Cousins Island & Littlejohn Island Harbor Thoughts 9/1/99

The opinions expressed here are those of the individual members of our community and do not necessarily reflect the opinions all community members or the Cousins Littlejohn Island web site. With that said, everyone is free to voice their opinion here. If you would like to respond to any issues or concerns put forth in this weeks Harbor Thoughts page I will be glad to include them here. Contact me at: mhensle1@maine.rr.com By Art Bell A couple of thoughts about the Cousins/Little John waterfront: (1) The Little John public dock appears to be over used. As a second year mooring owner at the public dock off of Little John Island, I've noticed a marked increase in the number of boats/dinghies tied to the dock. I haven't seen a similar increase in the number of moorings, so I have theorized that some Chebeaguers may be using the dock as a way to get to the mainland. Some of the boats are equipped with engines capable of making the crossing relatively easily. There are also a number of cars parked there for extended periods, suggesting that they are left for the weekend, etc. Although such activity may not be in violation of any rules, it does render the dock somewhat less usable for those of us trying to park and row out to our moorings. (2) I was trying to put a small 13 foot O'Day Widgeon into the water this summer, only to discover that the only boat ramp available was the Town Ramp in the Royal River, about 5 miles up stream. Seems unfortunate to live on an island but not be able to launch a small boat!