Maine Treasures
Current mood: adventurous

Maine ranks highly as a treasure hunting state with a variety of sites.  Almost all of its beaches have stories of pirate treasure, and there are numerous tales of pioneer, Indian, and early bandit caches within the state.

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There is an unusual treasure that is probably still where it was stored, about ten miles southwest of Portland, Maine, waiting to be found.

To some people the idea of searching for Egyptian mummies might seem sacrilegious, but remember that the mummies have already been taken from their original graves, transported to the United States, and are worth, on today's collectors' market, in excess of $12,000 each.  Here is the story.

In 1857, and thereafter for several years, newspaper publishers in this country faced a severe shortage of rags, which were necessary to add strength and body to wood fibers used in paper sheets.  As the shortage of rags increased, large numbers of small newspapers went out of business.

Augustus Stanwood, a printer in Portland, Maine, was greatly affected by this rag shortage.  Realizing that he would go broke, Stanwood looked around for a much-needed source of this ever-increasing shortage of fiber.  One night, while drinking with a sea captain, Stanwood told him of his troubles.  The sailing captain suggested using the cloth wrappings of mummies. (At this time the Egyptian grave sites were being exploited, and artifacts, coffins, and mummies were being sold by the thousands throughout the world.)

Augustus made a deal with the ship's captain to obtain several dozen of these cloth-wrapped bodies.  When the shipment arrived, Stanwood stored them on his property, in pits to preserve them, about ten miles southwest of Portland.  During the next three to seven years, he used about half of the mummies, putting their linen and cotton wrappings into his paper grinders.  The pulp made a very good grade of paper stock.

About this time the rag shortage let up because of the Civil War and the capture of huge stores of cotton by Union forces throughout the South.  Thus, Stanwood did not need to use the rest of his mummies.  After he tried to sell them and couldn't, Stanwood left the mummies in the pits he had dug on his property.

After Stanwood died, few people even remembered the mummies, and they are, as far as can be determined, still buried on the old Stanwood property, about ten miles southwest of Portland, Maine.  If you aren't afraid of ghosts, this unusual treasure could be worth thousands of dollars today.

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The stories of a treasure that was supposedly buried by Captain William Kidd are so numerous that it would be a waste of time to try to investigate them all.  I will give the sites, near the state of Maine, where Kidd is rumored to have left part of his ill-gotten gains.  I make no attempt to estimate the value of each treasure, but I will give the names of various islands Kidd is supposed to have visited.  You will have to do the local research on these different locations.

            The islands are: Orrs, Outer Heron, Squirrel, Monhegan, Hollowell, Pittston, Isle of Haute, Twobush, Oak Island, Deer, and Bailey.

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These two instances of treasure being found in Maine lend credence to the fact that more is probably there.

Jewell Island, in Casco Bay, is supposed to be one of the places where Captain Kidd buried his treasure.  Whether Kidd ever visited the island is unknown, but there is a story, backed up by considerable evidence, that a Captain Jonathan Chase found a large treasure on the island, killing his helper and burying him during the recovery.  No record of what happened to Chase or the money can be found.

On Bailey Island, also in Casco Bay, there is a well-authenticated story of pirate treasure actually having been found in the 1850s.  A farmer named John Wilson was duck hunting on the island when, in an attempt to retrieve a fallen bird, he slipped into a crevice between two ledges.  In his scramble to climb out, he uncovered an iron pot filled with pieces of Spanish gold.  He exchanged these for $12,000 in coin of the realm, a comfortable fortune at that time.

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A story of possible treasure on the Allagash River, which could be worthwhile to check out, is that of Anse Hanley.  During the early days of timber-cutting, the lumber companies were constantly in trouble with squatters.  These people would carve out a small homestead on company land, then hint to the owners that if they were forced to move, a forest fire might start that would destroy millions of dollars worth of timber.  In most cases, the squatters stayed on the property.

One such land parasite was Anse Hanley.  Around 1900, Hanley came to Fort Kent, accompanied by his wife and two children.  After obtaining supplies, he moved up the Allagash River in Arrostook County, where he squatted.  During the next few years, Hanley engaged in making whiskey for sale to the loggers.

It was said of his homemade product, "If a man can drink it and come back for more, he will live forever."  Hanley also sold farm products and engaged in smuggling whiskey, guns, and cigarettes from Canada, which he sold to American sportsmen and hunters.  When Hanley died, he left a rumored $60,000, some of which he had hidden before his death, and it could never be found.  Local research could help on this.

