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Boats in the harbor in Boothbay Maine
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Postcards from Maine

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Maine Life, Maine Weather, Maine People, Maine Places & Activities,

Discover the Coast of Maine  -  MaineLife Video

Soak in the sights and enjoy Maine hospitality at its best.

Maine's rich history is rivalled only by its remarkable size. The largest state in New England, Maine contains 17 million acres of forestland, 6,000 lakes and ponds, 32,000 miles of rivers and streams, 2,000 islands, half-a-million acres of national and state parks and just 1.2 million people. Whether it's history and art, shopping and leisure or hiking and sailing, Maine offers it all.

No one knows coastal Maine real estate like we do.

We make it easy for you to fulfill your dream of owning property on or near the coast of Maine. We'll help you locate just the right property and guide you safely—and wisely—through the negotiation and acquisition of your real estate purchase. Put our years of coastwise knowledge and experience representing Maine's home buyers to work for you. Call us tooday to discuss your search at: 800-293-4416.
Kid with Fish - Fishing in Maine

Fishing in Maine  -  MaineLife Video

Maine boasts 5,500 miles of coastline, 6,000 lakes and ponds, and 32,000 miles of rivers and streams. The state's fishing waters have remained strong because of management practices, a statewide stocking program, and the general health of waterways. Maine has the largest wild native brook trout population in the country and more miles of native brook trout water than any other state in the country.

If you're buying coastal Maine real estate, do yourself a favor and find an experienced buyer's broker who knows the coast of Maine.

You can Easily Design Your Own Maine Property Search.

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Coastal Maine WebCams  -  Maine WebCam Directory

Live from Maine!   Links to scenic Maine web cameras.

Let your PC take you to Maine with these wonderful web cams that capture the state's beaches, lighthouses, harbors and towns.Visit Maine from the comfort of your home or office — 24/7/365.

We'll help you locate just the right property and guide you safely—and wisely—through the negotiation and acquisition of your real estate purchase.
Put our years of coastwise knowledge and experience representing Maine's home buyers to work for you. Call us to discuss your search at 800-293-4416.

Maine Resources - Links to Maine's Essentials

Finding your dream property in Maine has never been easier!

Maine Real Estate Listings

Lobster Fishing Off Vinalhaven in Maine  -  MaineLife Video

lobsterboat in maine Long ago, lobsters were so plentiful that Native Americans used them to fertilize their fields and to bait their hooks for fishing. In colonial times, lobsters were considered "poverty food." They were harvested from tidal pools and served to children, to prisoners, and to indentured servants, who exchanged their passage to America for seven years of service to their sponsors. In Massachusetts, some of the servants finally rebelled. They had it put into their contracts that they would not be forced to eat lobster more than three times a week.

Maine Lobstering History

Until the early 1800s, lobstering was done by gathering them by hand along the shoreline. Lobstering as a trap fishery came into existence in Maine around 1850. Today Maine is the largest lobster-producing state in the nation. Though the number of lobstermen has increased dramatically, the amount of lobsters caught has remained relatively steady. In 1892, 2600 people in the Maine lobster fishery caught 7,983 metric tons; in 1989, 6300 Maine lobstermen landed 10,600 metric tons of lobster.

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Clam Digging - How Clams Get To The Table
MaineLife Video

Clam Digging Is Hard Work Done In All Kinds Of Weather

Clam digging is a common means of harvesting clams from below the surface of the tidal mud flats where they live. It is done both recreationally (for enjoyment or as a source of food) and commercially (as a source of income). Commercial digging is colloquially referred to as clamming, and is done by a clammer.

Clam digging in Maine is done using a "clam hoe" (a pitchfork with the handle cut off about 18" from the tines then bent about 70 degrees) and a "roller" (a half? bushel basket built using wood lathes or wire mesh) and hip waders (boots that extend up to the top of the legs).

Lobster Fishing in Maine. What its like to be a lobsterman in Maine
MaineLife Video

Lobster traps are the best technique to catch lobsters.

The State of Maine has special laws that are designed to protect our lobster fishery for years to come. We use a special gauge to measure the lobsters carapace (body). There are both minimum and maximum size measurements. The minimum size is designed to make sure that all lobsters are mature enough to breed at least once before they are harvested. The maximum size limit is designed to protect the breeding stock. A minimum size lobster will weigh around 1 lb., while a maximum size lobster will weigh between 3-4 lbs. The most plentiful, and most popular size of Maine Lobsters are 1 1/4 - 1 1/2 lb. each. Maine is the only state to protect the resource like this.

