Acadia National Park

by Mike Graf

  Diver Ed said, “This lobster, though, is huge! I’m going to try to catch it to show all of you on board. But I need both of my hands. I’m going to have to put the camera down again.”

  Again the audience waited while the screen showed a school of fish swimming in the distance. Captain Evil said, “Those are pollock. It’s pretty rare to see so many all in one spot.”

  Just then Diver Ed called out, “I’ve got it!”

  He picked up the camera and showed the monstrous-size lobster. It was waving its claws right in front of Diver Ed, trying to grab his mask.

  Diver Ed worked quickly to get the lobster into the net.

  “Way to go, Diver Ed!” Captain Evil exclaimed.

  Next Diver Ed pointed the camera to an old, dented, abandoned lobster trap at the bottom of the ocean. “There’s a lobster in it!” Diver Ed said. “But I’m going to leave him alone.”

  Captain Evil explained. “That trap clearly isn’t in use anymore. But there sure are lots of lobsters in Maine’s waters. One of the reasons why is that their predators have mostly been fished out. Their only real enemy now is humans. So lobsters here are abundant.”

  Diver Ed now reported, “I’m forty-six feet below and the water temperature is fifty-two degrees.” He focused the camera on a purple sea urchin and a crab decorated with seaweed all over its shell. He then put both in the bag.

  Captain Evil explained, “Those crabs pick up just about anything they can to put on themselves as camouflage.”

  Diver Ed held up another creature. “This is one mean-looking crab!” he beamed. The crab had only one claw, but it still looked menacing. Diver Ed placed it in the bag.

  Next Diver Ed found some live sand dollars, echinoderms, that he added to the collection.

  Diver Ed spoke. “I’m going to come up now.”

  Morgan and James went to the side of the boat to watch for Diver Ed’s return. Soon they saw a bunch of bubbles rise to the surface followed by Diver Ed and his gear. “Here he comes!” Morgan reported.

  Once Diver Ed clambered back on board, everyone cheered his homecoming. Diver Ed high-fived several of the kids, including James and Morgan, while he waddled up to the front of the boat. Then he yanked off his mask, smiled, and exclaimed, “Welcome back, everyone!”

  The passengers all laughed.

  Diver Ed, Captain Evil, and the ranger quickly set up touch tanks for the newfound creatures. Diver Ed personally rubber-banded the lobster to protect people from its monster-size claws. “These could easily snap a finger off,” he explained. “Just remember what it did to Mini-Ed down there.”

  Diver Ed quickly measured the giant crustacean. “Twenty-four inches!” he reported. “And far too big for a lobsterman to keep.”

  The passengers gathered around the touch tanks. Everyone on board, especially the children, touched, held, pet, and took pictures of the ocean creatures. Morgan and James noticed Maggie holding Mini-Ed. “Look,” Morgan whispered.

  Mom came over with Morgan’s camera and directed, “You and James hold up that lobster!”

  Future with Lobsters

  * * *

  The state of Maine has very specific laws to make sure there will be lobsters to harvest in the future. It is an extremely important industry to the region. Therefore, there are minimum- and maximum-size lobster catch limits. A lobster’s minimum size must be at least three and a quarter inches in its carapace, or main shelled body area. This is to ensure every lobster has at least one chance to breed in its lifetime before being taken. A maximum-size lobster is five inches in its carapace. Larger lobsters are left to live because they are wanted in the gene pool.

  The twins held up the banded lobster while Mom snapped several photos. After they put it back in the touch tank, James said, “Those claws were about as big as my head.”

  A few minutes later, Diver Ed announced, “We’re going to have to say good-bye to our ocean creatures now.”

  Diver Ed held up the giant lobster and unhooked the bands. “OK, everyone,” he said, “say good-bye and I love you, ocean creatures!”

  The audience echoed, “Good-bye! I love you, ocean creatures.”

  He let the children take the crabs, sea stars, urchin, and sand dollars and toss them all overboard. Then Diver Ed tossed the lobster overboard and it was instantly out of sight.

