Tag Archives: maine
Maine Lobstermen Win Giant Carveout From Offshore Wind Development Area
The U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) is rolling out designated offshore wind leasing areas off the lower 48 states at a rapid clip, racing to meet the Biden administration’s target of 30 gigawatts of capacity by 2030. For the latest – a 3.5 million acre parcel in the Gulf of Maine – it has decided to dodge a looming fight with fishing and environmental interests. The newly-released Draft Wind Energy Area for the Gulf of Maine has enough room for up to 40 gigawatts of offshore wind capacity, with a focus on floating wind installations in deeper water. The size is notable, but the most conspicuous part is the part that was left out: Lobster Management Area 1, a strip along the coast that is essential to the powerful Maine lobster industry. >>click to read<< 09:08
Decline in young lobsters triggers change in legal catch size
The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commissioner approved in May new management measures when the survey of sublegal lobsters declined by 35 percent. The most recent stock survey shows a 39 percent decline. “The fact that we’ve hit the trigger this soon comes as a significant surprise,” DMR Commissioner Patrick Keliher said. “When the Board voted on the Addendum in May, it was anticipated that the trigger would not be hit for a year or two.” Keliher had initially broached to the ASMFC a higher trigger of 38 percent than the 35 percent that passed. But at the latest board meeting, he successfully delayed implementing the first size change from June 1, 2024, as initially set in the Addendum, to Jan. 1, 2025. >>click to read<< 08:08
Sternman Larry S. Cromwell of Westport Island, Me., has passed away
Larry S. Cromwell, 62, of Westport Island, passed away on Oct. 11, 2023, with his family by his side following a long struggle with cancer. He was born on Aug. 13, 1961, a son of Francis and Phoebe (Greenleaf) Cromwell. Larry graduated from Morse High School. He worked with his father in construction before becoming a sternman on his grandfather’s lobster boat, which was by far his favorite job ever. Larry also worked with Asplundh Tree Service, Stinson’s Cannery in Bath, Riley’s Cannery, and the City of Bath Cemeteries and Parks Division. Larry enjoyed playing cards, listening to music, watching TV, animals, and talking about good childhood memories of growing up on Westport Island. >>click to read<< 19:37
Commercial Fisherman Arnold Herbert Benner of Friendship, Maine, has passed away
Arnold Herbert Benner passed away at his home in Friendship on Thursday, October 5, 2023, with his family at his side. Recently celebrating his 80th birthday, he was born in Damariscotta on April 8, the son of Herbert & Anne Benner. He grew up in Friendship, started lobstering as a teenager and fished for more than 60 years. He won the title of the fastest lobster boat in Friendship three times. He graduated from Waldoboro High School. He bowled at DePatsy’s Lanes in Waldoboro, and with his wife, Alice, and was a member of the Coastal Clippers Square Dancing club. Arnold and Alice traveled around the country with family and took road trips to visit family and friends in Connecticut, Florida, Virginia, and Alabama. Highlights for Arnold included a ride in a race car at Daytona and driving his truck around the Talladega Superspeedway at 92 mph. >>click to read<< 19:54
UMaine researcher who helped reshape marine science in Maine retires
When Bob Steneck came to the University of Maine in 1982, there were few marine ecologists in the state, and none interacted with fishermen. He was among the first in Maine to work with lobstermen on research, traveling with them on their boats, diving to the seafloor to study lobsters and sharing his findings with them. At that time, there was a scientific consensus that the lobster population in the Gulf of Maine was declining. By working with lobstermen and diving down to the depths of the gulf, Steneck showed that the population was actually on the rise. Steneck’s work and that of his students and colleagues helped propel an expansion of and change in how lobster fisheries research is conducted in Maine. Over the preceding decades, Steneck’s students continue collaborating with lobstermen and other fishermen on their studies. >>click to read<< 10:05
A teenager in Boothbay Harbor had a dream. After 27 years, he achieved it.
