In the Right Place: Winter Magic

This image of sea ice forming in cloudy Patten Bay was taken two days before Christmas Day near the end of a cold spell here, when the 7:30 a.m. temperature was 19 ° (F) on the day it was taken.

The ice never fully formed because we’ve been in a warm and wet spell since Christmas. (It’s 36° and raining again now, as I write at 6:45 a.m.) However, special winter days such as the one shown here, when the cloud-veiled sun is trying to find us, provide lasting memories of extraordinary lighting effects that will get me through until the New Year.

Many of the best outdoor artists whose works I have seen (especially J.M.W. Turner and Andrew Wyeth) seem to have tried valiantly to capture in watercolors (and some oils) the monochromatic magic of a cold, cloudy, sun-probed sky. However, in my limited experience, I’ve never seen a work that has captured the sometimes-soul-touching cloudy-day scenes that my eyes have seen.

(Image taken in Surry, Maine, on December 23, 2023.)

In the Right Place: Glad Tidings

The weather has been creepy since Christmas day.  We had a rainstorm during yesterday’s very early hours; the morning tide crested at 11.27 feet, which is above average; the temperature got into the 40s (F), which used to be warm for late December, and the fog was heavy all day. As I write this, light rain is easing its way through fog. It’s been a wet Christmas week so far.

Yesterday, I didn’t get down to Naskeag Harbor to catch the foggy scene until about an hour after high tide. Judging from the littered shore and ramp, the storm had decided to cut and deliver us some Christmas greens via the high tidal express.

There were no spruce or balsam fir boughs among these greens, nor was there the holiday scent of conifers. Yet, there was the briny scent of freshly ripped rockweed, the predominant seaweed there. That aroma was mixed with the faintly-salty scent of the Harbor on a foggy morning. That was good enough. (Images taken in Brooklin, Maine, on December 27.)

In the Right Place: Fishy

Here you see one of the last images of our beautiful Christmas Day this year. As the sun disappeared over Deer Isle, its afterglow became an undulating flow of rose and lemon light:

And, as those warm colors waned, a mackerel sky signal started to form:

As you may know, a mackerel sky is formed by rippling altocumulus or cirrocumulus clouds that sometimes resemble the scales on the side of a fish. They indicate high winds and, often, a significant weather change. The old saying is this: “Mackerel sky, mackerel sky: never long wet, never long dry.”

(Images taken in Brooklin, Maine, on December 25, 2023.)

In the Right Place: Hot and Cold Christmas

Christmas Day yesterday was a beauty: warm (49° F high), clear, and still. It inspired two Maine activities that are not considered winter pastimes elsewhere. Here you see a Brooklinite sitting on the porch of a mobile sauna in a visit to Naskeag Harbor yesterday:

She and her partner had engaged in some “cold-water-dipping” in the Harbor’s 39° F waters, popped into the woodstove-heated sauna, and she was cooling down to normal when the image was taken. This is a trailer sauna; mobile saunas also can be bought or rented in panel truck form and heated by wood or propane.

In Great Cove on Christmas day morning, my neighbor was enjoying the weather by rowing his SIC board over still water:

Note that the oars are part of a reverse-geared “RowOnAir” system, which facilitates rowing and enables the rower to see where he’s going, among other things.

(Images taken in Brooklin, Maine, on December 25, 2023.)

From the Right Place

In the Right Place: Good Cheer

Here’s an endangered species, a general store. In fact, it’s the Brooklin General Store on the third night before Christmas.

When approaching this place over lonely, dark State Route 175 on a cold winter’s night, the store’s lighted windows and the people seen inside sometimes seem to be a rural variation of an Edward Hopper night scene. But, there are no Hopper hints of heartbreak wrapped into that warm welcome. The store is a place for good cheer. (Image taken in Brooklin, Maine, on December 22, 2023.)

In the Right Place: Retrospective

As the month winds down, it might be interesting to do a little visual retrospective of December at her sunniest and snowiest so far. Picturesque Beth Eden Chapel is a good subject for that. Here she is with dry feet on December 19.

Below, you’ll see her with snowy feet on December 5, after the month’s best snowstorm.

This Chapel is a historic church that was built in 1900 as a “Late Victorian” wooden structure. Although it was built by a Methodist congregation as the first church in the old Naskeag Village area, it has been nondenominational all of its years.

I’m aware of several churches named “Beth Eden,” but haven’t been able to find out why the name was chosen by them. Perhaps one of you knows. It appears to be the biblical name for Bit Adini, an Aramean kingdom that was captured by the Assyrians. (Images taken in Brooklin, Maine, on December 5 (snow) and 19, 2023.)

In the Right Place: No Longer So Common

Here you see a raft of about 70 common eiders, our largest native duck, yesterday afternoon out in Blue Hill Bay at low tide.

The eiders were in the area of the reversing falls and they were probably waiting for the workers on the new bridge over the falls to leave. Then, they would swim up the falls’ channel and dive for crabs, starfish, and shellfish. In the past, they also would gorge themselves on Atlantic blue mussels, which disappeared there and elsewhere around here.

