Summer 2018 by Membership Manager

E B R AT I N

YEARS

The Island Trail TH E N EWSLETTER OF TH E MAI N E ISLAN D TRAI L ASSOCIATION | SUMMER 2018

MYSTERIES OF THE BOLD COAST

BY MICHAEL DAUGHERTY

A 1990s era photo of Dave Getchell, Sr. holding a nautical chart off of Warren Island. While at the Island Institute, Dave and others charted a course that would become the Maine Island Trail.

The Island Institute: Celebrating a Partner of 30 Years

BY DOUG WELCH, MITA EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

T MAY SURPRISE newer members that MITA was initially founded as a division of the Island Institute and spent its first five years in that relationship. With the 30th Anniversary of the Maine Island Trail Association upon us, it is important to look back at our roots and the organization that once spawned and still inspires us. This story begins a ‘generation’ before the Island Institute in the 1970s and ‘80s,

when the islands of Maine experienced something of a renaissance. After centuries of use for fishing, farming, logging, and quarrying, the 20th century found many of the islands abandoned. In the 1970s, the state catalogued all Maine islands and reclaimed ownership of many. The end result was the state owning some 1,300 islands and lesser coastal features, so in the 1980s it began ISLAND INSTITUTE continued on page 6

EW TO THE Trail this year is an area known as the Bold Coast. Located between Cutler and Lubec, it is the most remote and undeveloped piece of Maine’s shoreline. Thanks to strong currents and a broad fetch, the twenty-mile stretch of craggy, exposed shore is also extremely volatile. Here, the Bay of Fundy’s already strong currents accelerate past Canada’s Grand Manan Island into Grand Manan Channel, creating a powerful dominant current, as well as mile-wide eddies, and sometimes even nearshore counter-eddies, that flow through the features of underwater topography and towering headlands as randomly as a pinball bouncing through a MYSTERIES continued on page 16

IN THIS ISSUE A Sailing Journey

Refreshing the Fleet

Memory of Fog is Black

Land Trust Support

SUMMER NEWSLETTER | 2018 | MITA.ORG

BOARD OF TRUSTEES Sam Adams, Freeport, ME Nick Battista, Camden, ME Stephen Birmingham, Cape Elizabeth, ME Dan Carr, Dayton, ME Nicole Connelly, Falmouth, ME Janet Dooley, Falmouth, ME Nancy Egan, Harpswell, ME Mark Fasold, Yarmouth, ME Tom Franklin, Portland, ME Lindsay Hancock, Gray, ME Alicia Heyburn, Brunswick, ME Cindy Knowles, Cumberland Center, ME Rob Nichols, Kittery, ME John Noll, Orland, ME Ford Reiche, Freeport, ME Andrew Stern, Falmouth, ME Odette Thurston, Falmouth, ME Kim True, Freeport, ME

STAFF Doug Welch • dwelch@mita.org Executive Director Greg Field • gfield@mita.org Director of Finance & Operations Maria Jenness • mjenness@mita.org Regional Stewardship Manager (East) Brian Marcaurelle • brian@mita.org Program Director Madison Moran • madison@mita.org Membership & Development Associate Jack Phillips • jphillips@mita.org Development Director Erin Quigley • erin@mita.org Membership Director Chris Wall • cwall@mita.org Regional Stewardship Manager (West) A special thank you to Talley-O Design for newsletter design and consultation. The Maine Island Trail is a 375-mile long waterway extending from the New Hampshire border to the Canadian Maritimes. Along the route, state-owned and private islands are available to members or the public for overnight stopovers where one can picnic or camp in a wilderness setting. The Maine Island Trail Association (MITA) is a nonprofit organization whose goal is to establish a model of thoughtful use and volunteer stewardship for the Maine islands that will assure their conservation in a natural state while providing an exceptional recreational asset that is maintained and cared for by the people who use it. This goal is achieved by encouraging a philosophy of low-impact use and environmental awareness among MITA’s members and island visitors.

MAINE ISLAND TRAIL ASSOCIATION 100 Kensington St, 2nd Floor, Portland, ME 04103 (207) 761-8225 n info@mita.org

SUMMER NEWSLETTER | 2018 | MITA.ORG

MITA’s Women of Influence BY DOUG WELCH, MITA EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

RETROSPECTIVE ON MITA and its 30-year history would not be complete without noting the pivotal leadership roles of women in establishing and building the organization. With a grateful tip of the hat to the women on the board and staff today, I want to specifically highlight several members of the MITA ‘engine room’ of yesteryear who played major roles blazing the Trail. With apologies for inaccuracies or omissions, MITA particularly applauds the following women: ■■ Dorrie Getchell: Quietly volunteered to take on responsibility for all membership functions of the fledgling organization when it operated from her home (approx. 1988-1991) and started the Adopt-anIsland program. MITA was very proud to name its highest stewardship award after her and her husband. ■■ Sharon McHold: Served as Island Institute Clerk (1983-1992) and worked feverishly as a ‘MITA Maverik’ to get the fledgling organization’s house in order, chairing the Finance Committee and developing initial governance documents. ■■ Cate Cronin: Hired from a huge pool of candidates as MITA’s first Executive Director (technically Trail Director), Cate led the organization from when it was an Island Institute division through independence (1991-1997). ■■ Karen Stimpson: Hired along with Cate as Trail Keeper in 1991, Karen rose to serve as Executive Director for a decade from 1997-2007, charming and inspiring supporters and

bringing the organization to maturity. Lee Bumsted: A charter member and pro kayak guide, Lee served as ubervolunteer, chairing the Publications and Publicity Committee and spending otherwise free time on MITA outreach, writing, and editing publications. ■■ Sue Bylander: A design professional, Sue moved from volunteer to staff and back again multiple times including 1997-2001. She left her “Sue By touch-n-die” graphics fingerprint on all MITA publications. ■■ Rachael Nixon: MITA’s second Trail Director, Rachel developed the Monitor Skipper program and was lead investigator and author of the critically-important State Island Management Plan from 1999-2005. ■■ Scotty Folger: A charter member who remains very engaged 30 years later, Scotty is a vivacious volunteer, a selfless supporter, and a spiritual guide to staff. ■■ Marietta Ramsdell: Outreach volunteer extraordinaire, Marietta recruited untold numbers of MITA members in the early 1990s and was First Mate with Captain Bob as an early Monitor Skipper, earning the first Margaret C. Emerson Award in 1996. ■■ Charlotte Lawton: First Mate to Captain Jon, making up the crack Monitor Skipper crew of the 2010s. Wise volunteers chose Charlotte’s boat for expert seamanship and her ever-present tin of fresh-baked cookies. n ■■

While countless women have served the MITA cause over the years, and continue to do so today, we are particularly thankful to these indominable stalwarts of earlier days.

