Stewardship Team Springs to Action
Each year MCHT's stewardship team takes on myriad activities aimed at meeting community needs and sustaining the natural features of our preserves. This April and May has been no exception as Stewardship staff has touched the lives of young people, beautified a scenic shoreline, and rejuvenated an overgrown meadow.
Kids Brought Outdoors in Harrington
On May 14th, staff and fifteen students from the EdGE programs in Milbridge, Cherryfield, Harrington and Addison joined MCHT Steward Deirdre Whitehead for a hike and picnic on the new trail created at the Frank E. Woodworth Preserve in Harrington. The EdGE program is an afterschool and summer program in Washington and Hancock counties serving ten schools. EdGE benefits families by creating academic support and wonderful enrichment activities.
The students hiked the 1.8-mile trail that climbs from a small parking lot at the end of Ripley Neck then follows the contours across the long slope to Alaska Mountain and Alaska Cove. The group then followed a loop trail around the point, and picnicked on a cobble beach looking out past Narrows Island to Pleasant Bay.
The 127-acre Frank E. Woodworth Preserve was purchased in 2007 by Maine Coast Heritage Trust. Named after a local fisherman who was a long-time friend of the previous owners, the preserve features a forest which has not been cut for nearly 100 years. The preserve is on Marshville Road in Harrington.
Students Descend Upon Witherle Woods
"The kids came off the bus saying it was 'coolest field trip' ever," reported Katie Frothingham, principal of the Adams School in Castine. The bus had just left MCHT's Witherle Woods preserve, where 5th and 6th graders had spent the afternoon exploring a vernal pool, handling salamanders, and watching a porcupine.
Through games and hands-on activities, the 14 students learned about vernal pools and some of the animals that rely on the habitat. MCHT's stewards Doug McMullin and Kirk Gentalen led the tour, which included passing around spotted salamanders and using fish nets to get a closer look at some of the pool's critters. The kids brought their journals and took time to document the animals they caught, like dragonfly nymphs and phantom midges.
A special treat came when a local porcupine was spied through the lens of a spotting scope, giving everyone a close-up view of the lumbering animal. The hike back to the bus yielded several encounters with mushrooms, too. "The kids were great," noted Gentalen, "They were ready to explore and really got into each of the activities."
After a day like this, the Adams School students are certainly looking forward to two more field trips this spring - a return to Witherle Woods and a boat ride up the Bagaduce River.
102 Bags of Trash Taken from Flat Island
On a glorious day in early May, local volunteers from Addison joined MCHT staff to pick up trash on Flat Island. The 20-acre island has been owned by MCHT since 2005 and sheep have been an important part of the island's history since the late 1800's. Today, approximately 20 sheep belonging to Donna Kausen of Addison graze here each summer. Flat Island is also a nationally significant seabird nesting island.
The volunteer crew picked up 32 bags of materials that were recycled at the Pleasant River Transfer Station, as well as 70 bags of trash for a total haul of 102 bags. On the island, the bags were loaded on a small boat at high tide before being transferred to the "Honey B," owned by Paul Ferriero of Harrington, for transport back to the mainland. The bags were then moved to trucks and hauled to the transfer station. A few lobster buoys were even returned to their rightful owners.
Calderwood Island Burn
On May 13th, MCHT staff accompanied six Maine Forest Service rangers to conduct a prescribed burn of 7 acres of common juniper on the Calderwood Island Preserve off North Haven. Once thick with pasture grasses and home to rugged, island sheep, Calderwood has gradually been reclaimed by spruce forest and extensively colonized by juniper. Its scenic value has suffered somewhat.
For participating MCHT staff, the 13th was a workday to remember, but for the rangers, this was a critical training activity. The burn, which lasted about three hours, was a complete success, both logistically and ecologically. Nearly all the juniper on the southern third of the island was burned off, with minimal collateral damage to either mature spruces or fragile island soils. The burn's success can be attributed to the skill of the Forest Service rangers, but also to an amazing break in the weather and sound advanced planning.
While the burn only lasted a few hours, it required significant preparation. Last year, the MCHT summer work crew cut fire breaks to minimize damage to trees. On the day of the burn, MCHT staff limbed trees and created fuel breaks around hardwoods. The burn also required significant transportation: getting thirteen people and hundreds of pounds of equipment to and from an island in the middle of Penobscot Bay required patience and coordination...not to mention a ferry, a lobster boat, a dinghy, and a helicopter.
MCHT stewardship staff will monitor the burned area throughout this and subsequent growing seasons to evaluate the burn's long-term effectiveness. Given the ample and persistent seed bank typical of land once used for pasture, the expectation is for native and naturalized grasses to return quickly. Who knows? Maybe one day, a few hardy sheep will find their way back to Calderwood.
