This winter is one that will be remembered by many in the Midcoast.  With above average snowfall and below average temperatures, it has been both spectacular and trying. Now it is mid-March and temperatures are rising as spring nears.  A check-in with three area harbor masters indicates that despite the harsh weather, fishermen continued to work through the winter, and there was no major infrastructural damage, even though blizzards pummeled the region.

“There is still so much snow I can’t even see the water,” said Rockland Harbor Master Ed Glaser, over the phone March 8, as he stood in his Rockland waterfront office.  But, he said, “For all the bad storms, there is not much damage.”

Beginning with the January 27 blizzard, the Midcoast experienced continuous snowstorms through early March. To date, Knox, Lincoln, and Waldo counties have received 90 to 100 inches of snow, 40 to 50 more inches than average.  

February was also brutally cold. According to the National Weather Service, February 2015 was the coldest February on record in Portland and Augusta, with the temperatures below average for much of the state.   

In Rockland, the Breakwater shielded the harbor from most of the storms.  Considering all the bad weather, little damage occurred, although Glaser noted the piles of snow surrounding his office.  

Rockland Harbor is busy even in the winter, as the ferries arrive and depart on a regular schedule, tankers from Maine Coast Petroleum deliver fuel to the local islands, and cement barges depart with their loads. One fisherman fishes for scallops during scallop season, and divers brave the icy water.  

Lobstermen will start checking their traps at the beginning of April. Most marinas will have floats in by May, and yachts will begin to appear.  

“Nothing major is happening this spring, but everyone is always trying to make improvements,”  said Glaser.

He said that O’Hara Corporation is building a new building.  (Read more Making way for a evolving maritime economy on Rockland’s waterfront) 

In Rockport, the ice has been a constant battle since late December. Many fishing boats remained in the harbor throughout the winter, and the extreme cold iced up the water, posing a threat to these boats.  (Read more Rockport boat rescued from descent into Davy Jones’ locker) 

The Coast Guard puts most of their efforts into clearing the Penobscot and Kennebec rivers of ice and did not break up area harbor ice.

Rockport Harbor Master Abbie Leonard said she is looking forward to Spring.  Five new floats and an entire new dock system are being built.  This will be the first year with power on the floats and improved wireless Internet.  

Camden Marbor Master Steve Pixley is also a the terrain park manager at the Camden Snow Bowl during the winter.  He said that the storms led to minor damage to the docks in the harbor, but that no major damage occurred.  The winter has been quiet in Camden and Rockport, but nevertheless, everyone is looking toward spring.

Isabel Crane is a senior at the Watershed School in Camden. She can be reached at news@penbaypilot.com