![]() Hopefully this tragedy will be a reality check for the tide of up to 300 day-trippers and similar number of overnighters (myself included) who wash over Monhegan every summer day. A 33-year old native Irishman, one of three brothers who had flown in for the wedding, had been washed away by a rogue wave. Immediately a kayaker and lobster boat headed out for the southern, less threatening tail of the island. Our inland-bound ferry that afternoon was full of wedding guests, unaware of the catastrophe suggested by the Coast Guard helicopter by then hovering over the southern end of the island. It was a brilliant September day and a wedding for an island resident was in the offing.Ī friend and I were lunching at Fish Beach when the chilling alert came on a neighbor’s phone. Unfortunately this was the case on my most recent visit. I’m frankly amazed that more flip-flop footed “visitors”, bags and cameras dangling, don’t get lost off the Pulpit Rock Trail but the reality seems to be that more casualties are on the less challenging parts of the island, places like Lobster Cove where visitors don’t grasp the dangers of currents, ten miles out to sea. On its “Backside” Monhegan’s cliffs plunge to the Atlantic and the shore paths are daunting, to put it mildly. We treasure this connection with Monhegan’s people as much as with its spectacular scenery. I feel blessed to be one of those people who has visited enough times-maybe 30 over 40 years-that I’m among many thousands whom at least a few residents recognize. ![]() There are also 300 over-night visitors, 100 seasonal employees and some 600 seasonal home owners and renters. – June) and “tourist” (late June thru Sept.).įor the record, there are now just 40+ year-round Monhegan residents and on a sunny August day there are some 300 day-trippers carried by excursion boat from Boothbay Harbor and New Harbor and by ferry from Port Clydet. While the rest of Maine traps both lobsters and tourists in warm weather months, Monhegan Island has two very distinct seasons: lobstering (Oct.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |