The crossroads of August are a welcome and a summons. The late, great, and lasting days of summer beckon; the early, awesome and inviting days of autumn call. It's a time to take inventory: which activities have been accomplished, which ones remain to be enjoyed, how quickly time has flown (for some), what a long, leisurely stretch the season has been (for others) and what a gift is left, i.e. there's still time to enjoy summer and it's not too late for those who haven't. More…

We were young boys of 10 years trudging around the Belgrade Lakes neighborhood in ankle to knee deep spring snow. It was myself, cousin Rickey J., and our tree house building buddy Howard Downing. We did most things together and our plan, or scheme, I should say, was to tap maple trees for sap, boil it down to syrup, and sell it. Others had done it in the past and it seemed easy enough, but we quickly learned that like most get-rich-quick ideas, there were roadblocks. More…

Maine has about 2,750 lakes in the public domain. These waters are important for the various fisheries for which they provide and to lakeshore property owners. The value and future use of these waters depends on tourism of many types, especially for registered guides, sporting camp owners, and property owners. These lakes and ponds are destinations for the inland tourism of Maine. This is why we call them our "crown jewels." The unique water quality of Maine's lakes makes them some of the clearest lakes and ponds in the U.S. More…

The Sign of the Beaver, as young adult book by Elizabeth George Speare , is full of Maine territory tales between Matt, age 13, and his new Indian friend Attean. It gives intricate details with Attean teaching Matt survival skills and Matt teaching Attean how to read. More…

Well, we dodged the bullet this time around with Tropical Storm Isaias. We recorded just 0.94" of rain at the Wings Mill Dam rain gauge from the entire event. As a result, Great Pond is holding right at 2" above full pond with Long Pond at 2.64" above full as well, with all dam gates closed. Our friends on Salmon and McGrath somehow missed most of our rain as they are still 6" below full pond. The rain was a welcomed event for most of us in the end. More…

Because of the pandemic, this summer has been quite different than most, with almost no large public gatherings or team sports events. While people have changed their schedules, Mother Nature continues to move forward with hers. We seem to have more visitors from throughout the State of Maine; many exploring our area instead of traveling out of state as they may have in the past. To me, there seems to be an increase in family gatherings with an emphasis on outdoor activities. More…