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This information can be helpful to the Maine rock hound interested in searching for rocks and gems.  In Maine are found ores of most metals, as well as useful non-metallic minerals such as quartz, feldspar, mica, graphite, and the gemstones such as tourmalines, beryl, amethyst, garnet, and topaz.  At least one mineral, beryllonite, has been found nowhere outside Maine, and this state has yielded the finest emerald beryl ever found in the United States.  In mineral production, Maine stands about midway among the states, with the annual yield being valued at about $6,000,000.  One-third of the state is still unexplored in respect to mineral resources, and only limited areas have received adequate investigation.

Of other metals, platinum and iridium are reported, although the possibility of obtaining them for commercial use is not yet clear.  Gold is present in small quantities in a number of places.  Silver is found in most of the lead and zinc localities, and the copper ores at Bluehill.  That there are considerable bodies of lead and zinc of definite value has been known since they were first mined in 1860.  Some pure silver has been mined at Sullivan and elsewhere.

The locations of different mineral sites can probably be obtained from the State Geology Department at Augusta, Maine.

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Maine rates highly as a treasure-hunting state with a large number and variety of treasure sites.  There is hardly a beach along its coastline that has not at some time been connected with tales of buried treasure.  The following locations and stories could be worthwhile to investigate.

Cliff Island was once the home of a tough, old salvager called Captain Keiff.  He lived alone in a log hut on the island.  His favorite way to wreck ships was to tie a lantern to his horse's neck, then ride up and down the shoreline.  Ships at sea would be misguided by this light and be wrecked on the reefs and ledges that surrounded the island.  Keiff would kill any survivors of the wrecks, and then salvage the cargo.  In those days, while it wasn't encouraged, illegal salvaging was condoned, and no questions were asked when someone sold salvaged goods.

Keiff is supposed to have made a fortune in his nefarious occupation.  There is a place on the island still known as Keiff's Gardens.  Local stories say that somewhere on the island a large part of Keiff's money is still buried.  This is quite possible, since he had no family and lived alone with very few ways to spend money, as the wrecked ships supplied him with most of his needs.

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Great Chebeague Island, reached by ferry from Falmouth to Portland, is the second-largest island in Casco Bay.

In the 1860s, an old sailor said that in his pirate days he had been one of a pirate crew which many years before had buried a great treasure here.  He began digging in a secluded part of the island.  One day, a young islander offered to assist him.  When the offer was curtly refused, the islander leaped over the rope with which the old man had enclosed the spot were he was digging; whereupon the treasure seeker, in a voice quaking with anger, cried, "I call on God and you people to witness that within a year this young fool will be tied in knots, even as I could tie this rope."

No one remembers now whether any treasure was found, but a short time later, the young man was soaked while fishing.  He was confined to his bed with an agonizing malady which drew up his arms and legs as if tied in knots, and when he died, soon afterward, it was necessary to break the bones of his limbs in order to get his body into the casket.

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The story of the two pirates Samuel Bellamy and Paulsgrave Williams, circa 1716-1717, has been written before, but my version comes from a book dating to before 1900 and contains information which I have not found in any other publication.

It was not at the mouth of the Machias River where the two pirates had their stronghold, but further upriver.  They did dig a subterranean treasure house, but it was not inside the fort.  There is little doubt but that the vault holds a large hoard of what we call treasure today.  The story of Bellamy and Williams started out as what could have been just another instance of illegal salvaging in the West Indies.  After several years of wrecking ships from the shore, the two men decided to try it at sea by becoming pirates.

Now, for piracy, they needed a ship, which they did not have.  But the problem was shortly solved with the appearance of the British merchant vessel Whidah near their headquarters.  The Whidah, her holds bulging with precious metals, ivory, and gems, took shelter in a small West Indian cove.  Here the British proceeded to replenish their water supply before starting the long voyage to England.  A few hours later, the land-bound pirates were rowing toward the unsuspecting ship.  In a matter of minutes, every member of the crew was dead.  Bellamy and Williams immediately commissioned the Whidah as a pirate ship and headed north.

After looting a number of ships along the way, the pirates arrived at a destination selected by Captain Bellamy, the only navigator on board.  The spot was near the mouth of the Machias River, far from any civilized community at that time.  It was here that the two leaders put into action a plan they had had for some time.  They reasoned that the cargo which their ship carried should be hidden before they sailed again.

The two decided to build a permanent headquarters, which took the form of a large log fort with defensive fences and earthworks.  Close by, a large vault was excavated to serve as a treasure house.  Here the spoils of their pirating were secreted.

When all of this was done, and the Whidah had been overhauled, Bellamy and Williams set sail again.  For several months their piratical deeds were the byword from New England to the Carolinas.  After several forays, the treasure house was filled.  So extensive was the wealth that Bellamy and Williams decided they could afford to quit pirating.