Maine

Island Romance

BY ALICIA HEYBURN

E MADE A soft knock on the wall of my cubicle in L.L.Bean’s catalog copy department shuffling feet, a charming stammer, and an invitation for our first date. But before the proposed after work bike ride, we had a chance evening encounter at MITA’s spring auction. He was with a pack of sporty guys, and wearing Bean’s iconic Norwegian fisherman’s sweater. I was with girls from my cycling team–this was the late 90s, when any moment not spent at work was outside on a bike, hike, run, or paddle. I gave a timid wave and made furtive observations over my beer glass (long before cans of MITAle). By choosing a MITA event for his Saturday

night, did that mean he was philanthropic, liked the outdoors and was interested in protecting Maine’s wild places? This guy had potential! So, when he placed the winning bid on a private trip aboard Portland’s fireboat, I clapped enthusiastically. We left without saying goodbye, but the bike ride was fun, as was our second date canoeing down the Sheepscot. And when we paddled to the Goslings on a Wednesday evening, I knew I was smitten. I won his heart by peeling back the rockweed to reveal a tangle of blue mussels. I dropped them into the pot of spaghetti to add local flavor to our Whisperlite meal. Twelve years, three canoes, two kayaks, a Westpointer, and a Sunfish

“Twelve years, three canoes, two kayaks, a Westpointer, and a Sunfish later, we took that fireboat cruise for our son’s 6th birthday party, and we are still overnighting on Maine’s wild islands. ” later, we took that fireboat cruise for our son’s 6th birthday party, and we are still overnighting on Maine’s wild islands. With over 200 sites on the Trail I’m sure there will be plenty to keep this adventurous relationship going, even if mussels are harder to find. n Members of MITA’s Granite Society (20+ years of membership) were invited to submit personal reflections to help celebrate 30 years of the Maine Island Trail. We couldn’t resist sharing Alicia’s captivating story!

Alicia and Henry Heyburn take out in Allagash Village after a 6 day paddle, September 2014.

SUMMER NEWSLETTER | 2018 | MITA.ORG

Sailing Home

A Father-Son Journey on the Maine Island Trail BY MARIA JENNESS, MITA REGIONAL STEWARDSHIP MANAGER

HEN HE BOUGHT the used 19’ O’day Mariner in June of 2016, Adam Wales had a plan in mind; fixing it up with his 12 year old son Eli to take a “rite of passage” trip along the Maine Island Trail. And as if a week on the coast wasn’t enticing enough for a kid who loved the water, Adam even suggested that the sailboat become Eli’s at the end of the trip. Adam and Eli spent time together fixing up both the interior and exterior of the boat, and making the small cabin “comfortable enough” for their journey. A month later, the entire family drove from their home on Mount Desert Island to Portland, and the two set sail for a week of adventure and bonding. Adam made a conscious decision to go with no motor, instead relying solely on sailing and rowing to power the small boat. “Inevitably when you’re sailing and the wind dies, you question if you should wait it out or drop sail and turn on the motor,” he explained. “It’s usually only 5-10 minutes before you give up and drop sail. So we eliminated that choice.” Instead, they mounted oarlocks on the combing of the boat and retrofitted a set of sweeps from an Alden rowing shell. They sailed as much as conditions allowed, and when they rowed the pair caught some interesting looks from nearby boaters. The boat didn’t have a seat, so they had to cleat the boom to one side and stand

SUMMER NEWSLETTER | 2018 | MITA.ORG

to row facing forward, oar handles at chest level. At best they could only make about 2 knots. Despite that challenge, or perhaps because of it, father and son alike felt pride in making the journey without the safety net of a motor. Pulling into Jewell Island on the first night and navigating past several larger boats to drop anchor under sail, Adam remarked in his logbook that “it really makes you look like you’re a pro.” If they were rowing in a harbor, inevitably a fellow boater would ask if their motor was broken. Most other folks assumed they were out for a day sail. Eli enjoyed the incredulous looks when he responded that they were sailing home to Mount Desert without a motor on board, intentionally. Overall the trip was the dream they

Adam and Eli ashore on Seguin Island.

imagined it would be. “We chose a perfect weather week. Or maybe the weather chose us,” recalls Adam. They enjoyed good tailwinds during the longest crossings, warm (for Maine) water swimming at a popular anchorage near North Haven, and lots of gin rummy in the evenings. There were a few instances of “Trail magic,” like the couple on a nearby mooring at Seguin who loaned them a dinghy so that they could get ashore and tour the lighthouse. The personal growth that occurs on extended trips like this was also evident. Several days into the journey Adam noted in his logbook that “at this point in the trip, Eli is growing and becoming a partner and not just a passenger. Good to see. Proud papa.” Adam recalled fondly that he could even trust his son

Eli stands aboard the boat after landing at Steves Island.

to take the helm for a few hours while he relaxed on the foredeck. Another touching memory was from Steves Island, where they spent the night of Adam and his wife Jen’s 16th wedding anniversary. Even