Nearly three decades ago Jerry Farnham was working as a sternman on his father’s lobster boat in Boothbay Harbor. Eyeing the people on the deck of a gorgeous yacht not far away, he began to wonder: “What if they just want to be like normal people? You know, maybe they want to come and watch lobster boat races. Maybe they want to go lobstering.” The thought stuck with Farnham, who was only 16 years old, and with it came another notion. He wanted to take that idea and turn it into a novel, one set in Boothbay Harbor and filled with characters like the people he’d grown up with. It was easier said than done. One day in June of this year, he sat down at a table in Sherman’s and signed copies of his novel “Red at Night.” Video, >>click to read<< 09:22
Maine State Chamber of Commerce puts spotlight on lobster
Maine lobster contributes $1.4 billion to the state economy and 4,000 jobs on the shore, from live lobster dealers to processors to workers on the piers. And those numbers don’t include lobster-based tourism, Linda Caprara, interim CEO of the Maine State Chamber of Commerce, noted Sept. 28 in an online panel discussion in honor of Maine Lobster Week. Then, there are the 5,000 licensed lobstermen and their crew who all earn their livelihood on the water. Last year, just below 100 million pounds of lobster landed on docks from Portland to Lubec with a value of about $390 million. “We’re catching a lot of lobster,” said Marianne LaCroix, executive director of the Maine Lobster Marketing Collaborative. >>click to read<< 08:51
At Mackerel Cove wharf, Arizona-based lobster chain learns as it grows
There, an upstart fast food company called Angie’s Lobster offers rolls filled with a quarter-pound of New England’s favorite crustacean that’s served warm and buttered, chilled, grilled or fried. Add in a drink, fries and their trademark sauce and the total comes to — wait for it — $9.99. Is there a catch? Yep, in more ways than one. It all begins with Harpswell lobster boats and a historic wharf nestled into Mackerel Cove on Bailey Island. In the summer of 2022, Angie’s bought a long-standing family lobster pound there and established the first link in a supply chain that is bringing Vacationland lobster to Arizona drive-thru diners at eye-poppingly low prices. Tony Christofellis, who founded the company and named it for his late mother, says business is good and getting better. He says buying the Bailey Island wharf was “the coolest thing we’ve ever done.” Photos, >>click to read<< 08:10
2 more men charged in 2017 killing of Down East fisherman
Two more men have been charged in the 2017 killing of a Whitneyville man, bringing the total to three, police said Wednesday. Leanza Boney, 26 was arrested at his apartment on Staten Island, New York City, at 5 a.m. Wednesday by members of the U.S. Marshals Service and Maine State Police detectives on a warrant for murder, felony murder, arson, and robbery, Shannon Moss, a spokesperson for the Maine Department of Public Safety, said in a news release. Last week, Justin Matthews, 33, formerly of Pembroke, was arrested in Saco on similar charges in the October 2017 killing of Wayne Foss of Whitneyville. Foss, who was 48, was found dead Oct. 28, 2017, inside his mobile home after firefighters were called in the early morning to extinguish a fire at 54 Middle St. >>click to read<< 11:24
Hey Maine, happy National Lobster Day!
Monday, Sept. 25, is National Lobster Day thanks to a resolution introduced by Senators Susan Collins and Angus King that passed the Senate unanimously. National Lobster Day recognizes the cultural, economic and environmental importance of the species, which is a key part of Maine’s economy. In 2022, the lobster industry brought in over $388 million in Maine and Maine is the largest lobster-producing state in the nation. Collins and King have sponsored similar legislation in recognition of the day annually since 2015. >>click to read<< 09:48
Maine Lawmaker/Lobsterman and Sternman ‘lucky to be alive’ after a “giant rogue wave” from Lee flips lobster boat
What does a lobsterman do when faced with a wall of water bearing down on him, his boat and his crew? Billy Bob Faulkingham had just finished hauling traps near Turtle Island on Friday, Sept. 15, one day before Hurricane Lee was poised to hit the Maine coast, when his 40-foot lobster boat, 51, was flipped upside down by a huge wave that seemingly came out of nowhere. “We got hit by a massive rogue wave,” he told The American. “It rolled my 40-foot boat like a toy and landed her on top of us. I’ve never seen anything like it.” Faulkingham survived without harm, while his sternman Alex Polk suffered a broken arm and a gash on his head. His lobster boat currently rests at the bottom of the ocean. He estimated 51 was in about 50 feet of water when the 40-foot wave struck. “God was with us,” he said. >>click to read<< 17:21
Cheryl Clegg presents her Endangered Lobsterman portrait series
