In the Right Place: Double Delight Department

We had another gentle, fine-flaked snow fall during New Year’s Day morning yesterday. Within the week, the wily weather gods have presented both a white Christmas and a white New Year’s Day. Let’s hope that this is a good omen and that 2026 will have less chaos and fewer terrible events than last year.

Although the snow has brought us more delight than damage, it seems to have caused some difficulties for our white-tailed deer, which have been trying to breach the deer barriers in our front garden:

Note that this youngster not only has a partially white-tail, she has a partially white back due to clumps of snow. The fact that this snow is not melting on her – despite a body temperature of over 100° F – shows how well her winter coat insulates her.

(Images taken in Brooklin, Maine, on January 1, 2026.)

December Postcards From Down East Maine

December, the last month of chaotic 2025, was surprisingly pleasant. We had mostly mild temperatures (by Maine winter standards) with several snowfalls that were more picturesque than problematic. Perhaps the highlight of the month was when one of those gentle snowstorms arrived on the day-before-Christmas, which ended that eve with us waiting for Santa by the fire, followed by a sunny white Christmas:

There was a lushness to December’s falling snow and a brilliance in the landscape when the sun came out:

As usual, we include Postcards of the four iconic scenes that we’ve been monitoring for you and posterity: the view of Mount Desert Island’s western mountains from Brooklin’s Amen Ridge; the summer house overlooking Brooklin’s Naskeag Harbor; the near-mountain called Blue Hill in the town of the same name, and the old boathouse in Blue Hill’s Conary Cove:

December’s most memorable furry and spikey fauna included white-tailed deer in their darker winter coats and Harry, our resident porcupine, who came out on sunny days. (Unfortunately, I was unable to get a decent photograph oi Bernie and Bernice, our resident nocturnal American beavers who stay in their burrow on cold days.)

As for the most memorable feathered fauna, that would be our hardy ring-billed and herring seagulls that like to drink the fresh water from melted sea ice and the mallard ducks that huddled with gulls in the open water atop Mill Stream’s icy dam. (And, by the way, December was duck hunting time when boat-blinds were seen being readied to motor out to the islands.)

Winterberry was the most seasonal December flora of the native kind. We also enjoyed flora of the non-native kind in the form of poinsettias. And, perhaps the most important of December “flora” was of the constructed kind, the Brooklin community-created Christmas Trap Tree on the Town Office lawn.

The waterfront always is interesting. In December, boats were still being put into winter storage at the renowned Brooklin Boat Yard and its pier in icy Center Harbor went through several fascinating transformations.

In nearby Naskeag Harbor, the no-nonsense Brooklin Town commercial dock dominated the seascape and fishing vessels were re-rigged from lobster trappers into scallop draggers. The beauty of Maine’s rockbound shore also became more apparent as the tide lowered in Blue Hill’s Conary Cove on a clear December day.

In December’s skies, winter’s colder, clearer air brought us many extraordinary sundowns.

A beautiful waxing gibbous moon rose on several clear December nights. When the moon later became fully illuminated into the month’s traditional “Full Cold Moon ,” it rose through the icy crystals of high-altitude cirrus clouds that ceated a lunar halo:

We hope that all our friends and family enjoyed the December holidays and have a happy new year.

(All the images in this post were taken in Down East Maine during December 2025.)

In the Right Place: Let the Games Begin!

In the Right Place: Duck!

We’ve been seeing duck hunting boat-blinds like this one that came in and out of Naskeag Harbor yesterday. Note what appears to be a pile of long-tailed duck decoys in its storage area:

The migratory duck hunting season here in Maine’s Coastal Zone ends January 6. Hunters here primarily use shotguns when hunting migratory ducks, but state regulations require that the guns be no larger than No. 10 gauge, incapable of holding more than three shells, and fired from the shoulder. The ducks also may be hunted with bow and arrow, crossbow, or a falcon.

For many species, the daily duck limit is 4, but other limits are applied to various species. Duck hunters here must buy a Federal Duck Stamp and a State Migratory Waterfowl Permit, the funds from which go to wildlife and habitat conservation. (Images taken in Brooklin, Maine, on December 30, 2025.)

In the Right Place: Holiday Styles, IV

The Big Bang Theory of how our universe began with hot gases is not to be confused with The Big Wreath Theory of how the holiday season is extended in Down East with large wreaths on highly visible structures, including boathouses and repurposed barn- garages.

Some of Down East’s public wreaths won’t be taken down until March or later, when they’re brown or bare. (Images taken in Blue Hill [boathouse] and Brooklin [“barn”] on December 18 and 9, 2025, respectively.)

In the Right Place: Holiday Styles, III

Porch holiday decorations vary greatly around here. Above ypu see what appears to be a historic bicycle that has been festooned with holiday lights and flora. It’s on the MAE boutique’s porch. The bike looks like it might be a balloon-tired “Ladies’ Roadmaster Cruiser” made by the Cleveland [Ohio] Welding Company, which started production in the 1930s and was later bought by AMF. (Note also the interesting gingerbread capital atop the column.)