“I love the coast, and think I’ll always live on the water. It will always be my place.” ELI WALES without Jen along, Adam thought there was something special about celebrating his wedding anniversary “by doing something with our son that my wife and I love to do together.” Six days in at that point, it was the first time on the trip that they brought their gear ashore and camped. They celebrated by roasting hot dogs and marshmallows over a “bucket fire”–a homemade device they use as a Leave No Trace method of enjoying a campfire. Even the best of trips have their

challenging moments. The most intense time for Adam and Eli was not the result of wild weather, but rather the lack of it, when the wind died as they started across Jericho Bay. It wasn’t the first lull of the trip, but this time when they took out the oars a blade promptly broke. They were able to retrieve the broken blade from the water and repair it, but even then they were only able to maintain their position against the strong current from an outgoing tide. After three hours of hard rowing they were grateful when the wind picked up again. As Adam recalled, “that’s when it gets real. I'm essentially in a little rowboat with no motor, with my 12 year old, and we’re kind of getting pushed out to sea. You start doing the math of how long you have before the tide turns again. But it was a good lesson for both of us. Even the nicest day can turn into a challenge.” In the end, it turned out to be the trip of a lifetime that they hoped for–so much so that they plan to do it again. Each of them came away with a renewed sense of appreciation for the

treasure that is in their backyard. As Eli put it, “I would do it a hundred times over. I love the coast and think I’ll always live on the water. It will always be my place.” Adam noted that “lots of kids grow up on the coast of Maine but don’t really understand it. Eli has a different perspective now when we’re driving along the coast, after sailing it at 5 knots for a week.” The trip was also what brought Adam back to MITA and prompted him to get involved as a volunteer Monitor Skipper. “My wife and I through-paddled the Trail in the early 90’s and re-joined MITA for this trip. We appreciate using the islands, and wanted to give back and help take care of them.” And what about the plan to give Eli the boat at the end of the trip? Well, the boy who grew up on boats was already wise to what many boaters learn later in life–that the best boat is somebody else’s. Eli decided it should remain a family boat and not just his. So instead of handing it over to their son, the Wales’ intend to “boat-share” with some friends and anticipate many more family adventures on the Trail ahead. n

SUMMER NEWSLETTER | 2018 | MITA.ORG

ISLAND INSTITUTE continued from cover

considering their proper use. Around this time, one particular island near Vinalhaven generated a powerful wave of island and small boat enthusiasts: Hurricane Island. Those who experienced the birth of both MITA and the Island Institute frequently cite the Hurricane Island Outward Bound School (HIOBS), which operated in Penobscot Bay from 1964-2006, as the taproot of both organizations. (The Outward Bound lineage extends, in turn, to a 1941 maritime leadership program in Wales.) With its outdoor leadership programs, including solo expeditions and rough camping on remote islands, countless people became interested in boats, islands, and Maine coast adventure through Hurricane Island. One of those people was Philip Conkling. His seminal 1981 book, Islands in Time, celebrated islands large and small along the coast of Maine, both reflecting and furthering their

“Hurricane Island was a key inspiration to many early supporters of the Island Institute and the Maine Island Trail.” renaissance. In 1983 Conkling established the Island Institute as a division of the HIOBS with a mission “to act as a catalyst to increase communication between the disparate individuals and organizations who care deeply about the future of the Maine islands.” [Island Journal Vol. 1, 1984, p.ii] Details of that relationship are best left to the Island Institute and Hurricane Island to recount, but suffice to say that Hurricane Island was a key inspiration to many early supporters of the Island Institute and the Maine Island Trail. (While HIOBS departed from Hurricane in 2006, MITA now works with the Hurricane Island Foundation which has added overnight

camping sites to the Trail.) The fledgling Island Institute’s first contract was to assist the Maine Bureau of Public Lands to determine the recreational value of its island holdings. Under Ray Leonard, Conkling had been the principal investigator on a U.S. Forest Service research project studying the impacts of camping and hiking on fragile environments. He and Leonard surveyed half of Maine’s stateowned islands during 1985. For the second half of the survey in 1986, Conkling asked Dave Getchell, Sr. (Getch) of Camden to lead the effort. A life-long outdoorsman and recreation writer and editor, Getch had served as

The Maine Island Trail Association gratefully acknowledges the following sponsors:

BerryDunn Wealth Management Clark Insurance Cribstone Capital Management East Brown Cow Management Inc Freedom Boat Club 6

SUMMER NEWSLETTER | 2018 | MITA.ORG

Green Clean Maine Kamasouptra Maine Cat Malone Auto Racks Penmor Lithographers

Pierce Atwood WoodenBoat Wright-Ryan Construction Yarmouth Boat Yard

an editor at the Island Institute since 1985. With his extraordinary knowledge of small boats and the coast of Maine, he was a natural for this job. Together with BPL representative Steve Spencer, the team determined that approximately 40 of the stateowned islands were in protected waters and large enough to camp on, representing an extraordinary new resource for outdoor recreation. Without resources to manage these remote campsites, however, the Bureau of Public Lands was hesitant to publicize this finding. That is when Getch had the powerful idea for “user management” of the islands by an organization that could instill an ethic of responsible use. In 1987, Getch wrote an essay called “Island Trail” in the Institute’s 4th Island Journal. He honed this to a potent single-page essay in Small Boat Journal, of which he had formerly been editor. Getch’s big idea was that Maine’s state-owned islands could be strung together like pearls on a necklace to create “an outstanding waterway for small boats” (the Maine Island Trail) that could be managed by the people who used it (MITA). As Hurricane Island begat the Institute, now the Institute begat MITA. The Institute was only five years old in 1988, and MITA was initially established as a division of it. A successful proposal for initial funding from L.L.Bean noted the possibility that MITA might one day be independent. The Institute and MITA had separate though somewhat overlapping memberships, separate budgets, and separate ‘offices’ (with Getch and wife Dorrie running MITA from their home). While Getch and a rapidly growing band of followers focused on establishing the Maine Island Trail among the smaller, uninhabited islands, the rest of the Institute’s efforts focused

Staff and volunteers from the Island Institute and MITA collaborating on a shoreline cleanup on Isle au Haut in 2016.

on larger, populated islands. The missions and associated programs of MITA and the Institute gradually diverged. In time, it became apparent to many people affiliated with MITA that they should be separate organizations. In January 1993, after many months of discussion, the Island Institute’s board voted to allow MITA to withdraw and become an independent organization. It was a challenging period for all involved, but in retrospect one thing is clear: both organizations have thrived in pursuit of separate missions with very little competition in the 25 years that followed. In short, it was a clean break. In recent years a new sense of partnership between the two organizations has flourished, as they find ways to compliment and support each other. MITA is helping to support the Institute’s work on behalf of islandbased businesses and the organizations collaborated on a major cleanup of Isle Au Haut beaches in 2016. Two years ago, MITA invited Nick Battista, a long-time MITA member, volunteer, and former intern, to join the board. Nick credits his experience with MITA as helping to shape a career that has included a stint in Washington, DC working for Congresswoman Chellie

