Notes from Maine - 2026/09/06

We had a busy week here in Maine. My sister is here on vacation and we always try to squeeze in as much as possible when she’s here. There was plenty of work to do both at the camp and at my house this year. Usually, we scatter in some days for outings or going to the beach, but this time we focused solely on projects.

The driveway gate at the camp has always been too small. My father used to have a chain that he would pull across to keep people from coming down the driveway when he wasn’t there. That chain was fed through a length of PVC pipe to make it more visible, but it wasn’t much of a deterrent. Later, our neighbor Gordon came down with his big tractor and dug holes for a proper gate. I’m not sure why Dad only had him put the posts ten feet (a little over three meters) apart. That narrow gate left wide open spaces on either side. In fact, the openings were so wide that someone eventually drove a truck to the right of the gate and then stole a bunch of stuff from Dad’s camp. My brother got everything back and the Sheriff arrested the perpetrators. To prevent another robbery, we put rocks on either side of that gate and installed cameras.

To remedy this problem, my sister, mom, and I dug up the posts that Gordon installed, pulling them out still in their concrete balls. We dug new holes farther apart, re-planted the posts, and seated them in even more concrete. Mom has been working on sanding and priming the gates and posts. They’re ready for new paint. That project has been lingering on my list for years. It was a lot of work to dig up and move those posts, so it feels like a treat now that we don’t have to squeeze through a narrow opening every time we go to the camp.

With that project tackled, we turned our attention to the bathroom closet. Maine Cabin Masters added the bathroom years ago, and they put a utility closet in there to house the tiny water heater. Even though it was short, the water heater took up most of the footprint of the closet, rendering most of the space unusable. To improve that, we beefed up the framing of the walls, added a shelf that could hold about four adult elephants, and then elevated the water heater. In the space underneath, we put in an outlet and washing machine hookup, in case we decide that a washer would be a good addition. It would make the camp more self-sufficient since we already have a clothesline. 

Personally, I don’t anticipate staying at the camp long enough to do a load of laundry. My house is less than 45 minutes away and I have horses to care for. But it would certainly be convenient for others. When he and his friends stayed up there earlier this year, my nephew washed his clothes by hand. 

If you’re ever driving through Central Maine, listen closely for a low squeaking sound. That’s the sound of my father rolling his eyes somewhere beyond this earthly plane. He would have considered the notion of a washing machine in a camp to be utterly ridiculous. This was a man who would get angry if you tried to throw away his paper napkin from lunch because he wanted to use it again at dinner. Most of his clothing came from the “free store” at the dump. Even Goodwill was too upscale for his taste. But we like the idea of having a little washing machine, even if I personally might never use it.

This morning, my sister and mom left early to drive back to Virginia. It takes ten or more hours to drive between Maine and Virginia, depending on the traffic. They’re in for a long day of driving, so I hope they found the visit worth that journey. 

It feels like their departure is the end of summer. Albert (dog) and I enjoyed a lot of guests this summer, but now the house is quiet once more. We’ll go back to our normal routine and before you know it the leaves will turn, a cold wind will blow through, and we’ll be waiting for the snow to fly. 

The barn loft is full of hay already. That’s another thing my sister and I did while she was here. The hay happened to show up so we spent a day throwing it to the loft and stacking it. I’ll leave it until March, in case there’s a shortage. I wouldn’t be surprised if hay is hard to come by over this winter—the drought has decreased availability.