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American Lighthouse Foundation, Inc.
P.O. Box 565
Rockland,
Maine 04841
Phone: 207-594-4174
Fax: 207-596-1091
info@lighthousefoundation.org
The American Lighthouse Foundation is a
Non-Profit 501(c)(3) Organization dedicated to the
preservation of America's historic
lighthouses & lightships and
their heritage.
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Scout Troop 23 Returns To
Little River Lighthouse
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For the second straight year Boy Scouts from South
Portland’s Boy Scout Troop 23 returned late this August to the remote
island home to the Little River Lighthouse in Cutler to help with
various projects in the ongoing restoration and care of the historic
beacon.
For some of the scouts and their leaders this was their
first visit, while for others it was their second trip to experience
camping on a remote island far from the hustle and bustle of city life.
Although most of this scout group were no strangers to
camping in the great outdoors, they soon got a taste of island life,
which is quite different than camping in a national or state forest.
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Photo by Tim Harrison
Some of the scouts from
Troop 23 take a moment to
pose in their uniforms at the
top of the tower at Little River
Lighthouse in Cutler, Maine
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Within a few short hours of their arrival on the island and shortly after
setting up their encampment, a major thunderstorm swept through the area and
the bright flashes of lighting in the evening sky kept the nighttime hours
more like daylight. Two days later the scouts experienced another major
thunderstorm, this one woke them up in the early morning hours. As they
addressed Little River Lighthouse post cards, the young woodsmen now had
some stories to write home about.
Although it was supposed to be the “dog days of August” the scouts did not
seem to mind the much cooler than expected days and nights as they
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Photo by Tim Harrison
On a rainy morning the Boy
Scouts from Troop 23 gathered
at the kitchen table in the keeper's
house and wrote home to friends and family on Little River Lighthouse
post cards about
their experiences at the island
lighthouse. Most of their stories were about the scary
thunderstorms, but they all
had one central theme - they
loved the island and the
lighthouse! The custom-made post cards were donated by Lubec, Maine,
photographer
Chessie Johnson
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worked on the many projects they were assigned to that
are expected to help them in life’s experiences as well as the spirit of
camaraderie.
This year’s trip saw the scouts complete two island
trails that they had started last year, an effort that took up a good
portion of the four nights and five days they spent on the island. As
well as completing the trails the scouts built a wooden picnic table
that they donated to the lighthouse, fixed the bathroom, repaired the
hot water heater, and donated a new stove for the lighthouse keeper’s
house.
They took one field trip off the island to visit West
Quoddy Head State Park to visit the lighthouse there and hike the
magnificent trails along the cliffs along the ocean. Although they
enjoyed many parts of their camping expedition, the boys all seemed to
agree that hiking the trails at West Quoddy and completing the trails at
Little River were the main highlights of this year’s trip.
The one thing that they all said they would remember the
most was the |
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view from the top of Little River Lighthouse. Many of them made numerous
trips to the top during their stay and some thought it would have been neat
to sleep at the top of the tower.
Joe Picoraro, the troop leader said now that they have experienced two great
years at the lighthouse the boys voted unanimously to make this an annual
event. Lynn Teague, another adult leader for the scouts said, “You can see
the impact that a trip like this to an island lighthouse has on the scouts
by the stories they tell on and off the island. There is a sense of pride
and confidence in their voices that they carry with them back to their homes
and through their lives.”
On this year’s visit the scouts also marked the rediscovered gravesites of
the shipwrecked sailors who were buried on the island in the late 1800’s.
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Next year they will make and install a cross at each
grave and build a replica of a fence that was once around the gravesite.
Each scout was given a Little River Lighthouse hat in
appreciation for the work they did on the island and one scout said,
“This will be my favorite
hat and I’ll wear it all the |
Photo by Tim Harrison
Some of the scouts pose in front of the
rediscovered gravesites that they have now marked at Little River
Lighthouse
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time to show others where I was.” They all promised to bring their hats
back with them next year.
As the boat, piloted by local volunteer Andy Patterson, pulled away from the
dock for the scout’s departure they all waved and shouted joys of thanks and
then almost in unison hollered, “We’ll be back!!!”
To learn more
about Little River Lighthouse you can visit
www.LighthouseFoundation.org or to send a donation toward the ongoing
restoration, mail to Friends of Little River Lighthouse, P.O. Box 671, East
Machias, ME 04630.
Photo by Tim Harrison
Boy Scouts from Troop 23 leaving the
island at Little River Lighthouse as
they hollered "We'll be back!!"
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Posted: 8/29/2007 |
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