Pingree. Nick now works at the Island Institute, providing policy support for all of the organization’s work. Joining the MITA board was an exciting homecoming of sorts for Nick, who lives in Camden. While our predecessors wrestled with organizational coming-of-age conflicts, the MITA staff today enjoys a great relationship with the Institute and a strong sense of mutual appreciation. For his part, Getch is grateful to Philip Conkling and the Institute for its help launching an audacious idea into a successful organization. MITA applauds the work of the Island Institute on working waterfronts, economic development, community development, and environmental policy in Maine and beyond. And as MITA marks its 30th anniversary, we celebrate our shared roots, our shared coast, our common members, and the excellent relationship the organizations enjoy today. n MITA is grateful to Dave Getchell, Sr., Philip Conkling, Peter Willauer, Steve Spencer, Sharon McHold, Nick Battista, and Rob Snyder for contributions to this story. For a copy of Getch’s Small Boat Journal article, see the Winter 2017 issue of The Island Trail.

SUMMER NEWSLETTER | 2018 | MITA.ORG

Fortifying a Portland Harbor Landmark

BY DAVID PLATT, FRIENDS OF FORT GORGES

MAJOR EFFORT IS underway at Fort Gorges to make visiting the historic Portland Harbor icon a safer experience. Beginning late last summer, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers added railings, blocked off areas that were deemed dangerous, and installed a new gateway at the “sally port” entrance leading to the interior and parade ground. Fort Gorges, built in the late 1850s just prior to the Civil War, is owned by the City of Portland. Improvements were funded by the Corps. After over 150 years of neglect, making the fort safer for visitors has been a priority for the city and for the Friends of Fort Gorges, a nonprofit organization working with the city to preserve this historic site and architectural gem. The hazard mitigation work by the Corps was just the first of several steps being undertaken. With additional repairs and safety improvements, the city and the Friends hope to bring the structure up to a standard where organized groups will be able to utilize the it for historical tours, educational and cultural events, and other public and private gatherings. Recent work includes a new viewing platform on the

chart your course

An entrance gate installed in the sally port at Fort Gorges, one of the recent safety features added by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

fort’s north parapet and temporarily closing the south parapet. Further work is planned to reopen that section of the fort as well as add critical support cribbing in the fort’s casemates. Next will be the implementation of a Preservation Plan, to be funded by a campaign which will begin this spring. The plan, which has been developed by the Portland-based firm Resurgence Engineering, will direct the critical steps necessary to curb the fort’s deterioration and make it more welcoming to the thousands of visitors who enjoy the fort each summer. n Specific plans for the summer of 2018 include several special events and weekly tours. For more information about upcoming events at

Protect Maine's wild islands forever by including MITA in your estate plans. Contact Jack Phillips at jack@mita.org today to learn more about how planned giving can benefit you and the Maine Island Trail.

Fort Gorges or to learn more about the restoration effort, visit www. friendsoffortgorges.org or the City of Portland’s Parks Department at www.portlandmaine.gov/1063/parks.

YEARS

“People who care about the islands will care for them”

MEMBERSHIP

STEWARDSHIP

THE TRAIL

V ISIO N I N 1 9 8 8

"A waterway for small boats" linking state-owned islands along the coast of Maine

E B R AT I N G

Maine Island Trail Association

Founded 5/25/88 by 12 original members

6,000+ current members

33,000+ members over time

50 states 226

and 9 countries represented

islands and mainland sites

Growth of the Maine Island Trail 200 150 100

300+ 5,232 810 1,200+

individual Trail volunteers

hours volunteered

public

private

2018

2013

2008

2003

1998

1993

0 1988

Number of Trail Sites

TODAY

250

IN 2017

nonprofit

One of the “50 Best American Adventures” - National Geographic Adventure Magazine

bags of trash removed from island shorelines

stewardship visits, 90% by volunteers

36+18+209152 MITA Members' Boats (2017)

� Kayak 36% � Power 18% � Sail 19%

� Row 9% � Canoe 15% � SUP 3%

13,000+ mobile app downloads

SUMMER NEWSLETTER | 2018 | MITA.ORG

SLAN D

T IL

WAYP OI N TS

1996

1991 Simultaneous hiring of first staff positions: Cate Cronin, Trail Director & Karen Stimpson, Trail Keeper Portland office established on Union Wharf

1987

America, coastal islands are generally owned by the sovereign/state

1913: Maine legislature passes law prohibiting state from selling coastal islands

1973: Coastal Islands

Registry process determines that the state owns some 1,300 unclaimed islands and lesser features along the coast Sr. and friend Geof Heath take 900-mile trip up the Labrador coast in Getch’s 18’ Lund skiff Torngat— a major inspiration for the Trail

Concerned group of members begins meeting to discuss MITA’s independence

MITA separates from the Island Institute and a volunteer Steering Committee steps up

First annual meeting on Warren Island. MITA ends the year with over 400 members

1994 Monitor Skipper program established

Leave No Trace educational signage introduced and several mainland sites added to the Trail to help mitigate island impacts

First land trust site added to Trail

2000 Voluntary camping capacity guidelines established for several state-owned islands

1989 Trail is extended by 25 miles east to Machias

1990 PRE-MITA

SUMMER NEWSLETTER | 2018 | MITA.ORG

Trail Director Cate Cronin departs. Karen Stimpson promoted to Executive Director

1999

Trail is launched as a division of the Island Institute with 30 islands between Portland and Jonesport. Most are state-owned

formed as a division of Hurricane Island Outward Bound

1992

1993

1983: Island Institute

1997

MITA celebrates 10 years of the Trail with annual meeting on Hog Island

1988

First MITA meeting at Dave and Dorrie Getchell’s home. 12 members attended

198o: David R. Getchell,

1998

Dave Getchell Sr. proposes Maine Island Trail in singlepage “Gunkholing” column in Small Boat Journal

1995

1600s: In Colonial

Active discussion of potential overuse of Trail islands amid surging popularity of sea kayaking