Photographer Cheryl Clegg is undertaking a project to highlight the endangered Maine lobstermen. She says it’s an effort to “put faces to those that are impacted by the regulations to the community and the red list.” Her exhibit will feature portraits of local fishing families, and the public is welcome. It will be at Hammond Hall in Winter Harbor from August 30th through October 29th, with a reception scheduled for Sunday, September 10th at 4 p.m. Video, >>click to read<< 09:09
Lobstermen help rescue fisherman who fell from cliffs in York
A boat crew pulling lobster traps off the coast of York on Monday rescued a fisherman who had fallen from a cliff and was clinging to a buoy. The man, who has not been publicly identified, was fishing from Bald Head Cliff with another person around 8 a.m. when he slipped and fell into the water. As rescue crews raced to the scene, his companion called for help and told dispatchers that the man was trying to swim to a nearby lobster buoy. The fire department contacted a nearby lobster boat using marine radio channels and the boat was able to get to the man before rescue crews. The crew aboard the boat pulled the man aboard and brought him to an Ogunquit rescue boat. The quick response by the crew on the lobster boat – identified by officials as Mystery, based out of Perkins Cove – saved the man from becoming hypothermic or drowning, according to the fire department.>>click to read<< 18:02
Belfast’s lobster Passy Pete predicts early winter
Residents of Belfast were on the waterfront this Labor Day to get a very important answer from a very special lobster. Passy Pete gave his predictions on whether or not we will have six more weeks of summer or an early winter. “Every Labor Day at 10 a.m. we pull a lobster from the Passagassawakeag river named Pete, he comes back every year and we celebrate his prediction,” said Executive Director of the Belfast Chamber of Commerce, Dorothy Harvey. You may have heard of the famous predicting ground hog Punxsutawney Phil, but have you heard of Passy Pete? Video, >>click to read<< 08:03
From the Gulf of Maine to a tin can: A glimpse into high-end tuna production on NH’s coast
“I left today at, like, 12 midnight,” he said, his face hidden behind mirrored sunglasses and a beard. “And then it’s about an hour and a half ride out, and it was beautiful last night because that big fat moon is waning.” Keper Connell is a one-man operation aboard his boat, The Figment. When conditions allow, he cruises into the Gulf of Maine in search of bluefin tuna, a torpedo-shaped fish that can reach more than 1,000 pounds. Rather than sell his bluefin to a wholesaler, where cuts may end up in a fishmonger’s display case, or as toro on a sushi menu, Connell is doing something that nobody else in the U.S. is apparently doing. His fish is put on ice and sent to Oregon, where it will be packed into tin cans with a high end olive oil and some salt. (There are no canneries on the East Coast where an independent fisherman can bring his catch, he says.) Photos, >>click to read<< 11:07
His passion is lobstering, his worry is the future
Christopher Robert Tobey Jr. was born on July 22, 1991, in Portland, into a family of fishermen. He spent a lot of time on the docks and water. He watched his father and grandfather talk with other fishermen and learned the lingo. He also learned a lot by going to other docks because everyone does things differently. “As a little kid, I always knew who everyone was and what their boat was,” he said. Tobey’s father always told him fishing wasn’t easy, but it was there if he wanted it. “I started lobster fishing because my father was a lobster fisherman, and when I was a kid that’s all I wanted to do,” he said. However, fishing is dangerous. And on May 11, 2008, Tobey’s life changed forever. “It was Mother’s Day, a Sunday, and we went out to go fishing to fill some orders for a couple of my dad’s friends,” Tobey said. “I remember it was me, my father and another fisherman, Robbie Blackburn. He was working for my dad. We went out and it was a great day and the weather started to turn.” >>click to read<< 09:53
Harpswell fishing advocate battles winds of change
Harpswell resident Jerry Leeman III sits in an office chair at a dining room table with his father, Jerry Leeman Jr., on a nearby couch watching TV. In front of Leeman III is a laptop and a stack of studies and reports on a range of issues that could threaten the New England fishing industry. Leeman, like his father, used to be a commercial fisherman. Now he spends his days reading reports and constructing arguments against what he sees as challenges to the industry, while advocating for his fellow New England fishermen and their interests. Having recently harpooned the whale conservationists in court, the New England fishing industry’s current biggest threat, in Leeman’s view, is the advent of floating offshore wind power and its planned deployment along the New England coast. >>click to read<< 12:17