However, the temptation to make one more trip was too much, and on the last trip out, near-disaster occurred in the vicinity of Fortune Bay.  The pirates spotted a wealthy-looking vessel, which, when they came within range, was a French corvette with 36 guns.  In the battle that followed, most of the crew of Bellamy and Williams were killed, although the battered Whidah did manage to elude the French vessel and sailed back to their pirate headquarters.  When the Whidah was repaired, they again set sail on one last trip.

Near Nantucket Shoals, Massachusetts, the pirates captured the Mary Jane, an outbound whaler from New Bedford.  It carried nothing of value.  Bellamy appointed the Mary Jane's captain to lead the Whidah through the unfamiliar shoals until the tip of Cape Cod was passed, and then Bellamy himself would navigate.

The captain of the Mary Jane, threading his way through the reefs, led the Whidah around, and both vessels were torn apart.  All the men onboard both ships were drowned except the captain of the Mary Jane, who finally made it to shore.  Seven pirates who were following the two vessels in a small sloop also reached the shore, but they were swiftly captured and hanged by the angry townspeople of Eastham, Mass.

The headquarters of Bellamy and Williams, near the mouth of the Machias River, has just about disappeared.  But somewhere nearby is hidden one of the richest pirate caches in North America, one that has never been reported found.

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This short story has a mystery concerning a treasure location that has never been reported solved.  Outer Heron Island, Maine, lies a few miles offshore from Boothbay Harbor.

Around 1900, two young men came to Outer Heron Island from New York.  They had a map of the island showing where a chest of pirate gold was supposedly buried.  The two never revealed how this map came into their possession.  With a specially constructed auger that could be lengthened indefinitely by adding sections of iron rod, they started boring near a lone, grotesquely-shaped spruce tree on the highest point of the island.

After a month of constant work, and at a depth of 30 feet, the auger brought up oaken chips.  They penetrated this, and the bit came up with particles of what seemed to be gold.  The two then hired two Italian laborers and excavated a 30-foot shaft.  At this depth, a 6-foot oak plank was found, and that was all.  The gold had come from a copper spike which the auger point had rapped.

The mystery is how did a copper spike and a six-foot plank get 30 feet underground, unless some kind of excavating had been done years before?  No report of any treasure's being found in the area can be located.

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One of the few instances of counterfeiting in Maine was done on Ragged Island in Cumberland County.  This gang operated for several years until they were finally routed by Federal agents.  The island, because of its isolated position, was also a rendezvous for different lawbreakers for several years.  This little-known location could pay off, because it is almost certain that something was hidden by some of these outlaws.

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This little-known treasure was found by accident and then lost again and has never been rediscovered.  Manana Island is off the middle coast of Maine.  Around 1900, several fishermen stopped their boat at this island to relax.  They decided to play a game of soccer.  When a wild kick was made by one of the crew-members, the captain of the group ran to retrieve the ball.   As he picked up the ball, he noticed rusty metal sticking out of the sand.  He dug the sand from around the object, and saw that it was an old iron pot filled with coins.  Since he was out of sight of his crew, he stuck the pot into a nearby rock crevice, intending to come back for it later.

After playing for a while longer, the crew went back to their fishing boat.  The captain made an excuse to stay behind for a short time.  Returning to what he thought was the crevice where he had put the pot of coins, he was amazed that he could not find the right one.  Deciding that part of the coins would be better than none, the captain called his crew and told them what he had done.

The entire company spent several hours in search of the coins, but were never able to find them.  As far as is known, somewhere on Manana Island, stuck in a rock crevice, there is a cache of coins waiting for a lucky treasure hunter.

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Crawford, in Washington County, once the center of extensive lumbering operations, was the scene of many stagecoach robberies.  Favorite yarns of early stagecoach travel tell of how, when deep snow impeded the progress of the coach, packs of wolves would follow the wheel tracks and were warded off only by the alertness of the drivers and the quick cocking and firing of hand-loaded and primed guns.

Other exciting tales abound in this region.  One concerns three brothers, living near Bangor, who became highwaymen and terrorized this district, stopping coaches several times a week and extracting all valuables from the passengers and their luggage.  It is said that a passenger who had been robbed while traveling through the area, several months later in Boston recognized a man lounging in a tavern as one of the three bandits.  Accused, the man shouted his innocence, but a gold nugget, hanging from his watch chain, was found to bear the initials of the coach passenger.