2000

1995 Number of private islands on the Trail eclipses number of public islands

1990 Dorrie Getchell establishes Adopt an Island program

2016 Inaugural Splash! boating season kickoff party

2001

2002

2006

MITA and Island Institute co-host cleanup of Acadia National Park shores on Isle au Haut

2011

Trail extended west to Cape Porpoise Harbor

Named “America’s best sea kayaking trail” by Outside Magazine

2020

Casco Bay Island Caretaker program launched

Island logbook program established

2007

Trail extended east into Cobscook Bay

2015

Extensive community input sought on management of public islands

2012

Doug Welch welcomed as MITA’s 3rd Executive Director

2010

2003

2004 MITA and state sign Recreation Management Plan for the Public Islands on the Maine Island Trail

2013 Small Boaters’ Conference & 25th Anniversary Celebration at Portland Yacht Services

2008 Dave Getchell Sr. presented with 2007 Espy Land Heritage Award

Jewell Renewal campaign restores Jewell island facilities

Launch of Maine Island Trail Ale by Rising Tide Brewing Company

2009

2018

Trail extended west to NH border

First ever Trail sites added along the Bold Coast through collaboration with the state and Maine Coast Heritage Trust

Listed as one of the “50 Best American Adventures” by National Geographic Adventure Magazine

2014 Creation of Maine Island Trail mobile app by Portland-based Chimani

2015

2005 Satellite office in Rockland closed

MITA headquarters moved to new waterfront location at Maine Yacht Center in Portland

2010 Economic impact assessment of the Trail wins Harvard award Dubbed Maine’s “Best Trail” by Downeast Magazine

Wild Islands Campaign surpasses $1 million for stewardship endowment.

D I STAN C E = 5 YEA RS (Not intended for navigation) EL

E B R AT I N G

2005

MITA headquarters moved from Union Wharf to Portland Yacht Services

2017

YEARS

2017 Financial Year in Review A commonly asked question about MITA’s finances is simply, “Where does MITA’s income come from?” Remarkably, the answer is pretty straightforward. Most of MITA’s income comes from individual members—every one of them a supporter who values MITA’s mission & program, and knows first-hand the good work done by MITA to care for the islands. Membership Dues as a source continues to be a smaller portion of our total income—in 2017 accounting for under 20% of that total. But it is still those individual members who drive our organization’s bottom line: some donate a small gift above dues to our annual appeal, some are able to make larger gifts as major donors, and others might attend our annual fundraiser party, Splash!, bidding generously on an item donated to our silent auction. Other sources of MITA’s income picture are institutional, but scratch the surface of those sources and you will see members at work, making an introduction to a foundation that has a grants program or reaching out to a local business that might consider becoming a corporate sponsor. In short, while we have continued to hold the line on Membership Dues increases, it is still individual members who drive our fiscal health. Fiscal Year 2017 by the Numbers MITA came out with another modest 4-figure net surplus. Endowment income slowed significantly from the prior year as the Wild Islands Campaign peaked. MITA’s total valuation rose by slightly over 10% to $1.675M. Thank you.

Statement of Financial Position ASSETS

FY 17

FY 16

Current Assets Capital Assets (Property & Equipment) Other Assets (incl Restricted Investments) Total Assets

$190,482 $170,162 $1,314,533 $1,675,177

$319,361 $106,717 $1,092,770 $1,518,848

$59,736 $1,615,441 $1,675,177 $124,635

$28,042 $1,490,806 $1,518,848

LIABILITIES & NET ASSETS Current Liabilities Net Assets & Net Income Total Liabilities & Net Assets Change in Net Assets

Revenue & Expenses by Area SUPPORT & REVENUE

FY 17

FY 16

Membership Dues & Individual Contributions Grants, Sponsorships & Contracts Events Other Total Operating Revenue Endowment Income & Earnings

$464,716 $187,501 $42,187 $68,940 $763,344 $165,174

$424,311 $188,111 $36,737 $46,818 $695,977 $300,495

Program Services Fund Development Administration Total Operating Expenses Total Operating Net

$544,985 $129,614 $83,378 $757,977 $5,367

$495,518 $120,062 $78,422 $694,002 $1,975

TOTAL REVENUES OVER EXPENSES (NET INCOME)

$170,541

$302,470

EXPENSES

Donor Corrections In every winter edition of The Island Trail, MITA acknowledges all supporters who donated $100 or more during the previous fiscal year. Due to a clerical error while compiling this list for the most recent issue, we mistakenly omitted the following institutional supporters: Anne R & R Harper Brown Foundation Coastal Kayaking Tours Colby College

SUMMER NEWSLETTER | 2018 | MITA.ORG

Dragonworks, Inc Friends of Nature Friends of Seguin Island Great Lost Bear Restaurant

Kieve-Wavus Education, Inc Mad River Foundation Maine Coast Sea Vegetables, Inc Maine Sport Outfitters New Hope Academy NOLS North Shore Paddlers Network North Yarmouth Academy Portland Paddle Proprietors of Union Wharf

The Ladies Improvement Society/ Isle of Springs Association The Pittsburgh Foundation UnitedHealth Group Winona Camps With apologies for the delay in acknowledging their support, MITA thanks these institutions for their steadfast commitment to Maine's wild islands.

REFRESHING THE FLEET

BY CHRIS WALL, MITA REGIONAL STEWARDSHIP MANAGER

ONITOR SKIPPERS AND staff make more than 1,000 island landings each year in MITA’s 18’ aluminum Lund workboats. Used constantly throughout the boating season for island monitoring, cleanups and work projects, these skiffs have seen their fair share of scuffs, scrapes and scratches over the years. While inspecting the boats during decommissioning last fall, it became apparent that a facelift was long-overdue. As luck would have it, Jim Shula—a volunteer monitor skipper and the owner of Saltwater Workshop in Buxton—had some time available between boat-building and sign carving projects this winter and was willing to take on the project. Jim spent almost 70 hours during the month of January sanding, repainting, and making small repairs to four of MITA’s skiffs. Once repainted (in their iconic red, of course), the skiffs were brought to M&H Signs in Westbrook for re-lettering before returning to winter storage to await the stewardship season. MITA is sincerely grateful to Jim for all of his hard work, and to supporters of the Wild Islands Campaign who have made fleet maintenance projects like this possible. Keep a eye out this summer for the spruced-up Lunds. And rest assured, they’ll be working as hard as ever! n

Jim Shula

Adopt an Island in Need! MITA is looking for volunteers to join the Island Adopter program. Adopters are volunteers who check on islands using their own boat, on their own time, providing valuable eyes on the ground for MITA staff.

