trish | August 9th, 2012 at 10:13 am
Besides being a statewide conservation organization, Maine Coast Heritage Trust is the local land trust for Mount Desert Island. It is good to know that Maine and MDI are in such good care. Conserving land for future generations to enjoy is very important. Thank you, Martha and everyone else who supports MCHT! Sue T.
Posted by: Sue T. | August 9th, 2012 at 10:25 am
Having just visited Mount Desert Island for the first time I can truly understand the joy and beauty in hiking around Jordan Pond, eatting popovers or boating around the protected areas of this lovely rugged coastline. My daughter loved rocking climbing on Otter Cliff. I stuck to the hiking! Thanks for the happy reminders and for highlighting how important it is to support the MCHT so that the area can continue to welcome newcomers!
Posted by: Lisa | August 9th, 2012 at 11:00 am
I also visited Mount Desert Island for the first time last October, and how I want to go back! You write beautifully; I think this is really a very poetic post in your descriptions of the beaches and rocks. Have you considered writing a memoir (or more than one)? I am sure it would be well received.
Posted by: Terry Covington | August 9th, 2012 at 2:33 pm
What a wonderful way to celebrate your birthday!
Posted by: Jan | August 9th, 2012 at 5:34 pm
Martha, your photos of the Rich's Head 's ,Long Island ,in Blue Hill Bay are so picturesque. You commented on a photo that you said was your favorite..I believe it was of the island's rocks, looking downward..I suggest your take the photo somewhere and have it made into a puzzle..Possibly putting it together with a friend or two, while you are enjoying your fireplace this winter. Pictures are worth a thousand words, but puzzles double the pleasure..p. s. Happy Birthday , and may you have many, many more..Elaine LePage
Posted by: Elaine LePage | August 9th, 2012 at 8:44 pm
Hi, Martha,
Really enjoyed your photos and captions, particularly of the rocks and stones. It's wonderful to learn of all conservation and clean-up efforts. Thanks!
Posted by: Bobbie | August 9th, 2012 at 11:29 pm
Martha, first of all, Happy Birthday!!!!!!!! Your pictures were just gorgeous! Such beauty, it must have been breathtaking actually being there. They are doing such a wonderful job with the cleanup, especially since it is such dangerous terrain. Thanks so much for posting the pictures and sharing!
Posted by: Marilyn Hines | August 9th, 2012 at 11:37 pm
Indeed...a 'rock star' tour...incredible rocks and formations. And, fun to celebrate your birthday on board with incredible lemon lavender cupcakes. So much fun to be had in the Summer!
Posted by: Sherey | August 10th, 2012 at 12:37 pm
Thanks for highlighting their work. Even though I'm not likely to see Maine anytime soon. It's cheering to know there are hard-working people working to preserve it for future generations.
Posted by: Karen | August 10th, 2012 at 2:18 pm
What a fun way to spend your birthday. I am not sure which of your
homes I like the most.
Happy Birthday! Martha
Posted by: Lois Young | August 10th, 2012 at 3:26 pm
Wonderful and important efforts in helping to preserve the coast !
Loved your photos - we summer on Peaks Island in Portland and can't think of being anywhere else in the summer months:) Happy Birthday !
Posted by: Sharon | August 10th, 2012 at 3:38 pm
I love the foggy pictures, it makes the coast hauntingly beautiful. Of course its always great when it lifts and reveals all that coast line. Its good to see such great stewardship of the land, particularly an area that has been shaped so artistically by the elements for millennium. Thank you for sharing Martha!
Posted by: Nicole | August 10th, 2012 at 10:17 pm
Thanks sooo much for taking photos and posting, allowing me to see someplace I would never get to see otherwise.
Posted by: Janice | August 11th, 2012 at 1:02 am
Gorgeous pictures, what a wonderful day!
Posted by: Kelly | August 14th, 2012 at 1:33 pm