Lobsterman Shane Matthew Sykes of Warren, Maine, has passed away
Shane Matthew Sykes, 33, of Warren, died after a brief illness on Aug. 9, 2023 at Pen Bay Medical Center. He was born in Bangor on June 16, 1990 to Gerald (Roy) and Cynthia (Hagar) Sykes. He was a lifetime resident of the Midcoast. Wherever he lived, he always called Bristol his home. Shane graduated from Lincoln Academy in 2008 and then became a full-time clamdigger. He was a hardworking man and later became a lobsterman. He looked forward to each day spent on the ocean, and often photographed the horizon in the early dawn hours. He also worked at Masters Machine Shop and was a cook at a few local restaurants. He always said he made an awesome steak, and he did. >>click to read<< 08:33
Remembering Tylar by Thomas Massey
Tylar Michaud, a promising young man and a lobsterman, went missing off his boat while he was out hauling his traps. Tragically, but beautifully, his celebration of life was held Aug. 20. Then, Monday, shortly after that, he was found and brought home by another lobsterman. I didn’t know Tylar. I don’t know that we ever met. What I know of him, I know from stories, posts and pictures about and of him. I know that he was the only other person, even at his young age to captain this other captain’s boat. He was trusted enough to take others’ children out to sea, and to return. He was headed to the Maine Maritime Academy. I know the entire community searched and grieved and worked together against hope to bring him home. From the first hours when his boat was found nearby, lobstermen immediately used their boats, the source of their livelihood, and got to work hoping to rescue him. And then sadly, only hoping to find Tylar. People walked the shores, planes piloted with community funded donations flew and searched, the Marine Patrol, Coast Guard and other services searched. >>click to read<< 08:05
Body found in ocean Monday confirmed to be missing lobsterman Tylar Michaud
The mother of a Down East lobsterman who disappeared a month ago while fishing confirmed Thursday night that a body found in the ocean Monday morning was that of her son. Valerie Kennedy notified a Press Herald reporter that authorities have confirmed the body belongs to her son, 18-year-old Tylar Michaud, of Steuben. Kennedy declined to comment further. A Jonesport lobsterman discovered the body floating in the Atlantic Ocean near Addison on Monday morning, exactly a month after Michaud was last seen in the area. The body was taken to the Maine Medical Examiner’s Office in Augusta to be identified. >click to read< 07:54
Portland Lobster Co. buys lobster pound on Bailey Island in Casco Bay
“With the purchase of our own lobster pound in the pristine environment surrounding Bailey Island, we can ensure that our lobsters are sourced directly from the productive and healthy waters of Casco Bay,” said Ethan Morgan, who owns the Portland Lobster Co. and has bought the Bailey Island Lobster Pier for an undisclosed price. “This acquisition allows us to establish a close partnership with local fishermen, supporting them while having a direct line to their daily catches.” Morgan said the deal was a strategic move to designed to receive, house and transport lobsters for his restaurant, Portland Lobster Co., eliminating the need for the lobsters to sit in tanks for weeks at a time. >click to read< 13:06
Lobstermen pinched as inflation, new regulations cause cost of delicacy to rise
Dwight Staples, who has worked as a lobsterman in Stonington, Maine, for 15 years, said modern-day lobster fishing can be complex, and this season is producing additional challenges. “Lobsters seem to be migrating more east, and therefore our catch is going down,” Staples said. On top of the smaller catches, he said the price of bait has risen from $30 per tray to around $100 per tray, and fuel is three times more expensive than what it used to cost. From the fisherman, then to a processor, and finally to the grocery store or restaurant, with every hand that touches a lobster, the price goes up. Video, >click to read< 07:42
Fishermen indicted in federal court for alleged fraud, violation of herring laws face September trial
A hearing is scheduled for Aug. 23 in U.S. District Court regarding trial scheduling and a motion to continue for the fishermen and seafood dealers who were indicted in 2022 with conspiracy, mail fraud, and obstruction of justice in connection with a multi-year scheme to sell unreported Atlantic herring and falsify fishing records. Jury selection is scheduled to begin on Sept. 5. The trial is anticipated for September and expected to last two weeks. According to the indictment, between June 2016 and September 2019, the owner, captains, and crew aboard the fishing vessel Western Sea sold more than 2.6 million pounds of Atlantic herring that was not reported to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The indictment alleges that members of the crew were paid directly by fish dealers and lobster vessel operators for the unreported herring. >click to read< 12:56
