Experience the fun of the First Annual Rockport Donut Festival held at Harbor Park on Beautiful Rockport Harbor in Maine on June 2 & 3, 2023.
The Festival included donut decorating, a variety of food trucks, a concert on the harbor Friday night, a 5 K run Saturday morning, a Donut Festival Parade, a Homemade Donut Contest, history of the origin of the donut, a catered Saturday evening dinner, and lots and lots of donuts! Be sure to attend next year!
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Camden’s Montgomery Dam Falls make Down East Magazine List
The July 2023 issue of Down East Magazine has a short description of Camden, Maine's Montgomery Dam and Falls as part of an 8-page feature on Maine's waterfalls. The spectacular Montgomery Dam Falls were included among Down East's five "Convenient Cascades" that...
Thomaston Fourth of July Parade 2023
Watch this Midcoast Maine Favorite Event – the Thomaston Fourth of July Parade and Celebration. The parade was led by the American Legion Color Guard and the 2023 Grand Marshall Bob Watts. The theme of the parade this year, “Freedom & Fireworks”, was carried out by the many floats, bands, automotive entries, kids on bikes, and community participants. Be sure to watch the end of this program for an interview with a representative of the Boothbay V.E.T.S. , Inc, an organization that is providing temporary, transitional housing for homeless vets in Maine.
Putin Admits the Wagner Group is an Arm of the Russian State
The Russian state has kept a degree of separation from the Wagner Group for the past decade, but years of war crimes and avoided sanctions are about to come crashing down on Putin…
North American Fires Cause a Smoky Start to Summer in the US
Let’s just say that our old friend Smokey Bear wouldn’t be too happy with the Canadians this past week. And these fires are likely only the beginning of a very long summer of low air quality.
We’re getting hit with the trifecta right now. Wildfires (which are as essential a part of BC’s natural ecosystem management as they are to California’s chaparral) in Northern Alberta and Eastern BC, fires (which happen very rarely) in Quebec and the Maritime provinces, and agricultural fires (yearly slash and burns) in Mexico. These are all large enough to cover a vast swath of the US with smoke individually; adding insult to injury, the smoke from multiple fires is overlapping at different elevations.
Post-COVID China: Will the Economy Bump or Slump?
As countries across the globe peeled back COVID restrictions, many of those economies saw huge (and much-needed) bumps. With China approaching six months since lifting its lockdown, the question on everyone’s mind is why hasn’t the world’s second-largest economy seen an economic bump?
I won’t hold my breath, and the Chinese shouldn’t, either. There is simply too much going on in the Chinese system for reopening to fix everything magically. Between countries pulling their manufacturing needs from China in favor of reshoring, a growing anti-China sentiment, and a terminal demographic situation…China isn’t looking so hot.
Gelato Alert! in Rockport
We welcome Rockport’s newest addition, Freya’s Gelato and Sorbet and Crepes!
Freya’s gelato flavors rotate frequently according to season and ingredient availability. Freya’s gelato is made with milk and cream sourced from Maine farms and includes fresh local ingredients when available.
Dear Friends: Images From Maine #148 — Peter Ralston
Last summer I was out on Vinalhaven in the course of one of our Raven trips when I spied this old propellor lying amidst all the other stuff that inevitably accumulates on working wharves.
I was instantly drawn to it…love at first sight. Perhaps it’s the patina that comes with oxidization, surely the dents, dings and holes have a lot to do with it, but all-in-all, I could feel the many years of hard use it had endured.
I was very pleased by this latest instance of an image and a host of stories finding me and I made a few exposures…but then I was faced by a moral dilemma.
The Ukrainian Counter-Offensive Is Upon Us
There are three main assaults to follow: one of strategic importance and the others being a mix of strategic and emotional significance.
Of Ukrainian Dams and Damn Trolls: A Reflection by Peter Zeihan
By Peter Zeihan A deep dive into the Kakhovka Dam that was destroyed by the Russians. Who probably did what and why. Also an interesting discussion of what has been happening with Russian Internet trolls. https://youtu.be/XlrUkIRCSWI








