Downeast Maine: Beals a coastal fishing village

Perio Point Dock sketch

Downeast Maine is the furthest easterly coast of the United States. Up the coast are the Canadian Provinces of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. This was our fourth trip to this region in a dozen years. Beals, an island, is connected to the mainland by a narrow bridge that arches high above Moosabec Reach from Jonesport. Beals, population 612, and Jonesport, population 1370, are both hubs for commercial lobster fishing.

For 10 days, my husband and I stayed in a house on Perio Point, close in to the bustling activity: spindly wooden docks piled with lobster cages and stout lobster boats plying the waters of this craggy Atlantic coastline.

From an upstairs window, I looked down on this spiffy-colored boat, the Overtimer. For the first week, 2 men worked arduously repairing it. Sheets of thin plywood and rolls of fiberglass were applied below deck, out of my sight. When the tide rose, Overtimer floated, tied to the dock. When the tide fell, she listed, her haul totally visible in the mucky, seaweed strewn mud.

Coming from Iowa in the Midwest US, I know little of the rhythms of the sea, its seasons and weather. From my front row perch, it was amazing to watch the ever-changing scene. The tides changed 12 feet from high to low! The fog rolled in; the sun broke through.

Other boats came and went.  The church steeple, over the rooftops, was a cornerstone of my view.

Boats Moored

And then toward the end of our stay, we returned from a hike just in time to see the Overtimer leaving, powered on her own out towards Moosabec Reach and Alley Bay!

This is the first installment of my recent trip to Downeast, Maine. More to come!