Lobsterman finds body off Down East coast
A Jonesport lobsterman on Monday found a body in the ocean near Addison. The Maine Marine Patrol has recovered the body, and it is being transported to the Maine medical examiner’s office in Augusta for identification, Maine Department of Marine Resources spokesperson Jeff Nichols said. Nichols declined to comment on whether the body may be that of Tylar Michaud, a Steuben lobsterman who went missing on July 21 after he went out to haul traps near Petit Manan Island. Charles Kelley, a Steuben lobsterman and pastor at a local church who led Sunday’s service for Michaud, said that while an official identification of the body has not been made, people close to the family and who were involved in the extensive search believe it is Michaud. >click to read< 17:41
Maine lobsterman lost at sea remembered for dedication to family and friends
A Steuben teenager and lobsterman was collectively remembered for his positive attitude, wisecracks, blue eyes and bushy eyebrows when several hundred people gathered Sunday for a memorial service in a Sullivan school gymnasium. Nearly a month after Tylar Michaud, 18, went missing at sea while hauling lobster traps, and roughly 10 weeks after he graduated from Sumner Memorial High School. Michaud’s extended family, friends and members of the community gathered for a celebration of his life at the school. Michaud’s sense of humor, dedication to his family and friends, and his love of the outdoors figured prominently in their remarks. >click to read< 07:29
Maine lobstermen credited with saving lives of boaters following yacht fire
Several lobstermen are credited with saving the lives of two boaters off the coast of Georgetown on Saturday. The 48-foot yacht Titan caught fire several miles off Seguin Island, with flames quickly spreading, prompting the boaters to jump into the water for safety. According to the U.S. Coast Guard Lt. David J. Letarte, the agency issued an Urgent Mariner Information Broadcast after the boaters called for help reporting their vessel was disabled, and fire was coming from the engine room. Letarte was able to identify one of the lobster boats involved in pulling the boaters to safety as “My Three Blondes” but added there were vessels involved in the effort. >click to read< 15:36
Olde Bristol Days Returns with Families and Fun
Residents and visitors alike descended to the tip of the Pemaquid penisula for the 69th edition of Olde Bristol Days Aug. 9-13. The weekend’s events kicked off with the traditional parade at 10 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 12, and concluded with the Merritt Brackett Lobster Boat Races on Sunday, Aug. 13. On Saturday, after the parade families and beach goers crowded into Pemaquid Beach Park enjoying a slate of musical entertainment, food and craft vendors, as well as a variety of children’s games including a water slide and dunk tank. The day’s events concluded with a fireworks display. On Sunday, spectators convened near Fort William Henry for the annual Merritt Bracket Lobster Boat Races. Race results and lots of photos, >click to read< 07:46
A behind-the-scenes look at Maine’s growing scallop farming industry
Maine’s wild scallop harvest is still a few months away, but a group of fishermen in Penobscot Bay can fish scallops year-round thanks to Maine’s growing aquaculture industry. “This just puts another tool in the toolbox to allow them to adapt. We’re not looking to be replaced. We just want the opportunity to adapt,” said scallop farmer, Marsden Brewer. Marsden has been fishing off of Stonington for decades. He and his son, Robert, have been learning more about scallop farming, setting their nets in Penobscot Bay. Due to reduced stocks and an increase in commercial fishing regulations, this new way of doing business has given fishermen like Marsden hope for the future. >click to read< 17:07
Lobster ‘red list’ draws ire, lawsuit from Maine fishers
A coalition representing the Maine lobster industry is suing an aquarium on the other side of the country for recommending seafood customers avoid buying a variety of lobster mostly harvested in their state. Industry groups including Maine Lobstermen’s Association are suing the Monterey Bay Aquarium in California for “defamation,” arguing in a lawsuit filed Monday that their prized catch shouldn’t be on a “red list” published by Seafood Watch, a conservation program it operates. Last year, Seafood Watch put lobster from the U.S. and Canada on its list of seafood to avoid due to the threat posed to rare whales by entanglement in fishing gear used to harvest American lobster, the species that makes up most of the U.S. lobster market. >click to read< 15:47