Let’s begin with a description of a May day here. Morning, especially in early May, often arrives wrapped in a soft fog:
By mid-morning, a May day can be eye-squintingly bright,:
By evening, if we’re lucky, we’ll have a golden orange sunset. May is the month when the setting sun is directly behind nearby Pumpkin Island Lighthouse for a few days:
As the orange sky darkens – blue, to royal blue, to black – a May day can exit by displaying a spectacular moon. The full moon on May 29 was one of those days:
On a day-by-day basis, May is a month of extraordinary flora growth. Here are images of local Skunk Cabbage, Ostrich Fern, and Arrow Arum, comparing their size in the first week ("before") and on the last day of May ("after"):
Part of that May growth was because we had good April rain (and snow!). Here’s a local woods’ stream surging through its mossy banks during the first half of May:
May is for romantic birds, many of them migrants from well south of us. Among the migrants were the feisty male Red-Winged Blackbirds and their demure, finch-like mates; spring warblers, including this Northern Parula, and Tree Swallows; local Loons had to decide whether to migrate to a lake or stay in coastal waters:
Among the four-legged creatures around here were munching Chipmunks, basking Painted Turtles, climbing Porcupines, and Harbor Seals that lurked like U-boats at the mouth of Patten Stream as the Alewives returned to fresh water:
On the waterfront, WoodenBoat School Alumni and Staff worked hard to prepare for June classes. Mooring gear had to be cleaned and positioned in Great Cove for the School’s summer fleet, a few of which were moored and bobbing in the Cove by very late May:
The schooner Stephen Taber out of Rockland, Maine, began her (and our) summer season with a visit to Great Cove on Memorial Day weekend:
May also is the month to visit the University of Maine’s bog boardwalk in Orono to see some of the less common flora, including wild Calla Lilies, Cotton Grass, and Lady’s Slippers:
Starting about mid-May, the flowering trees blossom, including white and pink Crabapple, Dogwood, Lilac, and Star Magnolia:
Finally, at the very end of May, the Lupines start to bloom, ushering in June, when their cones will be densely packed with bright blue, pink, and white pea-like flowers:
(Brooklin, Maine)