To learn more about islands in your area in need of adopters, contact Maria or Chris at stewards@mita.org. For more information about the Adopter program visit www.mita.org/adopter. Photo: Daniel E. Smith/ScenicNewEngland.net

SUMMER NEWSLETTER | 2018 | MITA.ORG

The Memory of Fog Is Black

BY JOHN HUTH

F YOU SPEND any time on the Maine coast in the summer, you’ll encounter fog–so be prepared. I wasn’t in 2003 when I launched a rental kayak without a compass to circle Little Cranberry Island off of Mount Desert. When I was halfway across a two-mile embayment on the southern, ocean-facing side, a dense fog bank closed in. Seductive and unnerving at the same time, it seemed to possess an evil sentience. The fog that gathers along the coast is called advection fog, sometimes known as ‘cold fog,’ and forms when warm moist air passes over cold water. When warm air from the south flows over the cold water fed by the Labrador Current, water vapor condenses and creates fog banks that can last for days on end. Out off the exposed end of Little Cranberry, I was entranced by the mist first blurring, then obscuring, all landmarks. Fighting panic, and with no compass bearing to go on, I needed something to keep me pointed in the right direction. I had a mental map of the area I was paddling through, but, on a wrong heading, I would end up out to sea. I had to improvise. Where was the wind? I could tell it was from the southeast. Underlying the windblown waves was a languid swell from the southwest. Inside the fog, I marveled at the details–all of this in a small, isolated sphere of vision. I could hear the waves crashing on the rocky beach a mile away. The beach has a high berm of rounded basalt, with craggy ledges protecting it. Landing in the dumping surf would’ve been foolhardy. I would’ve been thrashed. You could hear each wave

SUMMER NEWSLETTER | 2018 | MITA.ORG

John paddling close by Placentia Island in Penobscot Bay.

crash, followed by the sound of rock faces grinding together as the water receded. The sound gave me yet another reference for my bearing. Even still, sounds were muffled and deceiving–almost as if the waves were talking in a foreign language. Eventually I circled around the calmer north side of the island and made my way back to my ‘normal’ (but now somewhat rattled) reality. The reader may be thinking, “How could you take risks like that?” The short answer is that I was so unprepared I didn’t even realize the risks. Having only paddled on calm sunny days on Cape Cod, I did not think anything untoward would materialize. I had the good luck to get experience in incremental doses. Not everyone does. Two months later I was again enveloped in a fog bank, this time off of Cape Cod. As before, I used the wind and waves as a natural compass, and I had no problems getting back home. It was only the next day when I heard of the deaths of two kayakers who were paddling at the same time as I was,

only half a mile away, and lost their way in the fog. This threw me for a huge loop–I lived doing the same thing as others who died. Maybe it was a form of the ‘survivor’s guilt’ that I’d heard about. I don’t know. It’s probably not advisable, but I cope with tragedy by buying gear, rooted in my irrational belief that technology can insulate me from harm. I purchased a spiffy fiberglass sea kayak and installed a marine compass. I got a waterproof GPS receiver, a flare gun, a dry suit, and a handheld VHF transceiver. The following summer, I returned to Little Cranberry with my family. The ‘plan’ was for them to take the mail boat from Northeast Harbor on MDI to the island, and I would paddle out. As I drove over the crest of a hill, I could see that the ocean was enveloped in thick fog, and my heart went into my throat. Sure, I was prepared this time, but I was haunted by the dark memory. Nonetheless, it seemed like facing my fears was the right thing to do. When I prepared at home, in my obsessiveness, I had every leg of my

paddle laid out–how many minutes from one island to the next, the compass headings. But, there’s a difference between being meticulous in an office and then meeting the reality of fog on the ocean. As I left the last blurred traces of Northeast Harbor, surrounded by fog, I felt disoriented. I had to turn a little to my left (east) and to my right (west) to reassure myself that I was reading the compass properly. The first waypoint, Bear Island, loomed out of the fog. I circled the west end until I reached a large gong buoy– my next take-off point. At this time, I realized I’d made a rookie mistake in my planning–my next waypoint was a patch of water to the east of Sutton Island. If I steered too far to the east, I might end up paddling out to sea without any landmark to guide me. Recalling a trick called a ‘deliberate compass error,’ I set a new course that would land me somewhere along the north coast of Sutton Island. From there,

I could handrail my way east along the coast until it turned south. After maybe fifteen minutes, Sutton hove into view. Ledges projecting out in the water forced me to wind and dodge along the coast until I saw my compass was pointing due south, and made the jump back into the fog toward Little Cranberry. Then my old friend the wind let me down, as it shifted from south to north, throwing me another curveball. But I learned how to track shifts by the way it affected water: smooth swells persisted in the direction the wind had been blowing, and new ripples betrayed the new direction. A buoy off to my right chimed regularly, and I could track my progress. Finally, Little Cranberry appeared and soon I was showered and enjoying a nice cold beer. In the following years, my navigation skills have improved tremendously. My biggest fear now is of being a ‘speed bump,’ as power boaters refer to sea kayakers. But here’s

the strange thing: when I think back on those times I was out in the fog, I know that there was daylight–but my memory is of darkness. Maybe some neuroscientist can tell you what’s going on, but for me, I only remember the blank-outs in the fog as pure black. Maybe that’s what happens? If you remove all visual clues, no matter how much or how little light there is, the brain just puts it into long term memory as “black.” My recollection of the day off Cape Cod with the fatalities was as if I was paddling at night, and also on my crossings to Little Cranberry. And yet, I know that there was light, because every time I saw land, my memory was of light. But when I was in the fog, my memory is black. n John is the Donner Professor of Science at Harvard University and the author of The Lost Art of Finding Our Way, which explores the history of navigation and ancient methods of wayfinding.