Below you’ll see a more utilitarian and common Down East residential porch with holiday lights, a wreath of greens, and ready-to-use winter paraphernalia: shovel, broom, and bucket (containing ice melt crystals, I suspect). (Note also the intriguing shadows.)

(Images taken in Blue Hill, Maine, on December 23 [MAE] and 16 [residence], 2025.)

In the Right Place: On Being Rockbound

The rockbound coast of Maine sometimes seems to reach out and dare – some would say entice – vessels to get too close. And, over the centuries, many vessels have gotten too close and been damaged or destroyed on our jagged edges. That’s when a mariner’s boldness turns to terror, especially in the winter cold.

Yet, there’s no denying it: much of our coast is awesomely beautiful and intriguingly thrilling. That’s especially so when the lower winter sun finds the massive granite probes at half-tide and illuminates their prehistoric rockweed and barnacle free riders. The complicated soul of Maine seems to be slightly revealed by its beautiful, but not fully-tamed, shores.

(Image taken in Blue Hill, Maine, on December 18, 2025.)

In the Right Place: Seeing Red

Mother Nature’s Christmas gift has become glazed like fine porcelain. Colorful objects wrapped in the snow pop visually. Old and old-looking red structures are especially eye-catching. Here’s a neighbor’s red-daubed workshop that was built in the early 1900s and reportedly was used to carve wooden decoys for duck hunting, among other things:

Here’s the present red Amen Farm “barn,” which actually is a recently rebuilt place, reportedly with an entertainment great room and fireplace, among other human amenities:

That structure is reminiscent of the original Amen Farm barn, which reportedly was built about 1850. That well-worn barn last housed goats and chickens before it was torn down and replaced.

(Images taken in Brooklin, Maine, on December 26, 2025.)

In the Right Place: Holiday Styles, II

Above, you see the Brooklin General store in simple holiday welcoming attire, perhaps as Edward Hooper would have liked to see it. It’s a welcome sight to Brooklinites coming home during winter evenings. Below, you’ll see a Blue Hill professional services space in more elegant welcoming attire, including Grecian urns and fine greenery. It’s apparently designed to impress, and it works.

(Images taken in Brooklin, Maine, on December 18 and Blue Hill, Maine, on December 19, 2025.)

In the Right Place: O' Little Town of Brooklin

A lovely snowfall came to us on Christmas Eve and carried over to provide a white Christmas morning full of slow-drifting snowflakes. By mid-day on Christmas, it had stopped and a bright sun came out to show off Mother Nature’s handiwork. Barbara and I would like to share some of the images of this joyous Chritsmas gift with you, our Christian and non-Christian friends and family.

We begin with the trees and other flora that become elegant when draped or dappled with snow, including one that had a string of blue lights glowing through the crystals:

Brooklin landmarks that looked especially at ease in the falling snow included the community-constructed lobster trap tree in front of the Town Offices, Friend Memorial Public Library, and the Camperdown elm in the Brooklin Cemetery:

Other local residential and utilitarian structures also seemed to welcome being snowed-in:

Brooklin’s roads, private lanes, and driveways were (as usual) timely plowed and often took on a beauty of their own:

On the ice-laden waterfront, the Town dock at Naskeag Harbor and the Brooklin Boat Yard pier at Center Harbor displayed their differing personalities in the white weather:

The snowy landscape became strewn with sugared objets d’art, including an antique hay rake (sans horse); a red swing (sans child); and a literally snowy owl (sans head) made of granite. There also were beautified urns, bird baths, forged handrails, rain chains, and a smothered Christmas wreath.

We’d like to give you a hint of what it’s like to live and work n a mostly glass house and watch a beautiful snowfall instead of throwing stones:

In the late afternoon of Christmas eve, the sky cleared and the sun broke through, creating a cold luminescence that evolved into a colorful sunset:

The snowfall on Christmas paused at mid-day and the sun returned once more to highlight Mother Nature’s gilding and sculpturing:

Merry Christmas to all.

(All images in this post, except the “Merry Christmas” card, were photographed in Brooklin, Maine, on Christmas eve and Christmas day, 2025. The image in that card was taken on December 6, 2025.)

In the Right Place: We Wish You Joy

Barbara and I hope that all of our Christian and non-Christian friends and family experience joy today. We appreciate you so much.

In fact, we hope to give you a holiday gift that will share some of our joy: a photo-essay on the Christmas eve snowfall that brought us a beautiful white Christmas. I hope to finish editing it by this afternoon.

In the Right Place: Looks Like a White One

We opened the shades to this scene this morning. It looks like we’ll have a white Christmas and some protection from sleigh damage to our roofs tonight. We’re under Winter Weather Advisory and Gale Warning alerts, and the off-and-on snowfall is forecast to last through Christmas morning. It looks like we’ve gotten between 3 and 4 inches so far.

(Image taken in Brooklin, Maine, on December 24, 2025.)

In the Right Place: Life with Harry, III

We continue to see Harry frequently. He seems content this winter in his own eccentric way, but it’s difficult to psychoanalyze North American porcupines (aka “quillpigs”).

