Strong wind provides test for kayakers

About sunset last Saturday I was sure glad I’d put some extra glue under my toupee. Those blasts of wind sent down from northwest of here did their best to steal my hat and uproot my do!

Earlier in the day, my wife and I took in a couple of acts and the food concessions at the Folk Festival, and the breezes were pretty vigorous then as well. We watched one gust take the top off one of the can recycling boxes and send it down the street. Dust clouds swirled as public works crews scurried to spread liquid calcium chloride on parched ground near the river.

All the while I was thinking ahead to evening when I was scheduled to take a half dozen people on a sunset kayaking tour in Castine, hoping that the wind would just go away. Later as I drove to Castine, pushed along by the stiff northwest winds I was hoping the same thing.

No such luck.

Fortunately the evening’s tour was mostly in the lee of town as we paddled out to Dice’s Head and peeked briefly westward to the sinking sun. On our way back, though, we got whacked by a few blasts that I thought would pull the paddle from my hands! We all made it back to the dock safe and sound but slightly chilled by the plummeting temperatures.

The next morning as I perched on a stool for breakfast at the Castine Variety, Kenny Eaton, owner of Eaton’s Boatyard, explained that a low pressure system and a high pressure system had passed through, one to the north, one to the south. Their counter rotating airflows had combined to make life on the waterfront a bit of a challenge. At least one mooring in the harbor was dragged, and the American Eagle cruise ship had to anchor in the harbor so it wouldn’t pull Eaton’s dock apart in the high winds.

Normally (this summer at least) life on the water in Castine Harbor has been akin to living next to a mill pond. But Sunday morning proved the exception as I readied for a day trip with a father and son from the upper Midwest. It was my goal to use the wind as much as possible to get us places and to avoid having to fight it.

We managed to do that – for the most part. The downwind leg of our trip was akin to riding a roller coaster. The wind at our backs pushed us along like leaves on a pond. We ducked in behind points and islands when we needed a respite from the ever-growing waves, then nosed back into the gusts to be blown along again.

I couldn’t help but think of a new book I’m reading (when I can find the time. I’ll tell you more as I get into it.). It’s “Treacherous Waters – Stories of Sailors in the Clutch of the Sea” edited by Tom Lochhaas who has a summer place on Wallace Cove in Milbridge. He has assembled the works of 20 writers in this collection of “epics of the sea” that is published by McGraw Hill. From what I’ve read so far (one story involves a 42-foot ketch being pitchpoled in mountainous waves) I began to think that the two- to three-foot waves rocking my kayak were suddenly insignificant.

Our final pre-lunch leg involved crossing the southern end of Smith Cove with the wind coming over our right bow quarter – nothing like a little exercise to build up a good appetite. A half hour or so later we settled at a picnic table in the sun closest to the beach at Indian Bar. Wind and sun helped dry us out quickly. The pleasant surprise after lunch was a noticeable drop in wind speed, down to say, 15-plus mph, and that made our return to town pretty much a breeze!

Monday morning I received an e-mail from my polar dipping buddy, Tess Ftorek in Robbinston. You may remember, she egged me on to take the icy plunge last Jan. 24 at Pleasant Point in Passamaquoddy Bay along with 120 other folks to benefit the Ronald MacDonald House. She helped students at Washington County Community College organize the beach party/benefit and jumped right in to the icy waters with the rest of us.

Anyway, Ftorek wanted me to know she and her husband Steve had taken two exchange students from Yucatan up to the West Branch of the Penobscot River for some camping, fishing and hiking last weekend. The poor students wound up bundled in mittens and wool blankets, she said, when the cold front passed through.

Ftorek also wanted me to know she and Steve had visited Barnes Island on the New Brunswick side of Passamaquoddy Bay about a month ago. Barnes is one of the islands I wrote about last week that volunteers for the Nature Trust of New Brunswick helped clean up. I remarked at the variety of trash and debris we took off the island – some 3,500 pounds worth.

Ftorek wrote: “…about a month ago Stevie and I, along with two friends, spent four days on Barnes Island. We were dropped off there with our kayaks and camping gear and spent the days paddling around the [nearby] islands. It was great to beach comb. We saw five deer on one of the islands, lots of seals and porpoise and even some minke whales. It was a weekend of fog, sun, rain, warmth, cold – you name it we had it!

“… We were, however, rather disappointed at the amount of trash on the islands (yep, saw the bike you mentioned). It was obvious that some was unintentional, but we did come upon a campsite on one of the islands where someone had left a 12-pack of beer bottles and an empty wine bottle. That was not a pretty site. We tried to carry off some stuff but since we were paddling it was not possible to do much to help.”

What’s disappointing about coming upon a trashed campsite is the realization that some people don’t know how truly valuable the resource is. Unless you’re a pig (even pigs aren’t that messy) why on earth would you foul the campsite that way? Why not pick up after yourself, even if it’s because you might come back this way again? Why not be considerate of others? Why should others who follow you do so with trash bags?

On a much more positive note, I had a chance to talk to Rachel Nixon, trail manager for the Maine Island Trail Association, Thursday evening at the Rockport Boat Club. (Actually, it’s always a pleasure talking with all of the folks in this organization, they’re always so upbeat!)

Anyway, Nixon just completed a 20-day, 550-mile tour of the trail, some of it with Tania Neuschafer, education and outreach manager for the trail, and her assessment was that the trail is in better shape than ever. “The islands were singing,” she told me after checking on 45 public and 38 private islands as well as 15 mainland sites. Here’s the best part: They found negligible camper trash and no human waste! It’s great to hear that MITA and LNT’s message is sinking in for those who use the islands.

Thursday’s festivities were a time for the staff to honor volunteers for their time and effort in keeping the trail in top shape. Don Parker of Steep Falls and Greg Barmore of Harpswell were honored for their work as island monitors; Chris Tadema-Wielandt of Marlboro and Deb Clark of Gardiner were recognized for their support in the semi-annual island cleanup campaign; and Lisa Oettinger of Penobscot was honored as an island adopter for Sellers and Little Hog islands.

Bill Mozak of Bath was recognized for his volunteer work in the MITA office while Matthew Faulkner and Gretchen Kruysman, both of Cape Elizabeth, got outreach awards for helping to get the MITA ethic spread to us humble masses.

The highlight of the evening was presentation of the Margaret C. Emerson Award to Jim Dugan of Rockland. Named for Margaret, with her husband Ed, who were the first private island owners to add their island to the Maine Island Trail, the award recognizes a volunteer who has demonstrated commitment and time by providing outstanding stewardship service on behalf of Maine’s islands. Dugan has provided technical assistance to the organization and has redesigned its soon-to-be unveiled Web site. In the words of Karen Stimpson, executive director of MITA, as a volunteer Dugan is “persistently and doggedly determined. He is fiercely loyal to MITA and ruthlessly candid in his advice to MITA. He is an unsung hero.” And, we were told, keeps the Rockland office happy by providing an occasional apple pie.

Jeff Strout can be reached at 990-8202 or by e-mail at jstrout@bangordailynews.net.