The Wrack

Capping off a stormy winter and spring, beach access is lost and regained.

We recorded Dr. Jon Dykstra's talk in February 2018: A Brief Geological History of the Sands Along Southern Maine's Beaches.

Piping plovers start four nests on Laudholm Beach in 2017, but only one is successful.

Throughout much of my professional life, I have been involved in various issues related to coastal conservation and public access. My activities have included:

• The Practical — acquisition of lands along the coast that provide direct access for residents and visitors, and that protect wildlife habitat
• The Educational — organizing forums, lectures, and workshops that explore legal and policy issues relating to coastal ownership, use, and access
• Writing and Publishing — most recently, co-editing the 3-volume Maine Coastal Public Access Guide

So it was only natural that the Wells Reserve (and yours truly) would team up with University of Maine Sea Grant and the Maine Coastal Program to revise and publish Public Shoreline Access in Maine: A Citizen’s Guide to Ocean and Coastal Law.

This concise, full color guide, just released, is a summary and analysis of the laws, policies, and court decisions that have helped define ownership of, and public access to, Maine’s coast.

Download Public Shoreline Access in Maine: A Citizen's Guide to Ocean and Coastal Law (6 MB)

The reserve has a no-pets policy. It may be our least popular restriction.

In 1989, after a few years away, my wife and I moved back to Maine. Just a few months earlier, the Maine Supreme Court had handed down its “Moody Beach decision,” confining public use of privately owned beach property to the colonial era’s permitted uses of “fishing, fowling and navigation.” As someone with a profound love for the Maine coast, I read the court’s decision with great personal and professional interest.

For most of my career, I have worked to conserve special places in Maine — to protect natural resources and to provide the public with access to the coast. Realizing that 2014 would mark 25 years since “Moody,” I organized a public lecture series so people could better understand and appreciate the legal issues surrounding public access and private ownership of coastal lands.

This summer and fall the Reserve hosted four evenings that involved all the key players from “Moody” and subsequent court cases dealing with coastal access in Maine. Each time, we filled the auditorium to capacity.

It was a great experience for all of us. Together we learned that Maine is not an anomaly; other states have access conflicts and must also contend with legal ambiguities over shoreline use and ownership.

The weather on July 23 was warm and muggy — a perfect day for a swim at the shore. But rather than head to one of the many lovely sand beaches of York County, some 90 people packed Mather Auditorium to learn about legal issues surrounding ownership, use, and access to the shore.

Attendees heard lively presentations from two attorneys who have extensive knowledge of the subject. John Duff, a law professor and attorney, led with an informative (and sometimes humorous) analysis and explanation of all of the court cases since Moody that have affected use and ownership of Maine's shoreline.

Down in sunny Tuckerton, New Jersey, a contingent of coastal Maine residents and Wells Reserve associates heard firsthand the accounts of locals affected by Hurricane Sandy. The meeting was designed to be an exchange of experiences and suggestions in regard to storm preparedness and coastal resilience. The discussion was geared toward vulnerable areas in Maine, specifically Drakes Island and the Saco-Biddeford area, both of which sent representatives down to NJ. The trip included dinner at a restaurant damaged by Sandy, a few tours of destroyed coastal communities, and an informative panel discussion with residents and municipal officials involved in the recovery efforts.

Pick up three handy guides to the Maine coast and you'll always know where to access sandy beaches, nature areas, hiking paths, and boat launches as you travel the state's 5,300+ miles of shoreline. Each Maine Coastal Public Access Guide — there are separate editions for southern, midcoast, and downeast Maine — gives driving directions along with details on what to expect for parking, facilities, and amenities. Natural features and cultural highlights for more than 700 sites are described in the series, which was published in 2013 by the Maine Coastal Program, with significant involvement by the reserve.

A defenseless nest, an unleashed dog, and in twenty seconds, tragedy.