The Cliff Island Store & Café has been a mainstay on the island for generations, and Hope has been there through a few of its many transformations – first working at the store when she was a Portland High School student and, later, managing the store after she graduated college. This spring when she heard the owners were looking for someone to run the store, the South Portland High school teacher figured if she was going to be working hard during her summer break, she might as well be doing it in a place she loves.

Each year around Memorial Day, the store opens its doors for visitors from all around the world. This year, throughout the summer, Hope has worked to add some specialty items like Union Co. Bagels, Botto’s Breads, Coffee by Design, local beers and lobsters, Standard Baking goodies, and fresh veggies from Cultivating Communities to the store’s stock of essentials. She said this process has been a little bit of trial and error

throughout the summer, but she loves seeing the look on a customer’s face when she gets something in that they’ve requested.

When we asked what keeps drawing her back to the island, she said emphatically “the people really make this place the best.” Cliff Island has the smallest year-round population of the islands we serve, and, according to Hope, that means people look out for each other.

For some of our lucky deckhands, that means a special treat at the end of a run.

When you walk into the Cliff Island Store & Café, you’ll spot some names up on the “Ice Cream Fairy Board” meaning someone has treated them to an ice cream cone. Hope says that several of our deckhands have found themselves on the board as a thank you for a job well done.

Hope had us blushing when she said how much she appreciates our hardworking captains, deck hands, and freight crew. “We wouldn’t be here without Casco Bay Lines,” she said. “How am I going to get ice cream, produce and bread without them? They get us what we need and are so supportive.”

With summer winding down, Hope and her family have begun to think again about school bells and classrooms. Life on Cliff Island will return to its regular (peaceful) pace and the store will shut down for the season. For now, you can still grab an ice cream cone on the weekend or pick up some provisions off the noon and afternoon boats during the week. Hope says they’ll run that schedule for a few weeks and re-evaluate their official closing date in mid-September.

We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again – there’s something truly magical about these islands that keeps us all coming back for more. The spirit of community and tradition is like no other. And Hope’s family tradition of caring for her community on Cliff Island is a great example.

We really love delving a little deeper into what makes each island unique and love when you join in! We’ve received a ton of great photos as part of our #CruiseCascoBay photo contest, so keep ‘em coming –we’ll be drawing a winner every week through September 14.

From time to time on our blog we’ll be featuring stories from island residents. Casco Bay Lines remains committed to fostering strong relationships with our island communities. If you have an interesting story, feel free to reach out to us.

The post A Family Affair: Hope MacVane and The Cliff Island Store & Café appeared first on Casco Bay Lines.

If you take the 5:45 p.m. ferry from Portland to Long Island, you’ve probably seen one of our favorite passengers, Watson the Bullmastiff, with his mom Maxine headed home from a long day at work. (Dogs can ride too with their own ticket!)

What’s so special about this two and a half-year-old gentle giant, you ask? Well, in addition to his dashing good looks and affinity for island life, he’s also a certified therapy dog.

Watson lives on the east end of Long Island with his mom and dad. After spending summers on the island growing up, Maxine moved to the island full time in 2013, and she and her husband bought their home there in 2016.

Around that time, they brought an 8-week-old Watson to the island, and his journey to becoming a therapy dog started not long after. When he was just 12 weeks old, he started in a puppy class where he was exposed to different situations like loud noises, different people, and other dogs. He was such a good boy that he was given a STAR puppy award!

After that class, Watson (and Maxine’s) education continued – they took an adolescent puppy class, basic obedience 1, 2, and 3, and the Canine Good Citizen test. Finally, they underwent three supervised visits and screenings by a representative from the Alliance of Therapy Dogs at Cedars Nursing Home and Watson officially became certified as a therapy dog.

Five days a week, Watson and Maxine board the 6:45 a.m. boat from Long Island to head to work. During the day, Watson tags along with his mom to Flowfold’s headquarters in Scarborough, hanging with some of his four-legged friends while Maxine works on production and design of Flowfold’s minimalist outdoor gear.

But Watson’s favorite time on the mainland is during those hours before or after work, when the pair can be found putting Watson’s skills to work, visiting his favorite residents at places like the Maine Veteran’s Home on Route 1 in Scarborough, Cedar’s Nursing Home, Spring Harbor Hospital, and several other local businesses. He’s also been known to show up from time to time at Long Island School!