1:55 AM - 1 Comments - 2 Kudos - Add Comment

State government at work....
Current mood: amused
Category: Life

This is an actual letter sent to a man named Ryan DeVries by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Quality, State of Pennsylvania. This guy's response is hilarious, but read the State's letter before you get to the response letter.

SUBJECT: DEQ File No.97-59-0023; T11N; R10W, Sec. 20; Lycoming County

Dear Mr. DeVries:
It has come to the attention of the Department of Environmental Quality that there has been recent unauthorized activity on the above referenced parcel of property. You have been certified as the legal landowner and/or contractor who did the following unauthorized activity:

Construction and maintenance of two wood debris dams across the outlet stream of Spring Pond.

A permit must be issued prior to the start of this type of activity.

A review of the Department's files shows that no permits have been issued. Therefore, the Department has determined that this activity is in violation of Part 301, Inland Lakes and Streams, of the Natural Resource and Environmental Protection Act, Act 451 of the Public Acts of 1994, being sections 324.30101 to 324.30113 of the Pennsylvania Compiled Laws, annotated.

The Department has been informed that one or both of the dams partially failed during a recent rain event, causing debris and flooding at downstream locations. We find that dams of this nature are inherently hazardous and cannot be permitted. The Department therefore orders you to cease and desist all activities at this location, and to restore the stream to a free-flow condition by removing all wood and brush forming the dams from the stream channel. All restoration work shall be completed no later than January 31, 2007.

Please notify this office when the restoration has been completed so that a follow-up site inspection may be scheduled by our staff.

Failure to comply with this request or any further unauthorized activity on the site may result in this case being referred for elevated enforcement action..

We anticipate and would appreciate your full cooperation in this matter. Please feel free to contact me at this office if you have any questions.

Sincerely,
David L. Price
District Representative and Water Management Division.


Here is the actual response sent back by Mr. DeVries:

Re: DEQ File No. 97-59-0023; T11N; R10W, Sec. 20; Lycoming County

Dear Mr. Price,
Your certified letter dated 12/17/06 has been handed to me to respond to. I am the legal landowner but not the Contractor at 2088 Dagget Lane , Trout Run, and Pennsylvania .

A couple of beavers are in the (State unauthorized) process of constructing and maintaining two wood 'debris' dams across the outlet stream of my Spring Pond. While I did not pay for, authorize, nor supervise their dam project, I think they would be highly offended that you call their skillful use of natures building materials 'debris.' I would like to challenge your department to attempt to emulate their dam project any time and/or any place you choose. I believe I can safely state there is no way you could ever match their dam skills, their dam resourcefulness, their dam ingenuity, their dam persistence, their dam determination and/or their dam work ethic.

As to your request, I do not think the beavers are aware that they must first fill out a dam permit prior to the start of this type of dam activity.

My first dam question to you is:
(1) Are you trying to discriminate against my Spring Pond Beavers, or
(2) Do you require all beavers throughout this State to conform to said dam request?

If you are not discriminating against these particular beavers, through the Freedom of Information Act, I request completed copies of all those other applicable beaver dam permits that have been issued. Perhaps we will see if there really is a dam violation of Part 301, Inland Lakes and Streams, of the Natural Resource and Environmental Protection Act, Act 451 of the Public Acts of 1994, being sections 324.30101 to 324.30113 of the Pennsylvania Compiled Laws, annotated.

I have several concerns. My first concern is, aren't the beavers entitled to legal representation? The Spring Pond Beavers are financially destitute and are unable to pay for said representation -- so the State will have to provide them with a dam lawyer. The Department's dam concern that either one or both of the dams failed during a recent rain event, causing flooding, is proof that this is a natural occurrence, which the Department is required to protect. In other words, we should leave the Spring Pond Beavers alone rather than harassing them and calling their dam names.

If you want the stream 'restored' to a dam free-flow condition please contact the beavers -- but if you are going to arrest them, they obviously did not pay any attention to your dam letter, they being unable to read English.

In my humble opinion, the Spring Pond Beavers have a right to build their unauthorized dams as long as the sky is blue, the grass is green and water flows downstream. They have more dam rights than I do to live and enjoy Spring Pond. If the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection lives up to its name, it should protect the natural resources (Beavers) and the environment (Beavers' Dams).

So, as far as the beavers and I are concerned, this dam case can be referred for more elevated enforcement action right now. Why wait until 1/31/2007? The Spring Pond Beavers may be under the dam ice then: and there will be no way for you or your dam staff to contact/harass them then.

In conclusion, I would like to bring to your attention to a real environmental quality, health, problem in the area. It is the bears! Bears are actually defecating in our woods. I definitely believe you should be persecuting the defecating bears and leave the beavers alone.