ONE SUMMER. , LANDINGS. This summer, MITA volunteers and staff will make more than 1,200 boat landings on wild islands along Maine's coast. While ashore, they will remove marine debris, collect lobster buoys and other fishing gear to return to coastal communities, manage invasive species, monitor island conditions, and educate visitors about Leave No Trace recreation. MITA depends on its members to fund this critical work so that the Maine Island Trail can remain pristine and open to visitors. Stay tuned for an announcement about how YOU can help get MITA's island stewards ashore! SUMMER NEWSLETTER | 2018 | MITA.ORG

MYSTERIES continued from cover

sieve of bumpers. Add the changing tide height and the whims of the wind and incoming swell, and there’s no mystery why it’s difficult to plan a trip here. Unfortunately, many kayakers approach this area only as the beginning or end of a longer trip, like I did on my first visit. As if the conditions aren’t difficult enough, the itineraries of longer excursions tend to put paddlers there on a certain day, often with little leeway for alternatives. A year ago one man left Lubec bound for Key West and capsized twice within a couple of hours, the second time off of Baileys Mistake, requiring a rescue by the Coast Guard. Before my first sea kayak excursion along the Bold Coast, I tried to learn as much about it as I could. But there wasn’t much information available, and it gave the place an aura of mystery, like we might encounter sea monsters. I learned what I could from those who had paddled there, and we were fortunate to arrive on a calm, hot day, roasting in our dry suits. We didn’t catch the big currents we’d heard about, and our ability to interpret the dynamics of eddies and counter-eddies was not as good as we’d hoped. We were confused about the currents all day, finally rounding West Quoddy Head at dusk. Our skills improved, and subsequent outings became easier, especially day trips, when we weren’t at the mercy of long-term logistics and we had no obligation to go from one end to the other. Instead, we chose our days and our put-ins and took as much time as we wanted, exploring the near-shore waters. If the conditions didn’t suit us, we hiked in one of the preserves, or paddled a more sheltered area. The real attraction lies along shore, where the scent of spruce and wildflowers drifts down from the cliff tops as you weave

SUMMER NEWSLETTER | 2018 | MITA.ORG

Navigating through a narrow passage in the Bold Coast cliffs under perfect conditions. PHOTO: MICHAEL DAUGHERTY

among the rocks and chasms for hours on end. It doesn’t get much dreamier. But on these shorter trips I also learned about the volatile nature of the place. On one I went with a lessexperienced friend, paddling the eastern section from Carrying Place to Moose Cove. The seas were absolutely placid–a perfect day for my friend–and we ventured into one soaring chasm after another, finally breaking for lunch in Moose Cove. And then the tide turned. And the wind picked up, just a little: enough that, as we watched, the seas went quickly from calm to chaos. To put it mildly, my friend enjoyed the return trip far less than the first half. On another day trip during a tideincreasing super moon, we left from Cutler on a rising tide and headed offshore–close to two miles–until we found the dominant flooding current, easily identifiable by the steepened

waves caused by the eastbound flow hitting the westbound 5-knot breeze. It was a rough ride, but we stuck with it for an hour, the shore a distant blur of indistinguishable features. But we grew bored and a little fatigued by the constant pounding as the waves passed beneath us, and we headed back toward what turned out to be Moose Cove. The paddle along shore back to Cutler, aided by the near-shore eddy current, was by far the best part of the day. The sea state need not be big to turn these waters into a place you don’t want to be. More hubristic paddlers tend to regard such a statement as advice for those other people who don’t know what they’re doing. Paddling mishaps tend to befall the unprepared, which makes it easy for those with a little experience to think it won’t happen to them. I was aware

of this when I wrote my guidebook, and I had to carefully consider if I should include the Bold Coast. MITA has just gone through a similar soulsearching process. I feared that my guidebook might lure unprepared paddlers to a place they shouldn’t go, but I reasoned that prepared or not, people were going to go, so at least now there would be more information available. MITA has added details about public access and emergency egress points and is working on wateraccessible campsite locations (conditions permitting), all of which will help paddlers plan safer trips. The currents here are not simple. People often wonder just how far offshore they need to get to catch the ‘Bold Coast Express,’ or if they should paddle against the dominant current, looking for eddies near shore. There are no easy answers. It changes constantly. The easiest answer is that you simply

need to know what you’re doing. You need to be able to observe and interpret your surroundings and to change your plans if things don’t go how you expect. And you may not have the luxury of changing plans before you are committed to some rough seas, so even on a calm day, the Bold Coast is not a place for paddlers without good boathandling abilities, strong rescue skills, and the proper gear. You probably won’t find sea monsters off the Bold Coast, but it certainly retains some of its mystery. And it probably always will, which is part of its allure. n

Before You Go TIPS FROM MICHAEL ■■

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The author of AMC’s Best Sea Kayaking in New England, Michael Daugherty guides and teaches sea kayaking for Old Quarry Ocean Adventures and Pinniped Kayak. He is writing a book about the summer-long Maine coast excursion he and his wife,

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Keep the tide range in mind. The average tide range here is between 14 and 18 feet, up to a 28-foot difference during spring tides. This affects everything. This is one of the foggiest parts of Maine. You may be forced offshore for hours, in the fog, out of sight of land. Don’t assume you’ll be able to land. Be prepared to stay in your boat for a while. You should have some ‘tricky landing’ skills. A flexible plan with at least one ‘Plan B’ makes for a safer and more enjoyable trip. It’s better to be on land wishing you were at sea than at sea wishing you were on land.

Rebecca, took in 2017.

Donate your boat to care for Maine’s wild islands!

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The Maine Island Trail Mobile App includes all of the information found in the paper Trail Guide, plus: If you are interested in donating your seaworthy boat—power, sail or paddle—please contact the MITA office at 207-761-8225 or info@mita.org.

