Search  this site   Yellow Pages  
Log in or sign up to contribute

Paddle to Whaleboat Island

Comments on this story Printer-friendly version Bookmark and Share
The largest undeveloped island in Casco Bay lies just a short distance from shore, but is underutilized by many Maine residents.
By DEIRDRE FLEMING, Staff Writer
September 20, 2009
Rich Knox, Maine Coast Heritage Trust communications director, walks along the west shore of Whaleboat Island in Casco Bay. Whaleboat Island is one of a handful of the organization’s islands that are open for public use.
Gregory Rec/Staff Photographer
Rich Knox walks along the west shore of Whaleboat Island, which features primitive campsites and information kiosks tucked back into the trees and shrubs. Visitors can expect to see deer, red squirrels, showshoe hares, eider ducks, osprey and possibly a bald eagle.
Gregory Rec/Staff Photographer
Rich Knox paddles along the east shore of Whaleboat Island, which is roughly a mile from the mainland. On a calm day, it’s about a 20-minute paddle.
Gregory Rec/Staff Photographer

WHALEBOAT PADDLE TRIP

The paddle from the boat launch at Dolphin Marina in Harpswell (which costs $5) to the meadow campsite on the south shore is only a half hour in rocky seas of 10 to 15 knots.

ONLY STRONG PADDLERS should attempt the crossing in rocky seas, and those new to kayaking should cross in much calmer conditions.

As always, bring ample safety gear and leave a trip plan with someone on shore. Also, check the marine forecast before leaving. Conditions can be found at this Web site: www.maineharbors.com

BIRDING EVENT

Those able to motor out or paddle to Whaleboat Island are welcome to join a birding event at the height of the fall hawk migration in Maine. The Hawk Watch will take place from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday. Participants are responsible for their own transportation. Those who attend should meet the group at the small cove on the island's east side.

HARPSWELL — Whaleboat Island could be called the ambassador island for the Maine Coast Heritage Trust.

The largest undeveloped island in busy Casco Bay, the 122-acre preserve looks wild and forgotten.

It's far from it.

"Normally, it sees a few hundred (visitors) every summer," said Rich Knox, Maine Coast Heritage Trusts communication director. "But it's primitive and simple. The idea is to feel like you were the first person to discover it. The camp sites are tucked back and primitive."

The wilderness-focused land trust, which manages more than 50 preserves along the Maine coast, recently began to better publicize a half-dozen of its preserves where there is public access.

While the trust strives to maintain a pristine, wild experience for all, it also recognizes that some preserves can handle more use.

"Within the past few years, we did a carrying capacity for all the preserves. We tried to balance the amount of use that was seen with the sensitivity to other resources. We made some estimates for how much more the preserves can absorb," said Andy Walsh, the trust's regional steward.

At Whaleboat, there could easily be many more day-use visitors, Walsh said. During the past seven years, the annual number of people visiting the island who were counted varied from only 80 to a little more than 300. (Numbers do increase during tourist season.)

The camping is first-come, first-serve, so when the half-dozen camp sites fill up, the island is then "full." And there are only so many places to wander.

The island is big, but also so densely forested, it is impossible to move through it.

A hike in its forest and fields reveals information kiosks that explain the island's secret: the Leave No Trace principles that visitors are encouraged to uphold. Walsh said the vast majority do.

Since the island was purchased in 2002, the trust has tried to maintain its biological diversity and minimize degradation caused by newly created trails and trash.

A paddle on a weekday finds two handfuls of trash at the two campsites on the mile-long island, but the bottles and cans could have washed ashore.

For the most part, the island looks undisturbed. Outside of the information kiosks tucked back into the trees and shrubs, it appears remote – not a mile from the mainland.

Inhabited only by deer, red squirrel and snowshoe hare, Whaleboat seems happily empty on a fall weekday. The only other visitors are monarch butterflies, eider ducks and osprey.

"There is a bald eagle that hangs around there. I don't see it nesting on the island, but you can see it there," Walsh said. "I assume there is deer there, just because they seem to access most of the islands."

With few places to hike, the main activity here is enjoying the view. Even on a hazy day, the outline of the Presidential Mountain range can be seen from the north campsite.

"A lot of people come here just to look for sea glass," Knox said. "Low tide is the only time you can get from the north end to the western side."

While beachcombing for sea glass proved a treasure hunt, it ended with success. Emerald green and dark brown glass was nestled into the sand among the broken shells and stones. Gathered together, the smooth bits were a mosaic of ocean color.

