Category: Seguin Island News

Of all the questions we are asked by the groups of visitors who come to Seguin, there is one that has haunted us for the past month. It’s a question most often asked by veteran Seguin guests, and our answer has always been tinged with the pain of anticipation:

”How are the blackberries this year?”

Finally, we can say that the berries are ripe!

Well, they’re beginning to ripen, anyway. We’ve reached the point in the season where the first of the mature berries are ripe, but there are still a good amount of berries that are almost there… in the next week we should be in full blackberry season. Bring your buckets or ask us for one!

Today, most of our guests arrived in the afternoon, so there was time for trail maintenance in the morning. As summer fully unfolds there is less mowing to do on the trails, but we are committed to keeping them well groomed and passable. It doesn’t hurt that the hiking paths just so happen to be lined with delicious treats, either!

Daily Weather Report
Temp: 76.6° / 64°
Sunny & humid with increasing clouds in the afternoon ⛅️ 
Wind: W 5.2mph/ Gust: 22.8mph
High Tide: 1:51 am / 2:19 pm
Low Tide: 8:08 am / 8:22 pm

We had another wild weather day. The fog settled on the island, and we had some very heavy rain for most of the morning.

The ground was soggy and slippery for our short hike with the dogs to check on the cove for visitors, but there was just one sailboat that had spent the night.

We settled into a quiet day watching the Olympics because the weather was so tricky, but then I got a text from a friend from Kittery and she and her partner were sailing by. Because we knew there were open moorings, we were able to have them turn around to visit Seguin for the first time! It was definitely a first to have someone from home “just driving by” to come visit! They got a chance to tour the lighthouse and see the island before settling back onto their boat to wait out some more rain and weather.

By the time they got back to their boat, all the moorings were full. I assume that most are planning to wait out the storms here as we haven’t seen anyone come up to the lighthouse since our last rain showers.

Daily Weather Report
Temperature: 74.8 / 64.9
Foggy and driving rain in the morning, cloud cover and showers by afternoon
Wind: 5.8mph NNW / Gust 22.8mph
High Tide:  11:48am / 11:53pm
Low Tide:  5:40am / 5:41pm

Yesterday (Friday) the FOSILS members came to the island to do some repairs and maintenance, while Matt headed to shore for a later-than-usual resupply. It was a pretty brutally hot day, both on-shore and on-island. We rarely see temperatures around 80 degrees, and with no breeze and a bit of haze, it felt much hotter. Since I stayed back on the island with the dogs, I had the chance to give tours to our 18 visitors for the day. One group had a couple who had been coming out to Seguin for at least 10 years and they commented on how every caretaker has their own special facts they add in to the basics of the lighthouse tour. I suppose it’s true that every caretaker will find different parts of the island history the most interesting and be excited to share it with others.

Today (Saturday) we awoke early morning thunder and lightning storms and the thickest fog we’ve had all summer. We were completely socked in until about 11am. The coast guard channel on the radio was buzzing with boats communicating their positions and navigating around each other in the channels. Here on Seguin, it was a pretty quiet day for a Saturday with only nine visitors despite the favorable conditions in the afternoon, but I’m sure the early morning weather kept a lot of people closer to shore. Though, Seguin is definitely getting some traffic because the Seguin Island Sprint – the little sister to the Monhegan Island Race hosted by the Portland Yacht Club – is being held today into tomorrow morning. Sailboats left Portland at 3pm and are out tonight using the buoy off the south end of the island as their turnaround point. Most will finish late this evening or by early tomorrow morning.

Daily Weather Report
Temperature: 77.0 /64.8
Rain and fog in the morning, clearing by late afternoon
Wind: 5.8mph WSW Gusts 12.5mph
High Tide: 11:03am / 11:09pm 
Low Tide: 4:54am / 4:55pm

We haven’t had a visitor at the lighthouse since Sunday. A few intrepid souls sought refuge from the weather in the cove, but no one has made the trek up the hill to visit the museum and take a tour, so you can imagine our delight when we heard the welcome bell ring. As a few guests came into view, we imagined a family had come for a day on Seguin, but the number of guest quickly climbed to 10, 20, and finally over 50! We stood in bewilderment until an adult introduced the group as the SPSS, the Small Point Summer School.

