The Marginal Way in Ogunquit, Maine is one of New England's only paved public shoreline footpaths. The path spans a little more than a mile connecting Perkins Cove and Ogunquit Beach. The land was donated to the town in 1925 and a non-profit organization was established in 2010 to protect it for future generations. This picture was taken at Perkins Cove. We are holding a towel promoting 1000 Trails #100 Days of Camping campaign promoting activities in or near their campgrounds.
Walking along Marginal Way...
There are many benches and places to sit and enjoy the views of this rocky coast.
Wild roses line the path.
A tour boat goes out the harbor.
Surfers were having a tough time staying erect at Ogunquit Beach.
View from Marginal Way…an easy, accessible, and scenic pathway.
On Saturday the campground sponsored a yard sale, so Nan and I took the opportunity to downsize some of our stuff. I sold my inflatable kayak which wasn't getting used enough to justify toting it around. Nan's didn't sell, so if you want one, she will make you a good deal.
On Sunday, we took an educational tour on a lobsterboat.
The Rugosa out of Kennebunkport, ME.
While we were waiting, another tour boat went by….whale watching…for another time.
Only one couple and their children were along besides us, so it was a very small group.
We learned that each lobsterman has his own color and pattern of buoys to mark their traps. This one is displaying his yellow and black buoy.
Our guide shows us the Lugosa's buoy colors.
Most of the commercial lobstermen's buoys are just two colors…because they have so many to paint, they keep it simple.
Sunday is a day of rest or for doing maintenance on the lobsterboats.
The entire fleet is at anchor here…they are not allowed to fish on Sundays. It gives the lobsters a break too.
When the lobstermen do go out, they stop here to buy bait. They also stop here on the way back to unload their catch. The lobster pound where they sell their catch is just behind this building.
Going out the harbor, the guide points out the expensive homes and condos on the site of what was once an Abenaki Indian summer village at the mouth of the Kennebunk River.
The jetties were built in the early 1800s, when ship building was a big industry here.
That's Kennebunk Beach on the other side of the south jetty.
Looking back toward the Kennebunk River between the two jetties.
Fishing off the jetty.
The guide begins to discuss lobster anatomy…using a lobster dummy.
He was interrupted as this fisherman went by showing off his nice catch.
The captain prepares to drop a trap which will be baited later for use in another tour.
Letting out the coiled rope carefully so it doesn't get caught around his feet.
Last thing to go is the buoy.
This house built upon the rocks was featured in the 2003 filming of the movie Empire Falls by Maine author Richard Russo.
Back to lobster anatomy. We learned how to tell male from female, even in the absence of eggs.
The front pincer legs are what the lobsters use to taste.
Our tour takes us to Walker Point, summer home of George H.W. Bush. Both President and Mrs. Bush celebrated their birthdays here this week. She is 90, and he is 91.
Jeb Bush is having this house built on the compound.
Visiting the Bush family in Kennebunkport.
Beneath the U.S. flag are the flags of Maine and Texas. They are flown when the family is in residence.
The guide pointed out the place in front of this church where George Bush the elder landed by parachute last year in celebration of his 90th birthday.
The sailboat tour goes by…it was a good day for sailing too, as you can see her full sails.
Time to hoist up a lobster trap using the pulley.
This one has several small female lobsters.
How to handle a live lobster safely before its claws are banded.
He demonstrates how to put the band on the claws with a tool. Everyone was offered the chance to try it. I did one.
Nan took the pictures of me, and I borrowed others of hers that came ouy better than mine.
The captain demonstrates how lobsters mate, which only happens after the female molts, and her sex organs are accessible.
This tool is used to measure the size of the lobster. This one is too small to keep.
The female holds the eggs and newly hatched lobsters under her tail. They have released several babies here.
The babies are washed back into the sea in hopes they will survive. They are all wiggling around.
The bags are filled with fresh bait before replacing the trap in the water. These lobsters will be left in the trap because their activity with the bait attracts more lobsters.
This large lobster is a breeding female. Even though they are legal size, they are never kept because they are breeders.
We are shown how they notch the tails to identify them as breeders, and all lobstermen will return those to the sea.
Sometimes lobsters lose a claw or leg when fighting.
They are able to regenerate those limbs over time, similar to the way a lizard can regrow its tail.
After bringing up several traps and discussing the life cycle of the lobsters, we headed back to the harbor. This we are told is the oldest Yacht Club in the U.S.
And this was the home of a well-known American Novelist, Booth Tarkington.
On our way home, we did a short detour by a sign pointing to Webhannet Falls.
We learned this little spot was the site of a grist mill and first permanent settlement of Wells in 1640.
Gotta love those unexpected discoveries.
Webhannet Falls, Wells, ME
In two days we leave our spot here and take the ferry to Nova Scotia and beyond for more adventures. I will update the blog from there when I have WiFi.
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