The eiders yesterday were mostly bronze females with a few black and white males. (See also the Leighton Archive image below.) Rafts of them have been wintering in this area for many decades, perhaps centuries. Nine years ago, I counted about 400 eiders (Somateria mollissima) rafting in that area.

Leighton Archive Image

Although not classified as endangered, eider numbers have been declining each year for at least a decade throughout their entire Atlantic coast range. The causes of the decline are not fully known, but research indicates that warming waters may be part of the problem. Perhaps it also is the decline of Atlantic blue mussels, the birds’ favorite food, which have been declining, apparently due in part to the warmer waters (and the voraciousness of the eiders).

Another apparent cause of eider decline is that more bald eagles are staying north in the warming winters; eagles are significant eider predators, especially eider ducklings. And, of course, big and beautiful eiders are favorite targets during duck-hunting season. (Primary image taken in Blue Hill, Maine, on December 21, 2023.)

In the Right Place: Round and Prickly

Here you see a diving boat in Naskeag Harbor yesterday, complete with international diving boat flag and wet-suited diver.

The boat reportedly is used for “handfishing” green sea urchins, which are a valuable marine resource in Maine’s fishery. Most urchin divers use scuba equipment and collect the urchins into a mesh bag that is hauled up by a crew member:

Green sea urchins are spiked and have one of the longest scientific names in the animal kingdom: Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis, which primarily means round and prickly. The animal itself is an echinoderm, a group of radially symmetrical, invertebrate animals that includes starfish, sand dollars and sea cucumbers.

Sea urchin “uni” is considered to be a delicacy for sushi in Japan, apparently the principal market for Maine urchins, and has become increasingly sought-after in Europe. The high-priced uni sometimes is called urchin “roe,” but it is not eggs; it’s the yellow-orange reproductive gonads of the urchins.

(Images taken in Brooklin, Maine, on December 20, 2023.)

In the Right Place: The Day After

Here you see Great Cove at low tide yesterday morning, the day after a vicious wind and rainstorm that we’ll be talking about for a while. The sun was a sometimes thing over the Cove yesterday and the elements seemed sore from overexertion.

The highest wind speed reported by the National Weather Bureau for the storm in our Hancock County was 71 miles per hour; trees and downed power lines lay in disordered array in the streets, and generators hummed for those fortunate to have them. Electrical power didn’t return to our Town until yesterday afternoon. Nonetheless, as far as I can tell, our fishing fleet survived with flying colors, such as those flying over “Dear Abbie:’s” wheelhouse yesterday.

(Images taken in Brooklin, Maine, on December 19, 2023.)

In the Right Place: Storm Report

Here you see Fishing Vessel Tarrfish straining at her mooring in yesterday’s wet windstorm. At the time that the images here were taken in Naskeag Harbor, it was raining, and a southeast wind was blowing at 25 miles-per-hour with frequent gusts of at least 45 mph; later, we got reported maximum gusts of 55 mph.

Maine government offices were closed at 1 p.m. due to the storm and a few trees and power lines came down in our neighborhood. We’ve been without electrical wire power since yesterday morning and parts of the neighborhood sound like beehives due to the buzzing of generators. 

(Images taken in Brooklin, Maine, on December 18, 2023.) See also the image in the first Comment space.

In the Right Place: Unsilent Night

The regionally-renowned Bagaduce Chorale gave its much-anticipated annual winter performances to packed audiences on Friday at the Ellsworth High School and Saturday at the Blue Hill Congregational Church. The highlight of the varied music was Norwegian composer Ola Gjeilo’s 2010 “Sunrise Mass” skillfully adapted by Chorale Director Bronwyn W. Kortge. The images here are from the Blue Hill performance:

(Images taken in Blue Hill, Maine, on December 16, 2023.)

In the Right Place: A Serious Season’s Greeting

This season used to be the time to enjoy Maine’s iced waters without hesitation – skating on them; fishing from a hut on them; driving snowmobiles, cars and trucks on them, and just accepting the challenge of seeing if you could walk and slide on their slippery surfaces.

And then came climate warming and freezes and thaws, and light snows followed by rain, and undependable ice. This year began with a January fatality of a man having Maine ice under his feet crack open.

DO NOT get on pond, lake, or river ice unless you are SURE that you are walking or skating on at least 4 inches of ice; snowmobiling on at least 5; driving an average-sized passenger car on 8-12, or driving an average-sized truck on 12-to-15 inches. Those are Maine government numbers, not mine.

In fact, Maine officials do not recommend driving passenger cars or trucks onto frozen ponds, period! They say that, if you must drive a vehicle on that ice, be prepared to leave the vehicle in a hurry through its windows, which should be kept open when driving on such ice. Also, unbuckle your seat belt, pack flotation gear, and have an emergency plan discussed with your passengers before driving onto frozen bodies of water. (Image taken in Brooklin, Maine, on December 15, 2023.)

In the Right Place: Growth

Here you see last night’s waxing crescent moon rising over Great Cove. A burnt orange band of afterglow from the setting sun is lingering. Not too shabby.