Harry spends a lot of time feeding in open fields and lawns in daylight, which seems unusual for a rodent that’s supposed to be shy and primarily a nocturnal feeder. He apparently hasn’t switched to what is supposed to be the porcupine winter diet of conifer needles, twigs, and the nutrient-rich inner bark (cambium) of trees such as hemlock, birch, fir, and aspen.

Harry seems to spend most of his winter days with his head in field and lawn vegetation, feeding on grasses, other low growth, and maybe roots. It may be that climate warming has kept nonwoody vegetation alive and tasty.

As with all porcupines, Harry has poor eyesight and is slow to react to surprises. If you get upwind of him and move carefully, you often can get fairly close to him. He’ll move off and try to keep his back to you when he discovers your presence. (His tail is a spiked club that is his primary defensive weapon.)

(Images taken in Brooklin, Maine, on December 22, 2025.)

In the Right Place: The Long and Short of It All

Yesterday’s winter SOLstice arrived appropriately on SUNday, played now-you-see-it-now-you don’t with the SUNlight much of that shortest day of the year, and then ended the day at 3:48 p.m. with this magnificent SUNdown. The longest night of the year had begun.

“Solstice” literally means standing sun. As you probably know, the winter solstice occurs when our northern hemisphere is tilted farthest from the Sun, marking the start of astronomical winter and the time from which days slowly begin to get longer again as we tilt back. (Image taken on December 21, 2025.) Click on the image to enlarge it.

In the Right Place: A Winter’s View

Here you see a winter’s view the south face of the near-mountain called Blue Hill, where conifer trees are evergreen, deciduous trees are now leafless, and glacier-deposited rocks abound:

A closer look at the summit reveals a communications tower that was put up there in 1981 for transmitters and repeaters and rebuilt later to add cellular service equipment. Ground views of the summit often reveal (as you’ll see) the steeple of the First Congregational Church of Blue Hill, which was built in 1843:

A distant view of the Hill revaels beautiful Blue Hill Bay at its feet:

(Images taken in Blue Hill, Maine, on December 16, 2025.)

In the Right Place: Holiday Styles

This may be the first in a series of posts on contrasting Christmas and winter holiday expressions in our Down East neighborhood.

Above, you see a fine old house decorated for the season in what we’ll call the “exuberant style”:  a snowman train traveling south; Santa’s reindeer sleigh traveling northwest; massive evergreen wreaths and (I think) huge gingerbread cookies on the house, and much more. It’s a belly-laugh.

Below, you’ll see another fine old house decorated for the season in what we’ll call the “restrained style”: two big, beautiful evergreen wreaths discretely displayed at the back of a porch. It’s a contented smile:

(Images taken in Blue Hill [exuberant] and Brooklin [understated], Maine, on December 18 and 11, 2025, respectively.)

In the Right Place: Salty Tales

Here you see seagulls (two herring, one ring-billed) about to quench their thirsts in a small pond of melted ice water atop sea ice.

Sea ice takes longer to freeze due to its salt content, but freezing and melting can desalinate the ice; the older the melting ice, the less salt its melt-water will have. Very old sea ice will melt into a fluid that has no or virtually no salt. Unless you’re desperate, however, don’t drink that liquid – it may contain bacteria, viruses, and/or other contamination.

Seagulls and many other sea birds can—and often do – drink their sea water straight. But they seem to like fresh water when they can get it. Most seagulls and other sea birds have special desalinating glands that filter out excess salt, which is excreted through their nostrils, according to the literature. (Images taken in Blue Hill, Maine, on December 16, 2025.)

In the Right Place: Crispy/Crunchy

Here you see yesterday’s rising tide in Great Cove, which is now devoid of the many vessels she hosts from spring into fall. That’s the WoodenBoat School’s pier to the right:

There was a bit of a wind up yesterday morning. The tide was coming in on small, rolling waves that roiled the rockweed and broke on the stoney shore with repetitive crispy/crunchy percussions that turned into sizzles when the wave’s water raced through the stones, shuddered to a stop, and backed off a bit:

(Images taken in Brooklin, Maine, on December 17, 2025.)

In the Right Place: Merriness Makers

‘Tis the season … when Barbara sprinkles the house with holiday flowers and berries, some of them elf-sized, some immigrants, some natives, all merry.

Above, you see a green-leafed, red-bracted poinsettia branch of Mexican derivation. (The plant’s vibrantly-colored bracts are not flower petals; they’re specialized leaves.) Below, you’ll see New England winterberry holly in its leafless winter form with berries like Christmas tree ornaments strung by an elf that has imbibed too much good cheer:

There also is the chunky-size variety of winterberry:

(Images taken in Brooklin, Maine, on December 15, 2025.)

In the Right Place: Dressed Warmly

Yesterday was sharply cold and pleasantly clear at windy Conary Cove. The old red boat house was dressed in her usual warm colors. She even sported a holiday wreath and (I think) holiday lights. I’ll have to check her out after dark some evening.

(Images taken in Blue Hill, Maine, on December 15, 2025.)