North Haven Island  -  MaineLife Video

North Haven is an island town proud of its traditions, its independence, its treasured natural beauty and its unique community of twelfth generation natives, fourth (as well as first) generation seasonal residents, retired and pre-retired baby boomers, maverick spirits, new arrivals, young year-round families, old bachelors, reconstructed hippies, young farmers, not-so-young Grangers, artists, sailors, artisans, fishermen, boat-builders, babies (Hunter, Caden, Ezra, Zeke, Bailey, Whitney, Emmi Rose, Cyrus, Parker and Warren ), makers-of-many-things, brides (Lydia, Hannah, Becca, Monica, Liza, Cassie & Amanda) romantics and curmudgeons.

Maps of Popular Coastal Maine Towns

Life on Peaks Island Maine  -  MaineLife Video

Peaks Island Residents Tell Their Stories

Peaks Island is the most populated island in the Casco Bay, with a winter population of approximately 850. In the summer months, however, the population swells to 4,000 or 5,000. The island has a 130-year-old elementary school serving 54 students from grades K-5. There is also a year-round developmental daycare facility, called the Children’s Workshop, that provides preschool, before- and after-school programs and daycare for ages 2 to 5 years. Most people commute daily to jobs on the mainland as do middle and senior high-school students. The island is also home to many retirees, and the Fay Garmin house was built as a senior housing community.

Morning at Pemaquid Point Maine  -  MaineLife Video

How a day begins in Maine

Pemaquid Point itself entrances both land and water visitors by the fascinating northwest-southeast varied veins of rock formation that look for all the world as if great giants had 'pulled taffy' while the rocks were in a molten condition.

Here's an eEasy way to view all real estate listings in any town on the coast of Maine. Additionally, there's links to the town's Chamber of Commerce, a local newspaper, town facts, and local points of interest. Get to know Maine towns. Visit the chamber of Commerce. Read the local newspaper. Get local information.

Portland Maine Is A Top Retirement City  -  MaineLife Video

U.S. News & World Reports - Portland Maine - Best Places to Retire

Videos, webcams, points of interest, town facts, etc. Local knowledge Green living. Organic Gardening magazine recently named Portland, Maine as one of the greenest cities in the nation. Portland residents pride themselves on their compact, walkable city, which, like Boston some 100 miles to the south, was built before the automobile. For local travel, Portland runs a well-regarded public transit system. To go farther afield, more and more residents rely on Amtrak's Downeaster route to Boston. And a nonprofit called Portland Green Streets encourages people to leave their cars at home on the last Friday of each month. "People are finding ways of living their lives without the automobile and finding ways to reduce our carbon footprint," says Dave Marshall, an artist and Portland city councilor. Barbara Doughty, 65, moved here from Des Moines five years ago with her husband. She finds both exercise and companionship at Lifeline, an affordable, comprehensive wellness program offered by the University of Southern Maine. "The people who work out here are great," she says, panting as she pedals an exercise bike. There are more than 60 offerings—from gyms to yoga to Pilates—within 5 miles of the university, says fitness manager Peter Allen.

Anna Goodale - Olympic Gold comes from growing up in Maine
Postcard from Maine

"I grew up tapping maple trees, collecting honey, bringing in hay, . . . being outside all the time," said Goodale whose mother home schooled her until the age of nine, allowing her creativity to flourish.

All Things Maine Real Estate - Maine Real Estate Listings, Real Estate For Sale In Maine, Maine Real Estate Information The athlete’s love of Maine inspires her. "When I’m away from Maine, I loose a bit of how special the state is. Then when I come back I feel the magic here and see how beautiful it is. There’s something in the air here that makes you feel more alive. There are very few places that I’ve been to that touch me the same way Maine does. For me it’s rejuvenating. Just to be able to be outside, to be around the ocean and mountains. And where the mountains meet the sea is where I grew up, in Camden," said Goodale. "It’s amazing to have all those opportunities here, growing up on the water, sailing, and rowing. My father taught me how to row a dingy; it’s a little different than rowing in the Olympics — it was a great start. For me, growing up on the water, being outside and developing athletics, and then being able to compete in the Olympics, has been just absolutely perfect."

Maine is a great place to live & raise children  -  Postcard from Maine

Maine leads the country in high school graduation rates, at 95.4% and ranks in the top 10% of states for quality of education.