  The crew pulled up anchor and took the passengers back to port. Along the way, Dad said, “Well, that was one boat ride I’ll never forget.”

  While they were walking off the boat, Morgan and James approached Maggie. Morgan asked her, “Have you found any more blueberries lately?”

  Maggie looked up at Morgan. “Yes,” she answered, “but I also have this.”

  She held up a plastic bag with Mini-Ed in it and said, “We bought it from that person on the boat!”

  10

  Island Bound

  The Parkers reluctantly left Mount Desert Island and the main part of Acadia behind.

  “Some people, I hear, like Isle au Haut better than where we have been,” Dad said.

  “I don’t know if that’s even possible,” Mom replied.

  The family drove the windy, hilly roads to the quaint, ocean-side town of Stonington. They quickly found the dock, parked the car nearby, pulled out all their gear, and picked up the mail boat ferry to Isle au Haut. Many others were also on board: some with bikes, some with just what they needed for the day, and others, like the Parkers, with all the food and camping gear necessary for several days on the island.

  As the mail boat left the dock, Mom said, “Only five campsites are on this island, and we have one of them for three nights. We are very lucky!”

  The boat ride passed other islands and an ocean full of colorful buoys. James pictured Isle au Haut on a United States map. “We are going about as far as we can get from San Luis Obispo while still on US soil,” he said.

  “What about Alaska or Hawaii?” Morgan asked.

  “I don’t know,” James replied. “I’ll have to measure it out later.”

  As they cruised along, two porpoises popped up nearby, gliding in and out of the water’s surface.

  “A good omen,” Mom said, leaning into Dad.

  Far off, James caught a peek of a spray of water coming from the ocean. He called out. “Is that a whale out there?”

  James pointed to where he thought he saw spouting, but there was nothing. “I don’t know,” he said. “I thought I saw water spray up in the air.”

  The Parkers watched where James told them to, but after a few minutes, they all resumed looking elsewhere.

  Just then a large whale thrust itself high above the water in a grand, twisting, glorious breach before plunging back to the ocean with a massive splash.

  “Whoa!” Morgan responded. She looked at James then at her parents wide-eyed, while the passengers on board collectively gasped.

  Mom said, “That is something I only expect to see on a televised nature program. And we just witnessed it in person!”

  Soon the mail boat approached large and forested Isle au Haut. It stopped first at the small village, and some of the passengers got off. The boat pulled out and continued on to Duck Harbor, where the Parkers, along with several others, exited the boat.

  Mail boat ferry

  The family hauled their gear off the pier and up to the nearby campground, quickly choosing campsite #4. At their shelter the Parkers were tucked into the forest, but Duck Harbor was just below, visible through breaks in the trees.

  Their site had a three-sided wooden shelter with a floor for their tent. “We could sleep right on the wood,” Mom said, “but I hear the bugs come out later, so I think it is best to set up the tent.”

  Our campsite

  There was also a picnic table and fire pit right outside and a food box in the back.

  The Parkers unpacked and set up all their supplies, and soon their little dwelling looked cozy and comfortable. “Our home away from home,” Mom mentioned.

  After a quick lunc
h, the family walked the path and dirt road to the water pump. It was a good distance away, and the Parkers would make many more trips there to retrieve water over the next few days.

  Later that afternoon the family explored the Western Head and Cliff Trails. They stopped often to investigate beaches and coves as well as to check out tide pools, listen to waves, search for shells, and find abandoned buoys. It was a leisurely pace and without any real agenda.

  “We’re on an island, so we should have an island pace. No hurries and no worries,” Mom said.

  After dinner a thick fog rolled in, changing the family’s sunset plans. The nearby cove and the forests all around became enshrouded in the low-lying cloud cover. “I can hardly see the dock,” Dad reported. “But that sailboat is still clanging out there somewhere.”

  The family decided to sit by their campfire after dinner. Soon the Parkers, lulled by the ocean sounds and the cool evening, went to bed.

