Ports of St. George

GHP&W 3.   And I don’t mean the northern Staten Island area named for a developer with the first name George.

As the lobster might suggest, this St. George is in Maine, and named for the river which is named for the English explorer/captor of Squanto who visited this area in 1607.   I was confused the first time I arrived here because I was looking for Port Clyde and all the signs said was “St. George.”

But it turns out that within the town of St. George are villages like Tennants Harbor, Martinsville, and Port Clyde.

I hope to return to Port Clyde next year, in part because this is the mainland wharf for the Monhegan Boat Line.  Elizabeth Ann was preparing for the passenger run, but

I didn’t get to see the “world-famous Laura B,” a repurposed 1943 Army T-boat, which after doing WW2 duty in the Pacific, ran lobsters from Maine to Boston and New York. Anyone know of old NYC sixth-boro photos of Laura B delivering Maine fruits of the sea to the city?   Laura B was working, delivering freight to Monhegan.  And these cargo nets filled with firewood await for the next cargo run.

A glance at a map or chart of the peninsulas of Maine is enough to explain the value of craft like Reliance and her sisters.

The work boats in the harbor represent only part of the “gear” needed to fish;  the rest is on paper.

Even on rainy days, I like looking at these boats.  Taking photos of paperwork  . . . never so much.

 

 

From a short conversation of the wharf, I have the sense that the paperwork and regulations keep vessels like these in port many more days than they fish. And global water temperature trends make this an even harder way to earn a living.

 

 

All photos here by Will Van Dorp, who wants to get back up here soon.