Ok so as I mentioned in my introductory post, I was about to venture off to Damariscotta to go on a rope recovery mission & wanted to do some exploring around the midcoast of Maine while I was up there.
To brief you, I made the rope connection through someone that answered my "looking for lobster/poly rope" craigslist ad. I really didn't know what I was going to be getting, as he didn't give me much info (+ no pictures) but he did say he had a decent amount & I thought the trip up there during the summer would be fun. My mom came along with me & let me just say I'm so thankful that she did. And not just because we were able to share the experience together...
After about 2 hours of driving we pulled up to an apartment complex. The first thought that came to my mind was, "where in the heck would someone be able to store the amount of rope this guy said he has, living in an apartment complex?" My next thought... "well maybe there are storage units for the tenants??", so I did a quick scan of the property. Nope, just apartment buildings.
Our guy sees me pulling in & meets me at the truck. We exchange hellos & I, as least skeptically as possible, ask him where the rope is. His response, "Oh it's out back, in the woods. Just squeeze your truck through that spot over there & drive up onto the yard. Maybe your truck can fit around back behind the buildings."
My thoughts?
"The rope is stored in the woods?!" And... "maybe I can fit the truck around back = not an easy get-away if need be". This was the moment where if I didn't have someone with me I most likely would have gotten the heck out of there.
We maneuvered around back & parked where he pointed us to go to, get out of the truck & he then directed us to a little opening on the edge of the woods. This lead to a small path & about 15' in was clearly a large pile of something, covered by a tarp, which was also covered by a bunch of branches, leafs & pine needles. He told us that was just to make sure his landlord wouldn't see that he was using the woods as a means of storage. At this point all things screamed SKETCH.
BUT, as soon as he pulled the tarp back & we saw the array of colors & that most of the rope was coiled & it was dry & it was clean, it took everything I had not to do a little dance & jump for joy. All of the absurdness leading up to that point, made what I was looking at that much better.
Another perk... he was also quite nice. He used to make doormats himself but decided to give it up due to lack of time. He showed me some of his work & gave me a few tips which I look forward to trying out.
After all was said & done the truck had been filled & then some. I had rope colors I've never seen down in my neck of the woods... plum, shiny teal, cotton candy pink, CAMO! Needless to say, I felt like I hit the recycled lobster rope jackpot. I paid him his asking price, we shook hands & I carefully maneuvered the pickup truck out of the tiny backyard.
Now that we had taken care of that, it was off to Reny's (conveniently located in downtown Darariscotta) to get a tarp & some bungie cords. A mere $8 later we were good to go & decided to head north east.
Interesting Maine Fact: Do you know where the term "downeast" comes from?DownEast Magazine explains the origin of the term: "When ships sailed from Boston to ports in Maine (which were to the east of Boston), the wind was at their backs, so they were sailing downwind, hence the term 'Down East.' And it follows that when they returned to Boston they were sailing upwind; many Mainers still speak of going 'up to Boston,' despite the fact that the city lies approximately 50 miles to the south of Maine’s southern border."
So as much as I wanted to do some serious exploring, my exposed rope bounty did hold me back from going "off the beaten path" a bit. But, dont fret... I'm sure Part 2 (coming soon) will satisfy you, just the same, for your desire to get familiar with the little bits & pieces of Maine you've never known.
Thanks for reading!