  •••

  Day two on the island broke clear. Dad took advantage of it by hiking rugged Duck Harbor Mountain. Meanwhile, Mom, James, and Morgan explored more coves, beaches, and tide pools along the nearby Eben’s Head Trail. They all reported back to camp just before noon.

  “It was only a three-hundred-or-so-foot elevation gain,” Dad described the hike. “But as things go in Acadia, it was rough, rugged, and wonderful. And the views at the top of the mountain were amazing.”

  View from Duck Harbor Mountain

  “We had some great views, too,” James said of Eben’s Head. “And we explored a bunch of rocky beaches. We saw crabs and some washed-up buoys, and a seal was on one of the rocks, sunbathing. We stayed far away, though, and gave it lots of space.”

  In the afternoon the family walked the four-mile dirt road into town. There they picked up a few groceries and took advantage of a lobster bake right in the village.

  “We had to try lobster at some point while we were in Maine,” Morgan said after dipping some of the white meat into melted butter.

  The family walked back to camp with their bag of food in the early evening. This night, the weather remained clear and warm.

  “Our summer evenings in San Luis Obispo are so often cool with the fog rushing in. Tonight here, though, it’s warm and sultry. It almost feels tropical, which is kind of nice,” Mom said.

  The family roasted marshmallows and played cards at their table before walking down to the bluff to watch the sunset.

  Later, James commented, “What a great day!” Morgan, Mom, and Dad each smiled their agreement.

  •••

  On their third day away from the mainland, Dad convinced the family that they needed to hike Duck Harbor Mountain. “If I want to hike it twice,” he reasoned, “you’ll want to be up there at least once.”

  “I don’t need any convincing,” Mom said.

  “Let’s go!” Morgan and James called out in unison.

  The family took the long way around to the mountain trail by first going out again along the Cliff Trail. By the time they reached wild and wavy Deep Cove, it was lunchtime and they found a spot on some rocks to pull out their food.

  After lunch, they each took off their shoes on the rocky beach and tried to get into the water. But it was difficult timing the waves, and the water was deep and colder than expected, despite the warm day. After several attempts, Dad just plunged in. He came up grinning and with soaked clothes. “Boy, that felt good!” he exclaimed.

  Dad requested some time to dry off, so the family hung out and explored Deep Cove’s rocky shoreline.

  The Parkers made their way over to the Duck Harbor Mountain Trail, coming from the east side.

  Eventually Morgan, James, Mom, and Dad made it to the top and admired the 360-degree views Dad had spoken so highly of.

  “The trees are a little stunted up here,” Mom mentioned. “Winter weather must blast this area.”

  “It’s just so different than the dry summers in California,” Morgan said, thinking of the brown grasses that cover the hills this time of year where the Parkers live.

  “Speaking of dry,” Dad said, “it looks like our good weather could be ending.” He gestured to the dark clouds in the skies toward the south. “A storm is brewing. I can see it and feel it in my bones.” Then Dad joked, “Must be from all my days at sea.”

  The Parkers spent a few more minutes at the summit, scanning the horizon, both for the views and for what the atmosphere appeared to be delivering to the island. Then the wind started picking up. Far off at sea, the Parkers could see whitecaps coming from the swelling waves. Meanwhile the skies darkened further, now blocking the sun completely.

  As the breezes started shifting to powerful gusts of wind, Mom remembered, “We don’t have the rain fly up! Driving rain can definitely get into our shelter.”

  And with that, the Parkers started hiking, a little faster, back to camp.

  Meanwhile, on a lobster boat somewhere between Stonington and Isle au Haut, the captain on board observed the developing whitecaps, large swells, and gusting winds. He said to his crew, “I’m going to check the weather again for an update.”