The children plunked down for lunch on the lawn around the lighthouse, after which they ran around the island and filled the air with laughter. A few of the group ventured up into the lighthouse while the others enjoyed the sun and pleasant sea breeze. It was a welcome bit of life after a comfortable, but isolated, few days.

Daily Weather Report 
High: 78.1° / 63.5°
Sunny and partly cloudy 🌤️ 
Wind: W 6.9mph / Gust: 20.6mph
High Tide: 9:17am / 9:28pm
Low Tide: 3:07am / 3:11am 

The weather this week has been windy, foggy, and rainy, and it ended up being our first time we had to reschedule our weekly trip to shore this summer. Instead of going today, Matt will go to shore on Friday. Luckily, we have done a good job all summer staying ahead of our water and food needs and we have a pretty good stockpile that would let us ride through another week if we had to.

It’s wild to think about year-round keepers who lived here prior to modern conveniences like refrigeration. A stormy season could lead to keepers being on-island for weeks at a time without the ability to resupply. The forethought needed and resourcefulness of the keepers of the past impresses us daily, but never more so than on the days when the surf is high and breaking over the rocks of Cobblestone Beach.

Despite the variable conditions, having a few days to ourselves on the island has been pretty welcomed after our busy weekend. We did some trail maintenance between the rain showers and were even greeted with a rainbow around dinnertime.

Daily Weather Report
Temperature: 72.1 / 63.5
Foggy in the morning, windy, with some rain showers
Wind: 11.4mph SW,  Gust: 20.6mph
High Tide: 8:16am / 8:30pm
Low Tide: 2:05am / 2:11pm

The adverse weather continued to keep visitors away and continued to keep projects at bay. By the time the rain let up, all motivation for our new painting project (more on that later) dried up with the sun. Tomorrow’s forecast is not promising either, so we decided to accomplish something fun.

Somewhere on our travels to Seguin I picked up an old 2hp Johnson Seahorse for short money. It’s been strapped to the top of Maureen’s van ever since, which, like knowing a secret handshake, confirms we’re at least Mainers if not locals. I finally brought it out to Seguin and got it running after some minor surgery. There’s something about the smell of a 2 stroke outboard and salt water that makes me feel like adventure is in the air, although with an engine this small it will probably have to be at slack tide.

Daily Weather Report
Temp: 73.9° / 60.1°
Fog and rain in the morning turning to sun and wind in the afternoon 
Wind: SW 6.1 mph / Gust: 19.5mph
High Tide: 7:09am / 7:28pm
Low Tide: 12:58am / 1:07pm 

After a few days of nearly perfect weather over the weekend, stormy weather arrived for the start of the week. It was a very quiet day of baking muffins and watching the waves hit up against the rocks of Cobblestone Beach. We saw one brave sailboat attempting to take shelter from the storm in the cove last night. The winds were from the north, and they were being hit broadside. I hope the sailors have more favorable weather as they continue their journey as the wind of change shift, but they certainly don’t need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows.

Daily Weather Report
Temperature: 69.4°F / 60.1°F
Fog and rain in the morning, clearing early evening
Wind: 15.4mph NNE, Gust 18.7mph
High Tide: 6:02am/ 6:25pm
Low Tide: 12:04pm

We apologize for the radio silence this weekend – it’s been a busy one! Since Friday, we had over 70 visitors to the island, bringing our total to nearly 500 for the summer!

The steady stream of visitors of all ages, both returning and first-timers, is a testament to how intriguing Seguin Island is to so many people who love Midcoast Maine. Kids tend to love searching for sea glass and crabs in the Cove and at Cobblestone Beach, while adults love hearing the history of the lighthouse and the outbuildings on the tours. We had some visitors this weekend that really left an impression on us.