  • The September, 2004 issue of National Geographic Adventure Magazine named Portland to its list of "Ten Great Adventure Towns".
  • Bangor, Maine landed in the number two spot in the 2004 edition of "Cities Ranked & Rated". Bangor was found to be the second best location in the country among metropolitan areas with populations less than 100,000.
  • The March 2004 issue of INC. Magazine includes Portland, Maine in its listing of the top 25 cities for doing business in America. This exclusive list ranks more than 270 large, medium and small cities.
  • Every year in an Outside Magazine readers' poll, Rockland, Maine ranks among the top 100 best small towns to live in.
  • Portland, Maine is listed as one of America's Dozen Distinctive Destinations by the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
  • Maine has been rated as the best state in the nation to raise children by the Children's Rights Council, a national advocacy group in Washington D.C.
  • Portland is listed as one of the top 10 "Kid-Friendly Cities" in ZPG's Kid-Friendly Cities Report Card.
  • Outside Magazine rated Portland as one of the 10 best places to live, based on culture and accessibility to the variety of Maine's outdoor adventures.
  • Portland's special efforts to foster connectedness and contentment placed it in the top 10 of America's most enlightened towns by the Utne Reader.
  • Health Risk Management, Inc.'s QualityFIRST Index ranks Maine one of the top 10 states in health care quality.
  • Portland was rated one of the top 10 cities to "Have It All" by the A&E television channel. Maine's largest city is consistently rated as one of the most desired cities to live in America.

Belfast is a fun place to live -  Postcard from Maine

Belfast is an offbeat quirky & artsy town on the coast of Maine

Last year, Belfast, Maine, had painted bears along the steep Main Street that runs down to the harbor. But this year, the city left the artists to their own devices and the resulting show is full of quirky surprises. I met artist Cy Klausmeyer of nearby Swanville making a few adjustments to his Bicycle Icthyopter, a bicycle with metal fish head and tail attached. Climb on and pedal hard and the tail swishes back and forth. Klausmeyer also created my favorite piece: a shiny red tricycle outfitted with two pairs of shiny red wings. It looks like it could fly. “That’s why I have it bolted down,” Klausmeyer said, “so nobody will try to pedal it off a roof.”

Schooner - Camden Harbor in Winter -  Postcard from Maine

Winter brings a quiet time to Camden Maine

The water in the harbor freezes some years. Ducks still come around and look for tourists and handouts. The waterfall still runs and fishermen anxiously await the return of the eels. The fisherman will be putting out their nets to try to catch the teeny tiny eels as they try to migrate up the waterfall. The seals can also be seen swimming around looking to see if dinner is ready. Many come to Camden and Rockport looking for seals because of the (true) legend of Andre the Seal. The ducks, seals, eels, and fisherman work all winter, making the harbor a true working winter harbor and a scenic wonderland.

Oceanfront Home on Swans Island Maine -  Postcard from Maine


Swan's Island is a remote island, with ferry service originating in Bass Harbor

The island has almost none of the mainland amenities. There are no stores, no liquor sales, and no amusements, except those that people create for themselves. The year-round population is about 350 people, with over 1000 people in the summertime.

Lobstering is the main occupation on Swan's Island. The economy of the island is mostly dependent on the income derived from lobstering. Swan's Island has about 40 full-time lobstermen and women, and many part-timers, including school children who fish from small skiffs in the summer.

Mackerel Fishing in Maine -  Postcard from Maine

Pointers for Parents - Get Kids Hooked on Fishing in Maine Get local knowledge.
Maine has so much water. Remember that almost all water bodies in Maine contain fish. And kids aren’t that picky. Go to the nearest lake or pond. Pan fish will do for starters. Rivers are trickier than ponds and lakes for small legs. To get kids started, find a dock on a lake or pond. Remember to have them wear a life preserver if fishing in an exposed place like a rocky point. Learn to cast a line before you go out with your child so you can teach them how. Once they learn to cast, they’re off and running. Your child will appreciate bigger hands helping out when things go wrong—which they will—including line tangles, lures caught in bushes, and snags on the bottom.

Local CoastWise Knowledge of Maine Real Estate

Bailey Island Maine - Mackerel Cove - Postcard from Maine

Mackerel Cove is in Harpswell Maine. Mackerel Cove must be one of the most picturesque small harbors in Maine. The cove itself is largely a traditional Maine working harbor. There are a few moored pleasure boats but they are clearly the minority to a larger fleet of working class commercial lobster and fishing boats

Owning real estate is still one of the best wealth builders available to a vast majority of people.

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