If you are going to investigate the beaver dam, watch your step! The bears are not careful where they dump!

Being unable to comply with your dam request, and being unable to contact you on your dam answering machine, I am sending this response to your dam office.

THANK YOU.
RYAN DEVRIES & THE DAM

1:46 AM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

MURDER IN HAITI!!!!!!
Current mood: angry
Category: Friends

A Murder in Haiti

It is with deep sorrow that I write this, but the truth must be told. One of our Haitian employees, I will leave his name out for fear of reprisal, sent me the following e-mail a short time ago.
Please forgive the english, it is broken, but he's written this e-mail the best he could.

I am so sorry, my friend.

Was this a random murder? Or was it staged by our competition there? Can you imagine anyone torturing a person like that? May God have mercy on their souls.

Just before this murder, while I was aboard our ship (Son Worshipper) waiting in Haiti for word from the government about our contract, another crisis occurred.

An ill- equipped boat, about 22' long, loaded with several Haitian Coast Guard personnel, pulled along side our boat. All were armed with weapons, which were supplied by the US Government. They boarded our vessel and seized our weapons that were locked in our gun locker. They held us at gunpoint and informed us that they were ordered there by the commander of the Coast Guard to seize both of our ships and crew and take us to Port-au-Prince. You have to imagine what it was like to have un-trained people pointing automatic weapons, loaded, at you. We were fearful for our lives at this point. They got a call from their commander to get us ready to move out to Port-au-Prince. They told us we would have to take their boat, along with M/V Diamond, the 105' ship, in tow with M/V Son Worshipper, the 90' ship. We tried to make them realize that the smaller boat could not take that kind of load in tow for such a long trip, and that we also did not have enough fuel aboard for the trip. The did not care about that, all they knew was they were sent there to bring us back. We told them we would run out of fuel half way through the trip and be adrift with a chance of crashing into a reef, but apparently they could not understand that concept. They had guns pointed at us.

I snuck up to the bow of the boat with the cell phone and called home, and told my wife Kathy what was happening. I told her to call everyone we knew, as well as the US Embassy, Senator Susan Collins and anyone else that may be able to help us. It was a Saturday.

After a short time the Haitian Coast Guard aboard received a call from their commander. I received a call from a US Army Major attached to the US Embassy in Port-au-Prince. I explained the situation to him, and was told that he was off for the day, but would see what he could do. I think I got his attention when I told him what the headlines may say soon, "American Bodies Found" after hitting reef in Haiti, forced at gunpoint by armed Haitian Coast Guard.
He said he'd call me right back, that is, if I wasn't shot first.
After an hour or so, he called back and asked to talk to the Haitian that was in charge of the boarding party. By the way, they did not have any documentation, nothing to authorize this seizure, just guns. The head guy got on the phone with the major, and I listened one-sidedly, to what was said. He told the major he was sent by his commander to seize our ships and crew and return to Port-au-Prince. After a short time, I noticed a concerned look on his face. I do not know what the major said, but it was something that concerned this guy.

After several hours of this, I got a call from the Haitian Coast Guard Commander. He told me he was ordered by the Minister of Culture to seize us. Now, this is strange, as I had a meeting set up with the Minister of Culture, and a very high placed government official a few days after this boarding. There was no paperwork about the seizure, so, what was happening? Who really sent them? And why? Too many questions and no answers. The Haitian Coast Guard stayed through the night and departed the next morning. They returned our weapons.
I had contacted the US Embassy in Port-au-Prince many times prior to this to keep them advised of our situation, about just waiting on the Haitian government to approve our contract. What is extremely odd is, at first, they stayed in contact with us quite often. Then, it stopped. They just ignored us completely and even ignored our senators' people who called them and asked them to assist us. The embassy never even returned their calls. What is that about? Why? Isn't one of the reasons we have the embassy is to assist US citizens? Then why did they ignore us?

A week later a very high ranking Haitian official came to the boat. He said we would get our contract, but we needed to have him lobby for us. We needed to give him the money and he would make sure that the President and Prime Minister of Haiti would make sure our contract was issued. This came from a man who is very close to the top in Haiti.

We have had murders, guns pointed at us, been threatened by the government, and even more than I could possibly write here. We tried to do our very best there. We built a dock to help the locals, brought in food and clothes, paid to rebuild the church, built a few houses for people, gave money, paid for many children to go to school, supplied medicine and medical treatment, stopped people from stealing Haiti's treasures, and waited to get a legal contract to work there and share our rewards.