However, all of these lazy scenes should not overshadow the challenge in the trip to the island itself.

Even from the closest boat launch, at Dolphin Marina in Harpswell, it can take a strong paddler 20 minutes on a calm, flat day. On a day with a brisk east-northeast wind and choppy seas, it took twice that time.

"That's the hairy edge. You wouldn't want to go if it was more than that," Knox said.

Staff Writer Deirdre Fleming can be contacted at 791-6452 or at:

dfleming@pressherald.com

Bookmark and Share
Stories From the Maine Sunday Telegram, Kennebec Journal and Morning Sentinel
Game on ...
Southern Maine is blasting expectations of a bad deer year, hoisting whitetail after whitetail at bustling tagging stations. November 15, 2009
HERB WILSON / BIRDINGTaxonomy: Birds of a feather pigeonholed together November 15, 2009
An honor for Owen
Long a champion of the Maine outdoors, Bucky Owen wins the Lee Wulff Conservation Award for his efforts to protect wild salmon and the Penobscot. November 15, 2009
KEN ALLEN / ALLEN AFIELDFacing a sensitive soul's aversion to hunting November 15, 2009
CARL NATALE / ASK AN OUTDOORSMANToughen up Fido for that long trail a-winding November 15, 2009
When deer multiply, bowhunter subtracts
5 questions for outdoorsman Jerome RichardNovember 15, 2009
Dispatches November 15, 2009
CAREY KISHGOT GEAR? November 15, 2009
Not your average Joel
Maine's Warden Service faces real challenges – luckily, Col. Joel Wilkinson, the man at its helm, has an unusual mix of skills with which to tackle them. November 8, 2009
DEIRDRE FLEMINGHunters can help state get to heart of EEE November 8, 2009
BOB HUMPHREY / HUNTINGBest time to go hunting? Deer know November 8, 2009
MICHAEL PERRY / CANOEINGNovember a fine time for a paddle
Seize one of those bright, mild late-autumn days and guide your canoe around the two-pronged southern end of Damariscotta Lake, home to eagles, loons and a McMansion of a beaver lodge.November 8, 2009
DEIRDRE FLEMING / WILDLIFE REPORTDeer season slow so far, except in southern Maine November 8, 2009
ON TWO WHEELS
An outdoors writer and his former teacher meet again after 17 years, this time on bikes. November 1, 2009
WENDY ALMEIDA / KID TRACKSOff-street trails keep family bike trips stress-free November 1, 2009
TRAVIS BARRETTMoose hunt takes more than luck November 1, 2009
BOB HUMPHREY / HUNTINGWhitetails: common yet elusive November 1, 2009
KEN ALLEN / ALLEN AFIELDWeather offers clues for hunters November 1, 2009
HERB WILSON / BIRDINGBirds creative at getting sleep and staying warm November 1, 2009
CARL NATALE / ASK AN OUTDOORSMANBest bet: Don't get lost in the first place November 1, 2009
BERNIE REIM / WHAT'S UP IN NOVEMBERLeonid meteor shower: An out-of-this-world show November 1, 2009
TRAVIS BARRETTA duck hunter gives it his best worst shot October 25, 2009
An outdoorswoman you should know
Five questions for Denise MurchisonOctober 25, 2009
GOT GEAR? October 25, 2009
Calendar October 25, 2009
Lucky Days
One, two, three, four: The Day clan of Porter draws an astonishing number of moose permits and – one, two, three, four – proceeds to rack 'em up. October 25, 2009
The wife of the party
Reporter Deirdre Fleming wanted to really experience what she was writing — and found herself getting carried away at the North American Wife Carrying Championships.October 18, 2009
MELISSA KIM / BIKINGA York County ride offers Maine's late-season charm October 18, 2009
CARL NATALEAsk an Outdoorsman October 18, 2009
DEIRDRE FLEMING / WILDLIFE REPORTMoose keeping most biologists busy October 18, 2009
Nature therapy
Gamely fighting back from cancer, trapper and hunter David Wilson knows where to go to start feeling better ... and fast. October 18, 2009
TRAVIS BARRETTTurkeys deep in dominance dance October 18, 2009
Got Gear? October 18, 2009
BOB HUMPHREY / HUNTINGGood living, outdoors go hand in hand October 18, 2009
KEN ALLEN / ALLEN AFIELDUse strategy in oak grove deer ambush October 18, 2009
© 2009 MaineToday Media, Inc.