At the end of a long and fulfilling work day Maxine and Watson climb aboard their boat home and spend the trip knitting, reading, talking with friends, and napping (at least in Watson’s case). Here at Casco Bay Lines, we know that our customers depend on us to get to and from the islands. And we know that many of our customers (both two and four-legged) have people on the mainland who depend on their arrival every day. We’re awfully proud to play even a small role in Watson’s work!

Impressed by their commitment to helping others, we asked Watson and Maxine if sometimes the days seem long. Her response? They both love kicking back and relaxing on the ride home across Casco Bay. And living on an island is like going on vacation every time you go home. Watson just wagged his tail and smiled.

From time to time on our blog we’ll be featuring stories from island residents. Casco Bay Lines remains committed to fostering strong relationships with our island communities. If you have an interesting story, feel free to reach out to us.

The post Ferrying our Four-Legged Friends appeared first on Casco Bay Lines.

Back in the fall we released a documentary about our history. It was incredibly popular and we began to realize that we weren’t the only ones who had an obsession with the history of Casco Bay. The historical societies and museums in the region play a huge role in preserving this history. And so, as they prepare to open for the season on May 26, we thought it would be fun to chat with Holly Hurd-Forsyth, Curator of the Fifth Maine Regiment Museum.

The building that now houses the Fifth Maine Regiment Museum was constructed by members of the regiment and has stood strong on Seashore Avenue on Peaks Island since 1888. But before we learn more about the building, here’s a quick refresher on the Fifth Maine.

The Civil War started in April of 1861, and just a short time later the brave men of the Fifth Maine Regiment mustered in Portland to serve three years fighting all across the eastern theater of the war—the men fought in the battles of Antietam, Bull Run, Fredericksburg, Gettysburg, and many others.

After the war, the men wanted to keep in contact, so they began hosting regimental reunions, usually on one of the islands in Casco Bay. In 1887 the group decided they wanted a more permanent place to host their reunions and bought a piece of land on Peaks Island, completing construction in less than a year.

The annual reunions brought soldiers, family, and friends together—many staying in the newly constructed building, which had 15 rooms. They rented cots in the hallways, stayed in the bedrooms on the first floor, and even up in the tower, where the nicest, and most expensive (at $9 a week) room was located.

According to Holly, the final member of the regiment passed away in 1938, and the final reunion in 1940 included just family members. After that the building sat mostly unused, falling into disrepair. In 1954 the building was given to the community and turned into a museum to remember the Fifth Maine Regiment.

“They built the building in remembrance of their comrades who didn’t survive the war,” said Holly. “The stained-glass windows are dedicated to the different soldiers. They really wanted all of the soldiers to be remembered, and that remains our main goal now at the museum.”

We count ourselves lucky to have such a special place located along our route. Next time you take a Casco Bay Lines ferry out to Peaks Island, stop by the museum to learn more about the regiment, its members, and the history of Peaks Island!

We’re looking to share more stories about the history of Casco Bay here on our blog. If you have a particular island, location, or event in history that you would like to see featured here, feel free to reach out to us!

The post Remembering the Soldiers of the Fifth Maine Regiment appeared first on Casco Bay Lines.

He loved it so much that when he went to Korea in 1951 with the Marines, the two things he kept in his wallet were a photo of a girl named Vivian, who would later become his wife, and one Casco Bay Lines ticket for Peaks Island.

We recently sat down with Vivian, and three of their children to dig deeper into the story.

David moved to Peaks Island when he was young—at first just for the summers, but then he and his family moved there full-time when he was around 16 years old. His father passed away shortly after, and David got a job working as a deck hand for Casco Bay Lines on the Sabino to help his family. Around the same time, he joined the Marine Reserves.

That’s how he ended up on Hill 159 in Korea.

One week before he was supposed to return home to Maine, David was moved away from the front because the military wanted to keep him safe, but when he heard his unit was pinned on Hill 159, he asked to go back up.

“He never talked about what happened, but whatever it was, he won the Bronze Medal of Honor for Combat Valor, the Silver Medal of Honor [from the State of Maine], and the Purple Heart,” said David, his son.

What his family does know is that he was hit from behind by mortar shrapnel. Vivian liked to joke with David that her photo in his wallet had saved his rear end. She and David knew each other before he left for Korea, but they didn’t begin dating until after he came home.

“He said [after he was hit] he felt a presence and he didn’t know if the presence was one person or more, but it felt like both,” said David. “The presence asked him if he wanted to stay, and he did, but when he answered he didn’t say yes, he said ‘what about the five kids’ and then immediately woke up outside of a MASH tent.”

