Tuesday proved to be one of our best days in Maine. While the weather made for some challenges (low 60s with drizzling rain all day, anyone?), we were able to enjoy several fun activities with mom and dad on our last day in town despite the chilly temperatures and rain.
We all met on the Portland waterfront in the morning to board the Lobster Catch, a boat that would take us out into Casco Bay for a tour and to retrieve lobster traps.
What's funny about the lobster cruise was that I distinctly remember my parents taking my sister and I on a lobster boat up near Bar Harbor, Maine during a family vacation. I was probably in high school at the time (so many years ago!), and now here I am taking my own children on a similar boat with their grandparents. That kind-of makes me feel really old and also somewhat happy at the same time.
We were glad for having thrown jackets into our suitcases at the last minute before we left Dallas, and also for my mom's thoughtfulness in sharing her spare jackets and rain ponchos! And I promise Scott was really having a good time, he just really, really hates loves posing for family photos. I know where John gets his lovely attitude towards the camera.
The harbor looked gray and lifeless given the weather conditions, but the atmosphere on the boat was more pleasant than you would have thought.
The two lobstermen who served as our guides were fabulous! They created a very involved tour for all of the passengers (about 14 people, including our party of six) and they routinely asked for help from the tourists in executing the lobster trap chores. The lobster fishermen also provided quite an education on lobster fishing in Maine and about lobsters in general. Below the man was talking to us about the lobster's size, they way they shed their protective shell (this is called molting), and how their claws grow back when removed. I also didn't know that lobsters are vicious creatures that will attack each other if confined in a small space with other lobsters.
We were encouraged to wear lobster fishing gear so that our clothes wouldn't get dirty while helping, which ended up serving a double purpose by keeping us warm. Great family photos below!
What do you think? They look so natural, maybe grandma and grandpop should spend next summer working as lobster fishermen on the open seas!
Amelia and John, along with the other young girl on board, are helping grandpop fill the bait bag with small fish (herring, I think). Later grandpop would learn how to tie the bag and affix it inside of a lobster trap which would then get put back into the ocean.
The lobster guy below is explaining about the crab that is pinching his finger. John was fascinated but did not take lobster guy up on his offer to "hold" the crab.
The other lobster guy is demonstrating the sizing tool. The lobster must meet a certain size in order to be retained. The lobsters that are either too big or too small are released back to the ocean. On the day we went out the men were able to keep three lobsters of the six that were trapped in the eight traps we pulled up.
When the old scraps of bait are removed from the traps (before the step above where my dad is inserting fresh bait), the lobstermen threw the scraps overboard. The seagulls were relentless and started swarming the minute the old bait bag was untied from the trap. John and Amelia both thought the massive groups of seagulls immediately descending on the boat were quite fun. Thankfully none of us were the victims of falling seagull excrement during this time!
All of the boat members got the chance to push a trap into the water after the traps were reset with new bait. I have washed that black jacket twice now and it still smells like bait fish.
Halfway through the journey we pulled up several traps near seal island, aptly named because of the large seals that nest on the island during the summer months.
Overall the lobster trap cruise was a fantastic experience, one that we all agree was a definite highlight of our trip to the northeast. Thanks to my mom and dad for arranging for such a great boat with personable and friendly lobster fishermen! Amelia and John still talk about how much fun they had helping on the lobster boat.
Later that afternoon, after a delicious lunch of chowder and lobster rolls (and no, it wasn't difficult to enjoy eating crustaceans similar to those we had pulled from the water earlier in the morning), mom and dad took the kids back to the hotel for swimming while Scott and I toured the Allagash Brewery.
We reconvened later that evening and all enjoyed a fun outing to the ballpark! Yes, despite the high 50's temperature and drizzling rain we all ventured out for a fun evening at the ballpark to watch the Portland Sea Dogs play a baseball game. We had been rained out from the game the night before due to heavier rain, so this was our last chance to experience baseball with grandpop before leaving Maine. And if you ever get the chance to watch a baseball game with my super knowledgable and baseball-loving father, you know this is an experience you don't want to miss.
The game was actually really fun and I am glad that we were able to enjoy this experience together. John ranked the baseball game as one of his favorite vacation experiences and it really wasn't too bad to sit outside in the conditions (it was way better than hot Texas summer heat!). What a great day to cap off so many good times in Maine!
John's faces crack me up!
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