On Friday, family came to visit the island for the first time. The kids ranged in age from almost 8 to almost 13 years old and mom and dad came, too. We brought the dogs on hikes, swam in the cove, went tide pooling, found about a pound of sea glass, and told stories over dinner that had us all in stiches. We talked about how you can really feel the history in the keepers’ quarters – somehow you can just tell that so many people have lived and shared meals in this space. We felt incredibly fortunate to have created more shared stories between our two families here at Seguin. I’d like to think that our conversations and laughter will be felt by other keepers in the future.

Saturday was the Friends of Seguin Island Light Station (FOSILS) annual gala. It was held at the Maine Maritime Museum in Bath in a gorgeous event space that overlooks the river. We were picked up from the island at 3pm and spent the night on shore – Matt’s first night on the mainland since June 1st! It was a fun night of music, auctions, raffles, speeches, and great conversation with over 100 supporters of the lighthouse. Matt and I loved seeing everyone dressed in their best and we got to chat with quite a few visitors to the island who made it out for the event. We hope we’ll see other attendees out on the island this summer as well!

We returned back to Seguin this morning around 10:30am with the President of the Board and two attendees of last night’s gala. Immediately upon landing in the Cove, we were greeted by a steady stream of 25 visitors. We were particularly affected by getting a chance to speak with a couple who were 86 years old and had been visiting the island for the last 42 years when they vacation on Squirrel Island off Booth Bay Harbor. The gentleman told us that it was his last trip to the lighthouse, and he was so grateful it had remained in good hands and preserved for all of these years. We were moved to tears to hear him speak about his fond memories of the island and how he was so happy to have such a beautiful day to say farewell to Seguin.

We had the island back to ourselves around dinner time and we got to enjoy a beautiful sunset to end an eventful, joyful weekend. We’ll be back to our regular posting again this week!

I had an unexpected trip that brought me to shore – and actually sent me all the way across the country to the Pacific Coast – for a few days. Since June 1st, I hadn’t spent a single night off the island, so it was a bit of a shock to enter right back into society, especially since it coincided with trying to navigate airports during the global shutdown caused by the CrowdStrike update issue.

When I’m on the island, the remoteness and inaccessibility of most of modern society are so apparent that I don’t even think about cars or running out on an errand. It’s not even an option. So, I was surprised how quickly I fell back into old habits of waiting until the last minute to buy lunch or taking a quick trip to a store to grab something I forgot. Just as I adapted to life on the island, I readapted to shore life in a matter of days. Had the time on island not affected me?

Even though we still have over a month and a half left on the island, our time on Seguin is going to be over before we know it, and we’ll be able to go back to our normal routines and modern conveniences. Will I forget the way the tall grass catches the light a half hour before sunset? Will the intricate pattern of the lighthouse stairs fade out of memory? Will the strength in my legs from climbing the steep grade of the tram trail diminish? Probably, to some extent, yes – none of it will ever feel quite like it does here on the island.

At first, this made me sad, but it also made me conscious of how unique and special this time on Seguin really is. Even when we go back to “normal” life, being deeply connected to this land, our island routines, and the history and tradition of these buildings will be part of our life story. And, in turn, we’ll forever be part of the story of Seguin Light.

Daily Weather Report:
Temperature: 68.9 / 62.1
Mostly foggy, clearing in late afternoon
Wind: 8.3mph NW / Gusts 11.4mph NW
High Tide: 2:32am / 3:08pm
Low Tide:  8:45am/ 9:08pm

What a difference a day makes! Today we woke to heavy rain and thick fog. While we were probably getting spoiled by the streak of beautiful weather we’ve had for the past few days, we also have to admit that Seguin is lovely in the fog. We enjoyed the ethereal beauty with a slow breakfast and meander around the lighthouse with the dogs.

On days like this, it’s very hard to tell when guests have arrived. If we’re not on the porch, it’s very easy for visitors to come into the museum without grabbing our attention. Of course, the museum is free to explore, but we like to greet each guest and get to know a little bit about them. To make this easier we installed wireless doorbells at both doors of the museum. This way we can leave the museum unlocked and boaters to the island can come in out of the rain. If you come by the museum and don’t see us nearby, give a ring so we can come say hello 👋