Most of our fishermen seem to be calling the 2023 lobster season history and bringing ashore their traps for storage.
One senior Captain’s assessment of the season: “It was far from a banner year, but the price was better than last year, which was helpful. It still wasn't a great price, considering the way inflation is going, but a small improvement over last year's price.”
Some boats in the local fleet will be hauled out of the water and stored “on the hard” for the winter. Some will be converted into scallop-fishing vessels. That mollusk season starts in December. The winter scallop fishing vessels will be equipped with a sturdy mast and boom to lower and raise their heavy “drags” (dredges), which are dragged along the sea floor to scoop up the tasty mollusks.
Temporary wooden “shelling huts” also will be built onto many of the vessels’ decks behind their cabins. These shelters help protect crew members from the elements when they shell and sort the scallops. (Images taken in Brooklin, Maine, on November 15, 2023.)