As you probably know, “waxing” means getting larger and, in this case, it means that the illuminated portion of the moon is getting larger and larger and will be full January 6. Relatedly, the word “crescent” is derived from the Latin verb crescere "to grow," referring to the waxing moon (luna crescens). (Image taken in Brooklin, Maine, on December 15, 2023.)

In the Right Place: A Good Hair Day

Here you see white-tailed deer foraging in last week’s snowstorm and showing no signs of discomfort. They’re bulked up for the winter and their multi-layered winter coats are wonderful protectors.

Note that the snow on their backs is not melting – a sign of great insulation against the escape of body heat.

Their winter coats have two layers. They have hollow “guard hairs” that are two inches longer than their undercoats and that trap air to help insulate against heat loss. Their remarkably dense and soft undercoats form another barrier to the cold. (Images taken in Brooklin, Maine, on December 5, 2023.)

In the Right Place: A Hull of a Thing

Here you see “Christopher Devin III” in Naskeag Harbor on Sunday.

She recently replaced the much different “Christopher Devin II” in Brooklin’s fishing vessel fleet:.

Leighton Archive image

The new “III” is a “Novi,” a different species of fishing vessel than traditional Down East lobster boats such as “II.” She’s nicknamed a Novi because her design originated in Nova Scotia and Novis usually are built there. Novis have stepped-up bows, backward-inclined front windows, and complete displacement hulls. Such hulls are more rounded, sit lower, and are very seaworthy, but give a slower ride than DE vessels of the same power.

Traditional Down East vessels, such as “II,” have forward-inclined or perpendicular front windows and semi-planing hulls. Such hulls are a compromise design to gain speed; they allow the vessels to cut through and sail on the sea faster. (Primary image taken in Brooklin, Maine, on December 10, 2023.)

In the Right Place: V is for Vigor

There’s something obviously normal relating to the chevron of Canada geese seen here, but there’s something unusual that cannot be sensed by just looking at the images.

As to normality, the geese are flying in a “V” (in this case “>”) formation. They do that during migration for two primary reasons. First, a “V” formation conserves energy, which is very much in demand by big birds on vigorous flights. Usually, each goose flies a bit above the bird in front of it, which reduces wind resistance. The birds take turns leading, which is where the wind resistance is the greatest. Second, flying in a “V” allows the birds to keep track of each other and communicate better, which is helpful defensively, as military pilots know.

What cannot be obvious to the viewer here is that these apparently migrating geese are not flying south; they’re flying in a northwesterly direction. This path could be another Climate Change anomaly. More likely, the geese were making an extremely large, wheeling turn and would soon head generally south. Images taken in Brooklin, Maine, on December 3, 2024.)

In the Right Place: Nasty Matchmaker

Look closely: That white-circled growth emerging from the branch of a young balsam fir tree usually is called a “witch’s broom,” but if you cut it off and hang it in your house at this time of the year, it likely would be called a “kissing ball.” It’s a specimen of Maine’s only native mistletoe, Eastern spruce dwarf mistletoe (Arceuthobium pusillum).

All of the hundreds of species of mistletoe are nasty, parasitic plants that kill or maim the trees that they invade by depriving their hosts of nutrients and water. Nonetheless, many cultures historically associated the penetrating plants with sexual attraction, love, marriage, fertility, and curative powers.

The love and marriage powers of mistletoe were taken seriously by many in England at least through Victorian times. At that time, an unwed woman standing under mistletoe was expected to be kissed on the cheek by the first man noticing her and the man was supposed to remove a mistletoe berry while doing so – one kiss, one berry. If the woman refused a kiss, it was expected that she would not receive a marriage proposal for at least a year.

Thanks to plant expert Val Libby of Blue Hill, Maine, for the identification help. (Images taken in Brooklin, Maine, on December 10, 2023.)

In the Right Place: Maine’s Top Gun Program

This image of a peregrine falcon – the world’s fastest animal – appears in my monthly column in the current digital version of the Ellsworth American and will appear in the print version of that newspaper when it is issued on Thursday, December 14.

To read the column about Maine’s efforts to preserve this bird and the shocking ways peregrines hunt, click here: https://www.5backroad.com/montly-column

In the Right Place: Last Light

Here you see the sun setting over Deer Isle to the west of us. The temperature was a reported 26 degrees (F) when this was taken at 4:49 p.m. Friday.

It warmed up considerably Saturday and rained last night, which melted and washed away virtually all of our snow. At 7:15 a.m. this morning when I cranked up the computer, it was 46 degrees and the field was clear of snow.

As for sunsets here, the most dramatic ones occur in November through February. Why? As I understand it, the explanation begins with the sun’s rays at sunset being lower relative to us and, therefore, having to travel farther. That longer distance filters out more blue and green light, which allows us to see more red and orange light at sunset. But, there’s more.

Less humidity in winter means that the air is clearer, not filled with water-swelled impurities. And, a good portion of that air originates in the icy Arctic, which has cleaner air due to fewer trees, less dust, and scant, if any, industrial pollution. Fewer impurities mean more and purer light. (Image taken in Brooklin, Maine, on December 7, 2023.) Click on the image to enlarge it.