Now, we are forced to leave Haiti, after investing millions of dollars and we leave many friends. Corruption and murder is too much to handle. I pray Haiti realizes what it has done before it's too late, and pray also that the US Embassy starts doing it's intended job.

6:34 AM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

Bastard
Current mood: cold

You have to check this out.....the bastards!!!
http://www.subsearesearch.com/sinking.html

8:39 AM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

UPDATE on Boat Fire and Sinking
Current mood: determined

Series of Events Relating to Sub Sea Surveyor

Friday-December 8^th, 2006

11:00 p.m.  Received phone call from Julie at Aspasia Marina informing us of a fire on Sub Sea Surveyor

11:15 p.m.  Received phone call from the marina inquiring as to whether anyone was on board etc. Greg Brooks, John Hardy Sr. and Brian Ryder were in route to the scene.

11:30 p.m.  The South Portland Fire Department couldn't make access to the scene due to a locked gate.  They finally cut the locks.

11:45 p.m.  Coast Guard arrived with a pump and set it on the deck beside the boat.  Greg spoke with the firemen and left the scene.

[Surveyor was listing badly to starboard.  We asked the fire department to pump out the boat.  Maine Department of Environmental Protection told the fire department to pump out the boat.  They told them not to let it sink as it would then become a bigger problem.  The fire department said they had it under control.  The Portland Fire Boat crew told the South Portland Fire Department that they should pump it out before it sunk.  Brian Ryder and Greg Brooks asked to pump it, and were told by the fire department that they had it under control.  We pleaded with them to remove the water.]

Saturday-December 9^th, 2006

8:00 a.m.  Greg arrived at the boat and noticed that the boat was low in the water.  The Coast Guard arrived at the same time—3 to 4 people.  I told them that we needed to get the pump going soon or the boat would sink.  The pump was next to the boat on the dock.  The Coast Guard said that they were only there to pick up the pump.  Approximately, twenty minutes later, the Surveyor went down.

9:30 a.m.  Greg called Jim Fox of Boom Technologies to place an oil boom around the vessel area.  Any oil leakage was contained by the afternoon.

3:00 p.m.  A call was placed to Roger Hale, and a message was left for him.

Sunday-December 10^th, 2006

a.m.  Placed another call to Roger Hale---no answer.

a.m.  Greg Brooks contacted All Season Marine Salvage.  They looked at the job and gave a quote of $8,000.00.  This quote was accepted.

Monday-December 11^th, 2006

a.m.  All Season Marine Salvage started bringing in equipment to the site.  Finished at approximately 6:30 p.m.

Tuesday-December 12^th, 2006

7:00 a.m.  All Season crew was at the dock.  When Greg arrived, equipment i.e. pumps, barrels etc. were placed on the dock beside the boat.  The owner of Aspasia Marina, George, came out of his on-site office and demanded that everyone leave his property.  This was a total surprise, as the day before, George had told me that All Seasons had worked there before and done a great job and were very professional.  Now, his attitude was a complete turnaround.  He stated that he wanted to see insurance papers, and that they had better be what he liked.  Gordon McKinney from All Seasons called his agent and found out that he was not covered for that type of salvage.  He inquired about adding it, and was told that they didn't handle it.  Several people called everyone they knew to find coverage, with no results. Greg told the Coast Guard about the fuel spill of another boat—Geno.

12:00 p.m.  The Coast Guard stopped by again (about the 30^th time) and informed me that at 4:00 p.m., they were going to classify this as a federal issue.  We had been doing due diligence since the boat sank to get it raised.  All Season supplied a salvage plan which I gave to the Coast Guard.

Seatow, who had full insurance, was willing to take over the job but was refused by Aspasia Marina's owner, George.  He said he would only let Roger Hale do the job.  It is well known that Roger is a friend of his.  It was now 3:00 p.m.  Roger Hale had been made aware of the Coast Guard's ultimatum.  He quoted us the outrageous price of $55,000.00.  We were given no choice.  Once we informed the Coast Guard, they said they approved of Roger and waived the 4:00 p.m. deadline.  Roger Hale said he'd be over first thing in the morning.

Wednesday-December 13^th, 2006

8:00 a.m.  Greg Brooks arrived at the boat. Roger had not called.  He said he was gearing up and would be over later.  Boom Technologies was on site, and the Coast Guard was there.  They said that they would head back to base and await a call.  John Hardy, Sr. called Roger Hale, and was told that he'd be on site by 4:00 p.m.  He said he'd call the Coast Guard and explain.  Greg followed up and called the Coast Guard and got their voice mail.  He left a message at 10:00 a.m.

[Throughout these events, the Department of Environmental Protection, the Coast Guard and Boom Technologies were on site].