Trail updates in real time

Beautiful photos

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SUMMER NEWSLETTER | 2018 | MITA.ORG

With A Little Help from Our Friends

Thirty years on, how land trusts are redefining the Trail

BY BRIAN MARCAURELLE, MITA PROGRAM DIRECTOR

HE EVOLUTION OF the Maine Island Trail is remarkable. In thirty short years, what began as a novel concept–a waterway for small boats off the Maine coast–has grown into a world-class recreational resource. Starting with a modest thirty islands scattered between Portland and Jonesport, the Trail has blossomed into a network of over 220 islands and mainland sites spanning Maine’s entire coastline. Belying its humble origins, the Trail has earned praise as “Maine’s Best Trail” (Downeast Magazine, 2010), America’s “Best Sea Kayaking Trail” (Outside Magazine, 2011) and one of the “50 Best American Adventures” (National Geographic Adventure Magazine, 2009). And it is widely credited with helping catalyze a recreational water trail movement that spread across the country and around the globe. This success is particularly astonishing when you consider that the Maine Island Trail is built on simple, informal agreements with landowners. There are no contracts and no signed documents binding properties to the Trail, just symbolic handshakes signifying a willingness of landowners to share their property and a commitment of users to behave responsibly. To many island visitors, the actual owner of the land may seem immaterial. That’s understandable, since their pledged ethic of low-impact use and stewardship should not vary based on who owns the place. But for

SUMMER NEWSLETTER | 2018 | MITA.ORG

Exploring the tidepools on Damariscove Island. Owned by the Boothbay Region Land Trust, Damariscove has been part of the Trail since 2016.

long term accessibility to the islands and for the durability of the Trail, site ownership is more important than one might think.

Evolving Ownership Patterns Internally, MITA groups sites on the Trail into three basic categories of ownership: public, private, and nonprofit. Publicly-owned sites include those owned by the State of Maine, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, the National Park Service and more than a dozen coastal municipalities. In the early years, public sites–specifically those owned by the Maine Bureau of Parks & Lands–comprised more than 75% of the Trail. Many privately-owned sites were added in the years that

followed, and by 1995 the number of private sites nearly matched the number of state-owned sites. At that time there were very few sites owned by non-profits, which in MITA’s classification includes land trusts as well as other not-for-profit organizations like Outward Bound. But in the mid-1990s a shift started to occur. The number of non-profit sites on the Trail began to grow steadily alongside an upsurge in land conservation statewide. By the mid2000s, the number of Trail sites owned by non-profits had eclipsed privatelyowned sites, and by 2013 non-profits collectively owned more Trail sites than the state. Nearly all of this growth was due to partnerships with land trusts.

The Damariscotta River Association was the first land trust to place a site on the Trail, with Hodgsons (aka Stratton) Island in 2004. Today, nearly twenty different land trusts own properties on the Trail, and non-profits as a whole account for more than one third of all Trail sites. Thirteen additional private sites are protected by conservation easements. The stateowned, undeveloped islands are still the backbone of the Trail, and the Bureau of Parks & Lands remains the single largest landowner of Trail sites to this day. But the trend toward nonprofit sites continues unabated, and this changing dynamic of site ownership has far-reaching implications for the strength and longevity of the Trail.

A Degree of Permanence One of the most obvious benefits of MITA’s partnerships with land trusts has been continued diversification and expansion of the Trail. Consider that for its first 18 years the Trail did not exist west of Portland or east of Machias. It was only when MITA entered into a partnership with the Kennebunkport Conservation Trust in the mid-2000’s that the Trail expanded west to Cape Porpoise Harbor, and later to the New Hampshire border. Similarly, this year’s expansion of the Trail along the Bold Coast–essentially “completing” the Trail as a border-to-border experience– would have been unthinkable without the participation and support of Maine Coast Heritage Trust. But a far less evident impact of these partnerships is the degree to which land trusts add permanence to the Trail. The handshake agreements that form the foundation of the Trail have been extremely successful despite their inherent tenuousness. A change in ownership, a change of heart by the landowner, or the mistreatment of

“Recent challenges to land conservation provide an important reminder that the work of land trusts should not be taken for granted.” property by visitors could result in the swift removal of a site. Happily, this rarely happens, but there will always be political, economic, and cultural forces threatening access to private and even public lands. And handshake agreements are not ironclad guarantees. Land trusts, therefore, provide important assurance. When a land trust protects a property it does so in perpetuity. Land may be protected for a variety of reasons, including habitat and scenic value or to preserve traditional uses such as timber harvesting and farming. In today’s conservation doctrine, public access and recreation are also core values. Once a property is in the hands of a land trust, management decisions are made carefully by knowledgeable staff or by an invested board of directors. This ensures that public access will always remain an important consideration. And so long as land trusts continue to find value in partnering with MITA, it adds considerable durability to the Maine Island Trail.

Preservation and Perseverance Recently, Maine land trusts have been forced to defend themselves from assertions seeking to cast doubt on the value of conserved land. The claim is that land conservation unduly burdens

communities by depriving towns and the state of significant property tax revenue. The issue became so contentious that the Maine legislature enlisted the help of the Joint Standing Committee on Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry to “conduct a study of the financial and nonfinancial aspects of conserved lands owned by nonprofit conservation organizations, including property taxes paid, community benefits realized, and the value of lands to the state’s economy.” In their February 2018 report, the thirteen members of the bipartisan committee unanimously concluded that “land trust organizations provide a great value to the people of Maine.” To anyone who has been ashore on Damariscove Island (Boothbay Region Land Trust), Sheep Island (Downeast Coastal Conservancy), Wreck Island (Island Heritage Trust), The Goslings (Maine Coast Heritage Trust), or any of the other land trust properties on the Trail, this finding may seem abundantly obvious. But recent challenges to land conservation provide an important reminder that the work of land trusts should not be taken for granted. Land trusts deserve our ongoing support as they work to permanently conserve critical natural resources in our state and safeguard our tradition of public access to the land. They offer perhaps our best hope for upholding the values that help Maine live up to its motto as the way life should be. Thirty years from now, it’s anyone’s guess what the Maine landscape or the Maine Island Trail will look like, but one thing is clear; land trusts will play a pivotal role in shaping that future. As long as the land conservation community remains strong and supported, that future is something we can all feel good about. n

SUMMER NEWSLETTER | 2018 | MITA.ORG

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100 Kensington St, 2nd Floor Portland, ME 04103 207-761-8225 | mita.org

Visit 30 islands in MITA’s 30th year! To celebrate MITA’s 30th anniversary this summer, visit 30 sites on the Trail! Participants who meet the 30-in-30 Challenge will be eligible for exciting prizes.

MAINE ISLAND TRAIL ASSOCIATION

MITA’s 



Challenge

For additional details and rules, visit www.mita.org/30in30 Happy island hopping!