Two of our longtime residents are leaving Sprucewold and “retiring” to their winter homes. Gretchen Murray and Esta Parish have long been supporters of Nahanada Park and were involved when the park was originally created on the site of the old saltwater swimming pool. If you want to see what that area looked like in pre-park days, you can find text and photos in our “Rusticators in Sprucewold” book published in 2007 of which David Otto and I have the only remaining 50 copies for sale. They are becoming scarce so before the price goes up, you might want to get a few more copies for your cabin — just $15 and we deliver. That was a shameless pitch to move the books out of storage! In any event, Gretchen and her late husband, Bob, were instrumental in guiding the Park Committee as the site made the transition from swimming pool to the beautiful park we have today. Esta Parish worked right along side of them. About 40 prior and current members of park committees paid tribute to Gretchen and Esta at a gathering in the park on Saturday night. The rain held off (except for a few drops) and a very enjoyable time was had by all. If you wish to reserve the park for your own small event, you can contact Jason Denby to make your reservation.

Two Firewise events were successfully held this year. The results of our annual brush chipping day resulted in over three tons of brush removed from around Sprucewold cabins. We typically remove 3-5 tons annually, and I think this was on the low end simply because folks had lots of visitors this year following COVID-19 as well as wet weather restricting the number of days when brush could be trimmed.

Later in August, Maine Forest Ranger Kent Nelson completed cabin assessments on six cabins. After all of the chipping we have done over the years, the critiques on the cabins are much less about brush crowding the cabins and have moved towards the smaller things that can be done to mitigate damage from a potential wildfire. Things such as softwood needles building up on decks and in roof valleys are common write ups as is lumber stored under decks and cabins. All of these areas are places where burning embers can land and start a fire. So it appears that our Firewise efforts are really paying off.

In late August, members of your Firewise Committee met with a similar group that revolves around the area from Sprucewold South to the tip of Spruce Point. Although not a Firewise group per se, they have some similar programs operated by the Maine Forest Service. The meeting, originated by Ruth Zollinger, was simply to get together and exchange ideas about what can be done more effectively to prevent wildfires on the entire Spruce Point peninsula. Nick Upham, Boothbay Harbor Fire Chief, was on hand to review how his department would deal with a peninsula fire, response times and assets he can draw on in case of a major fire. One point Chief Upham made was to complement Sprucewold on their efforts to remove brush from around the cabins. Since 2008 when the Sprucewold Firewise program was founded, Chief Upham noted that there has been a huge improvement in brush elimination and he has never seen Sprucewold more open. In fact, he said, there are some cabins that “I never knew were there” because they were so surrounded by brush. We left the meeting with two projects to look at: In the event of a wildfire, what is the best way to notify residents of the need to evacuate and developing a plan to do that. We also agreed that we should get together annually to continue to exchange ideas.

And now I will leave you with the answer to a puzzling question that has been asked at various gatherings in Sprucewold this summer: Why are there so many fewer pot buoys in Linekin? Everyone seems to have an answer but not a correct answer. Incorrect answers include: Overfishing — i.e., not as many lobsters left in Linekin, climate change, disease, etc. Based on a discussion with a lobsterman at Baker’s Way Sunday morning (by the way, great breakfasts there as well as local knowledge and very pleasant outside seating), it is simply a matter of evolution. Three lobsterman who regularly fished a large number of traps are no longer doing so. two have passed away and one has retired from fishing. So there you have it — straight from the lobster’s mouth!

Have a great winter and get ready to chip lots of brush next year.