Of COURSE we don't have snow on the ground all year, Kirk :-)!! How would I be able to garden if we did?!! All snow is...usually...gone by the first of March or so. Sometimes we might get a "quickie" wet snowstorm in April, but temps are so warm by then it doesn't last long. I plant my first veggies in April and harvest til the end of Oct...sometimes longer if we haven't had a killing frost yet.

We trapped a total of fifteen lobsters last summer and tons of crabs (Atlantic Rock crabs). Biggest lobster was a 3½ pounder which was almost illegal! Should be putting our traps back in the water in April or so. Can't wait to put our new boat in and get the fishing rods out of the attic :-)!!

-- Anonymous, January 29, 2003

Answers

Hey Marcia, they're reading 'The Lobster Chronicles' on Chapter A Day on public radio right now.

She's making it sound like it isn't much fun. And the island that she's living on sounds like an ongoing soap opera.

(Hm. It sounds a lot like living around here....!)

-- Anonymous, February 04, 2003

Well slight brain to keyboard lapse there Mar! I meant does the snow stay on the ground all winter.

I miss the ocean. Haven't been in years so I guess after I get my roof on I should take a trip. I did see 2 migrating gray whales once tho. That was exciting! Your so lucky to live on the Atlantic. here in California you can't even get close unless your very rich. As for Lobster I think it goes for about 25 dollars on any menu around here. I told Barb I'd take her on a date and walk thru a fancy diner and we could smell the plates! Ha!

-- Anonymous, February 05, 2003

Yeah I know what you meant, Kirk! I was just pullin' your leg :-)!! But, actually, I have an online friend that I met through CS a couple years ago. She lives in Iowa, has never seen an ocean (in real life) and thinks we DO have snow on the ground in Maine for ten months out of the year!! She wants to drive to Maine this summer to "dangle her feet in the Atlantic" and do some boating/fishing with us. I think I'd miss the ocean if we were too far away from it. There's just something about the smell of salt air...even at low tide :-)!! I've spent my whole life living no further than an hour's drive from it...usually much closer! We see lots of dolphins while out fishing, but we don't venture far enough out to see any whales. There are several whale-watch cruises here in the summer...love to take one of those!! Tell Barb that if we get a good-sized lobster this summer, I'll save the crusher claw, dry it and send it out to you folks...without the meat, of course :-)!! BTW...usually we only have snow on the ground for Jan. Feb. and part of March. We do get an occasional snowfall in Nov. and Dec. but it doesn't always last long.

Julie...from what Linda tells us, lobstering is lots easier than swordfishing!! Very hard work, though. Right now where she and her father set traps there are major "gear" wars going on. We don't set traps out there...way too far offshore for us!!! I've never even been to Isle au Haut...only to Stonington. I haven't read "The Lobster Chronicles" yet. Last summer she was in town here at a bookstore. Since we were "fellow lobstermen", she gave Harry and I an autographed copy. She's a very "real" person and I can imagine that with only about 70 people on her island it probably is like a soap opera there :-)!!

-- Anonymous, February 05, 2003

Course that fog and those damp sheets at nite??? Ha!

-- Anonymous, February 06, 2003