2:34 AM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

Boat fire
Current mood: sad
Category: Life

Talk about a bad day! I got the call around 10:30 pm from the marina where Sub Sea Surveyor was docked. There was a fire!! I headed out the door as fast as I could, but forgetting it was 13 degrees out. It took about 30 minutes to reach the dock from my house. When I arrived there were several fire trucks from the South Portland Fire Department, Coast Guard, Maine DEP, news teams, police as well as others. As I headed to the boat down the long icy pier I could see the Portland Fire boat was tied up beside Surveyor. It was extremely icy on the pier. My partner John was there and Brian the engineer arrived soon after. There were about a dozen firemen on the boat with hoses putting out the fire. They used both water and foam. There was a bad list in the vessel telling us that the boat needed to be pumped out before she sunk. The Maine DEP told the fire department to pump it out before it sunk and caused a much bigger problem. The Coast Guard brought pumps from the CG Station just a few docks down. The crew on the Portland Fire boat also told them to pump it out to prevent a much bigger problem. The wind was blowing making it much colder than I could stand dressed the way I was. The Fire department would not let us board the boat. They told us they had it under control and would take care of everything. The pumps were sitting on the dock waiting to be used. Brian stayed and John and I left around 1:30 - 2 am. I returned first thing the next morning, and a Coast Guard crew pulled up behind me stating they were there to pick up the pumps. As I walked down the pier I noticed right away the boat was very low in the water. When I got to the boat I could see it would not be long before she sunk if she was not pumped. I pleaded with the Coast Guard crew to use their pumps to stop her from sinking. They said they were only here to pick up the pumps. At this time, as well as when the firemen were aboard, she should have been pumped out. It wasn't, the pumps were never removed from their containers and I watched the ship go under with a very sick feeling in my gut. The pumps were there, the fire department was there, the Coast Guard was there, why didn't they use the pumps like they said they would? Why did the pumps just sit on the dock until the ship sank causing a much bigger problem? They would not let us board the boat, they said they had it under control. Now this.

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Katrina Relief
Current mood: sad
Category: Life

SEA RELIEF/SUB SEA RESEARCH

The phone rang. It was Gary Burris of publiceyestv.org He had heard through the grapevine about our ship M/V diamond in Key West Florida. As he started telling me about the victims of Katrina still without aid, my heart sank. I had donated to the Salvation Army, but that was just money. What could I do, sitting in my office here in Maine? Out of site, out of mind? As he continued talking to me about the people in the fishing communities in the lower Mississippi Gulf Region, about how one town that had 1700 homes, and now had 5 left standing, I knew I had to do more. Gary explained how he was trying to organize a sea effort to bring much needed supplies to some of the hardest hit areas, the mouth of the Mississippi river. He explained what he had done up to now, but needed to go a lot further. He needed our ship. He needed the technology we had aboard to scan the river's bottom so the relief ships wouldn't sink, hitting submerged objects from the storm. A big task to perform in such a short time. I agreed, but would have to confirm with my partner first, knowing what his answer would be. It was a go. He knew as I did; we need to do all that we can to save those poor souls still without aid of any kind.

Now, how to pull it all off? We had been working off the coast of Massachusetts in our 65' vessel, M/V Sub Sea Surveyor, Capt Mark Palmer and Capt Kai Morton were on their way up to Maine to assist in the operations here. I called Capt Mark on his cell phone and explained the situation to him. "We have to do it" was his reply. He was then in Memphis, so instead of taking a left to Maine, he took a right to Key West. The ship needed to be prepped for the trip. There was lots to do. There was money to get, food and supplies for the boat, fuel, crew to assemble, and move our newest surveying equipment to Florida. All of which seemed impossible to accomplish in a short time. Could we do it? Would we be too late? Lots of questions, very few answers. Still, we had to give it 150%.

Then another call came, it was Josh Tickell of veggievan.org. He had been speaking with Gary Burris also, and had joined with us to get the much needed aid to its destination. He had a donation of several thousand gallons of Bio diesel to fuel us for the trip. He had gotten the donation from West Central. I thought, Bio diesel? What was that? He explained to me the details about it, but I was not sure we could use it in our 4, 12V71's aboard the Diamond. I told him I would get back to him. I made several calls to find out more about this fuel. I was told it was good fuel, but should be put in clean tanks. We had been buying our fuel while the ship was in Haiti, not always the cleanest fuel. Would we have problems? We'd find out soon.

Capt Mark Palmer, Capt Kai Morton and Norman Laskey took Diamond from Key West to Ft. Myers Beach, Florida to the staging point of Sea Relief. Short handed, they arrived safely.