When he woke up, he coughed so a soldier would notice him, and he was rushed into the MASH tent to be sewn up.

When he returned home, Vivian picked him up because he didn’t have a license yet. She recalls driving around Portland with her brothers secretly following them, honking the horn every time David tried to kiss her. They were married on Valentine’s Day in 1953, and would have five children together—Cynthia, Mary, David, Candace, and Lori.

After they were married, David and Vivian bought their first cottage on Peaks Island, for $300. From there, they moved to a house on New Island Avenue, and later onto the ocean side of the island.

David became a middle school principal in Enfield, Connecticut. He and his family would spend the school year in Connecticut, but as soon as the bell rang on the last day of school, they headed for Peaks Island.

“He wouldn’t ever stop to let us pee,” said David.

His daughter Mary recalls that spending summers on Peaks Island recharged her father’s batteries after spending all year working a stressful job.

David passed away this year after a battle with Alzheimer’s disease, but even while he was struggling with the disease, he remembered his connection to Peaks Island.

“Two months before he went to the nursing home, he forgot he lived [in Portland], I had him out running errands, and he said, ‘well I’m ready to go home now, just drop me at the boat,’” his daughter Candace said.

His family said that he loved everything about Peaks Island, but his favorite part was the relationships and connections he formed there over the years. From acting in plays at the theater to chatting up people he knew on the street, David was a huge part of the Peaks Island community throughout his life.

“Even yesterday I got comments that were like, ‘I just want you to know that your dad was a really big piece of Peaks Island,’ that kind of stuff all the time,” said Candace.

Over the years, David’s ties to Peaks Island and Casco Bay Lines have remained strong. Two of David’s daughters, Candace and Mary, both live on the island full time, and two of his grandchildren have worked for Casco Bay Lines on different boats.

From time to time on our blog we’ll be featuring stories from island residents. Casco Bay Lines remains committed to fostering strong relationships with our island communities. If you have an interesting story, feel free to reach out to us.

The post David Parker: A Peaks Island and Casco Bay Lines Family Tradition appeared first on Casco Bay Lines.

Those who live on Long Island are no exception. This little island, home to 200 people year-round, has become one of the most vibrant island communities in Casco Bay—complete with a school, a thriving community center, and beautiful beaches.

Over a cold local brew with our friend Jenna (who just so happened to have grown up on Long Island) we chatted about her favorite places, and what she loved most about growing up on the island’s shores.  Here’s the scoop:

What was it like growing up on Long Island?

I spent most of my childhood playing outside, building forts all over the island—woods, rocks, beaches, backyards, very rarely my own backyard, usually the neighbors. No one had cable, antenna only. The only reason I got a cell phone was to be able to call a cab after field hockey [on the mainland]. Summers were spent on the beach with my Grammie or my baby sitter, and usually with cousins.

What was (or still is) your favorite thing about the island?

My favorite thing about the island would be that feeling of returning on the ferry and knowing that, upon my arrival, I get to see my friends and family. No matter how much we grow up and lead different lives, it’s like we didn’t miss a beat when we get back together.

For someone who has never been to Long Island, what’s the first thing you’d recommend I do?

I always recommend people walk over to South Beach. It’s one of the most beautiful beaches in Maine—great for a picnic lunch!

Do you have a favorite place on the island?

My favorite place on the island is called Wreck Cove. It makes the best sea glass because of all of the rocks. I could tell you how to get there, but you’d never find it.

What do you miss most since moving off-island?

I miss summers on the island the most. If my work schedule was conducive, I would commute in the summer. For now, I’ll continue to appreciate the weekends I do get to spend there.

How often do you get back?

I go back once a month, even if it’s just for the day or a couple of hours. Sometimes I go to see family and friends; sometimes I just need to be alone in the salt air. It’s hard to see the island change over the years, being a creature of habit. Understanding that change is a part of life can be even harder, but it makes the memories that much more special.

You mentioned taking the ferry. It seems like Casco Bay Lines must have played a pretty big role in your life.

Casco Bay Lines has always been in my life as it’s the main form of transportation [to the islands]. I’ve really gotten to know many of the deckhands and captains over the years, and I’m very thankful for what they do.

Well, there you have it folks. We’re going to pick a weekend soon for a picnic on South Beach and an expedition to find Wreck Cove. Check out our ferry schedule and plan your trip to Long Island!

The post Growing Up on Long Island—No, Not That Long Island… appeared first on Casco Bay Lines.