River celebration
An article in the Portland newspaper told that the Presumpscot River Watershed Coalition and its member organizations were to hold a festival July 19 at Westbrook’s Riverbank Park, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
We attended, going to the park on another nice day. We picked up many brochures explaining the groups who are preserving the Presumpscot River, including Friends of the Presumpscot River, founded in 1992. It is an incorporated nonprofit, organization “committed to protecting and improving the water quality, wildlife habitat, recreational opportunities, and natural character of the Presumpscot River and its shorelands.” It is an all-volunteer organization, supported by membership dues, donations, and occasional fundraising efforts.
On their brochure we read that the Presumpscot River is short by most standards: it rolls 25 miles, from Sebago Lake to Casco Bay, passing through and along Windham, Gorham, Westbrook, Falmouth and Portland. In that short distance, however, it drops 270 feet.
Its name, “Presumpscot,” having its origin from local native culture, is said to mean “many falls” or “many rough places,” revealing its true natural identity. In 1650 it was noted that “at certain times, the entire surface of the river for a foot deep was all fish.” The river embraced vast amounts of river spawning Atlantic salmon, shad, and alewives as well as being home to landlocked salmon, brook trout, and the now extinct “Presumpscot Jumper” salmon. In its natural state, the Presumpscot was both beautiful and bountiful.
As European settlements grew, rapids and falls gave way to mills and dams, and by 1900 all spawning runs of fish had ceased entirely. By the 1920s, the river was dubbed “the best controlled river in the United States.” What was once a clear run of water from Sebago to Casco Bay is now an artificial river constrained every 2.5 miles by a dam. The slow water impoundments created by the dams greatly affect water temperature and dissolved oxygen levels. The result is unfriendly to original native fish, plant and invertebrate species.
“No longer seen as a river destined to be defined by man’s use, with careful stewardship, the river can move to a rebirth of its once original beauty and bounty,” the group says.
So Friends of the Presumpscot River is working for change, and is opposing re-licensing three of the five dams up for re-licensing..
We enjoyed the musical entertainment at the park. Playing the guitar and singing in the gazebo was a young man, Ben Kilcollins. He is now in Portland, but his home was in northern Maine. That was a nice addition to the festival.
Picnic celebration
On Wednesday, July 16, the Barron Center held its picnic on the wide lawn in front of the building, at 1145 Brighton Ave., Portland. The outdoor picnic is for the residents of the nursing home and their friends and families, and it was a happy affair. Tables are set up on the lawn, and guests are served and given a tray to carry their food and utensils to their tables.
The invitation, said, “This is a rain or shine event!!!” but there was no rain in sight. It was a beautiful evening. My son Ray and I sat on a bench right beside the pool, at the center of the lawn. We were guests of our cousin, Mary E. Stearns (Betty), a resident at the center.
Refreshments included hot dogs and cheeseburgers in buns, and many salads – potato, cole slaw and pasta (that included slices of ripe olives, a favorite of mine).
At a table near the pool, girls were serving glasses of lemonade. Dessert included watermelon slices and ice cream bars. It was an excellent menu.
Many of the residents were at the outdoor picnic, too, in wheelchairs or with walkers.
From 6:30 to 7 p.m. we were entertained by the Jubilees, two ladies who sang in the gazebo. They sang familiar popular songs from the old days, to complete the evening.
Driving notation
We read in the Sunday Telegram and the Boston Herald of a Kentucky woman who was pulled over by a state trooper in Gardiner, Maine, as she was passing through a toll booth. The trooper saw her looking down at her laptop. She was watching the television show “Gilmore Girls.” She told the trooper that she was watching it to keep her awake, as she was tired.
She was on I-95 in Gardiner. The brief article did not say what the penalty was, but the trooper did warn her to concentrate on her driving.
Dessert sensation
Today’s recipe is from “Famous Pennsylvania Dutch Foods,” 1976. The cover says, “The finest In Amish and Mennonite Cooking.” I have chosen this recipe for its interesting title:
Shoo-Fly Pie
Dissolve a half-teaspoon of baking soda in 3/4 of a cup of boiling water; add a half cup of molasses and one beaten egg.
Mix 3/4 of a cup of flour, 2 tablespoons of shortening, 1/2 cup of brown sugar and 1/2 teaspoon each of salt and cinnamon. Form the mixture into crumbs.
Pour the liquid mixture in an unbaked pie shell, then add the crumbs on top and bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees.
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