Meanwhile, Brian Ryder and myself unloaded all the newest surveying equipment from Sub Sea Surveyor and loaded it into our trailer and Expedition. A full day of dismantling the electronics and packing them for the long road voyage to Ft. Myers Beach. Thirty hours after finishing the packing we arrived there. One hell of a long drive. I had keep in phone contact with both Gary Burris and Josh Tickell as well as many others trying to coordinate this huge effort. Things were slowly coming together. We had fuel, we had equipment and electronics, we had crew. We needed food and cash, to feed the crew and pay them. We would not profit in any form for doing this, it was to help and that was that. The crew need to be paid, I didn't. Josh came through again, he had promised to come up with the money for the crew. Still, we needed more, there was oil and charts, food, impellers, filters and other supplies needed for the ship in order to make a safe crossing of the Gulf. Where would we get the money?
The donors from Maine that Helped were:
John and Lois Hardy
Greg and Kathy Brooks
David and Pam Smith
Outside Maine:
Bill Seliger- E.O. Industries
Bob Francis
ABC 7 - Ft Myers Beach Florida

Exhausted from the trip from Maine, there was still lots of things to do. No rest yet. There was a media frenzy about what we were about to do. There must have been 10-15 TV stations with live feeds as well as several newspapers covering our effort. They were there with us for three days, until we departed Ft. Myers. The media helped out by requesting donations for the victims of Katrina, stop by and drop off supplies at the ship, was their main message. It worked! All said and done, we had collected tons and tons of drinking water, baby supplies, soap, food, rice and beans, bug spray, first aid kits, power bars, etc, and a pallet of Rice Krispies Treats. A large amount of the supplies came from Harry Chapin Food Banks. Thank you all for your generous contributions.

It was time to go! Our ship was loaded, the shrimp boat Equalizer was loaded. We departed at high tide, about 11 am, and headed out into the gulf for our 500 mile trip. The weather was hot, the seas calm. There was a lot of excitement aboard that morning. We were all eager to get to where we were going to deliver the supplies that were so desperately needed. We had 11 people aboard. A bit crowded, but we would make do. It was grilled hot dogs for lunch, easy to make and not a bad first meal. Everyone chipped in and the daily work went much easier than we expected. The next day we stopped to wait on the Equalizer, she had fallen back about 20 miles, she was much slower than Diamond. While we waited, we all jumped overboard for a pleasant swim in the clear waters of the gulf. We were in 17,000 feet of water. It was a refreshing break and everyone enjoyed the time spent together.

Fifty hours after departing we arrived at the mouth of the Mississippi river. We had passed hundreds of oil platforms which dot the gulf on our way. Several were partially destroyed, but the rest seemed like they were up and running, a good thing. As we motored into the Mississippi, everyone was on deck, silently watching the shoreline. As we headed up the river, it became very apparent that we were in the place Katrina came ashore. The devastation was massive. Bark had been ripped from several miles of trees, barges weighting hundreds of tons were thrown upon the shore like they were matchsticks, houses were everywhere along the levees, thrown there against their will, smashed, cars and boats, ships and trees, all demolished. No one said much as we went further up the river. It was like an atomic bomb had leveled the area. Mile after mile, total devastation. After 80 miles we came to the first somewhat active place we had seen, Belle Chasse, Louisiana. We rafted up with a disabled ferry boat. We had made it to our destination. This small town was feeding 2000 misplaced families, they needed the supplies, and we were there for that reason. It didn't take long to unload both vessels. Everyone helped. Pallet after pallet was unloaded by hand. It was hot and everyone was soaking wet with sweat, but no one complained. The people were great, and very thankful for our efforts. I just wish we could have done more. This is when we heard about Hurricane Rita. She was following us across the gulf, staying far enough behind us so we didn't know she was there. The evacuations had begun again! What were we going to do now! We decided to stay put and wait. If she headed our way anymore, we'd head upriver and try to outrun her. Thank God she continued on her course. We had heavy rain and wind, but we survived her. We stayed over 10 days after our arrival. I went to New Orleans to the airport, along the way I passed the scenes we all saw on TV, the Super Dome, the flooded streets, the destroyed homes, and some of the victims. My heart was sad. As people told me their stories, I cried with them. Some had lost all hope, most did not. The human sprit is strong in these people, and they will be back.

The seas were calming some, it is time to leave, but not forget.

VIDEO - 65 Megs Trip up the Mississippi River

3:13 AM - 1 Comments - 2 Kudos - Add Comment

A story from the Headlines
Category: News and Politics