  The captain switched on his marine-band weather radio and heard this broadcast:

  Tropical Storm Ophelia, formerly Hurricane Ophelia, is moving north along the Atlantic Seaboard and toward the Gulf of Maine. Although the storm is losing some of its energy as it moves over cooler waters, there is still a lot of punch to this intense tropical system. Due to that, a tropical storm warning has been issued for all craft in the Gulf of Maine. Winds are soon expected to reach twenty-five to forty-five knots, with higher gusts likely. In addition, large ocean swells of eight to twelve feet will be common, with some swells reaching up to fifteen feet. Periods of very heavy rain will accompany the storm. Expect all this to begin in the next two to four hours. The storm will reach its peak at or around midnight and taper off rapidly after that. Therefore all marine vessels should . . .

  The captain turned off the radio. “OK, everyone,” he directed. “Back to shore!”

  The Parkers returned to camp just as the first few large drops of rain began plunking down. Like a crew at sea, they each went to work quickly to secure and keep as dry as possible everything at their campsite shelter. Mom and Dad put up the rain fly while Morgan and James put away all shelved items, pots, pans, and hanging clothes.

  It was now 6:00 p.m. and the scattered showers continued, with the wind whipping about. The family fixed a quick and easy meal. As they were finishing, the first of many downpours ensued.

  The pouring rain was driven sideways with pummeling blasts of wind. As the family scrambled to clean up their campsite, James said, “Has it ever rained like this in California?”

  “Probably once or twice,” Dad replied.

  All the Parkers could do once they stashed their dishes in the food box was to go into the tent. It was mostly dry inside, but the wind rattled and shook their little home and rain sprayed onto the roof of the shelter.

  “It’s going to be a long night,” Mom said.

  “You think it will blow over by tomorrow?” Dad asked.

  “I don’t even want to think about tomorrow yet,” Mom replied. But she was thinking about it anyway. Her friend, Karen, was going to kayak out with another friend, bringing Mom’s boat. Then the other friend would take the ferry back with Dad and the twins, while Mom and Karen kayaked back to Stonington. It was all planned out. That is, at least until the storm. Impossible in this weather, that Mom knew.

  Just before what would have been sunset, the Parkers took turns dashing to the bathroom. As each returned, they shared the conditions.

  “The wind was blowing me sideways.”

  “I’m soaked from head to toe.”

  “At least this shelter is helping our cause.”

  Finally James said, “The cove is rocking with waves!”

  “It’s a fierce storm,” Mom said. “I have to admit, there’s no way Karen and I will even try to kayak in these conditions. But
I just hope she’s OK. Her plans were to paddle out here first thing in the morning.” Then Mom reassured herself. “But I know Karen. She leads kayak tours out here. She’s extremely conscientious about safety and always pays attention to the weather. She’ll be OK tonight. We’ll figure out tomorrow, tomorrow.”

  With that, the Parkers tried to wait out the storm by sleeping. But the wind and rain didn’t quit. It was a long night.

  •••

  Sometime early in the morning, James was the first to wake up. It was still and quiet outside and getting light. He heard birds chirping in the forest.

  James silently crept outside. Indeed, it was a brand-new day. Streaks of sunlight slanted through the forest, and drops of water glistened off the flora. James tiptoed down to the clearing below camp to assess the cove. His feet squished with each step along the way.

  It was a brand-new day down there as well. James dashed up to camp to report the good news.

  Mom was awake and outside when James returned. “Clear skies. Sunny. Wind calm and the water, glossy and still.”

  Mom smiled. “Yea! If all goes as planned, Karen will be here about eight o’clock.”

  11

  Return to the Mainland

  Mom stood high up on the pier at Duck Harbor. After waiting a while, she finally spotted two kayaks paddling into the cove. Right away Mom recognized her old friend from college, Karen.

  “Hey there!” Mom called out, waving.

  Karen waved back as she and her companion paddled the boats farther into the cove. When they got closer, Karen looked up at Mom, still standing on the pier. “Hey, old buddy,” she said, grinning. “I’ll meet you on the shore over there.”

  Karen and her friend maneuvered their boats to a sandy spot, while Mom walked off the pier and called out to her family. “They’re here!”