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The Wrack

The Wrack is the Wells Reserve blog, our collective logbook on the web.

Why "The Wrack"? In its cycles of ebb and flow, the sea transports a melange of weed, shell, bone, feather, wood, rope, and trash from place to place, then deposits it at the furthest reach of spent surf. This former flotsam is full of interesting stuff for anybody who cares to kneel and take a look. Now and then, the line of wrack reveals a treasure.

  • Bats on the Beach

    | October 23, 2015
    We had lots of cuties here on Tuesday for our monthly public Preschool Story Hour, featuring Brian Lies' Bats on the Beach. After a reading of the story, the group delved into a bat cookie cutter painting activity and then hit the trails for nature exploration and a bat and mosquito scavenger hunt. Did you know that a little brown bat eats up to 1,000 mosquitoes in an hour? Thank you, bats! You are the be…
  • Venue: An Incomparable Setting

    Beth Geary
    | October 20, 2015 | Filed under: Culture

    Want a wedding spot on the southern coast of Maine? The Wells Reserve at Laudholm features beach, dune, forest, and field.

  • Piqued

    | October 18, 2015

    burning beech

    The following was published in the Biddeford-Saco?Journal Tribune Sunday edition, 10/18/2015.

    Welcome to Southern Maine and peak foliage. Those blazing reds and oranges along the Turnpike and our back roads are a sight to behold. Of course, Im talking about brake lights.

  • Volunteer Recognition Awards (all years)

    | October 13, 2015 | Filed under: Culture

    All volunteers are honestly appreciated, but some merit special attention for their unusual dedication. Each year, Laudholm Trust and Wells Reserve staff nominate certain volunteers for recognition. Here is our history of selections.

  • Helping to Make Monarchs More Than a Memory

    Wells Reserve Contributor | October 7, 2015

    Monarch caterpillar on milkweedThree years ago I observed a magical happening while on a drive along Ocean Avenue in Kennebunkport. Suddenly I was surrounded by what appeared to be a veritable storm of brightly colored pieces of paper fluttering past me. Upon stopping I saw that these were monarchs gathering in the Rosa rugosa at the waters edge. There was a strong onshore breeze and they were flying about, hesitant to launch over the open water.

  • On the Road

    | October 3, 2015

    oh, the shame

    The following was published in the Biddeford-Saco?Journal Tribune Sunday edition, 10/4/2015.

    Just about every two weeks, for the past three years, Ive gassed up my car. On the printed receipt from the pump, I write down the mileage from the trip odometer before I reset it. Every few months, I take all the receipts out of the Altoids tin I keep them in and enter them into a spreadsheet  gallons, price per gallon, location of fill-up, miles driven  and use it to calculate my average miles per gallon, and where the reliably cheapest gas is. Embarrassingly, Ive even graphed the ebbs and flows of my refueling fun.

    What can I say? I like math; I like numbers.

  • Wing'd XXXIV: Quite a Wrack Racket

    | September 30, 2015 | Filed under: Opinion

    The wrack is an "ecological treasure trove" as well as a thorny beach management issue. At the reserve's Laudholm Beach, take the time to look at the wrack community and appreciate its unique contribution to a complex environment.

  • Waterlogged Wednesday

    | September 30, 2015

    2-3" of rain today. Flood warnings. Coastal flood warnings. A super moon high tide. "Multiple hazards in effect," declared the National Weather Service.

    Really, quite a nice afternoon for a walk.

    I've always loved our old bowl-and-chain gutters on the Coastal Ecology Center.

    Sluice

  • Dam Removal Opens Brook Habitat to Migratory Fish

    | September 21, 2015 | Filed under: News

    Removing a small dam from Goff Mill Brook in Arundel reconnects seven miles of stream habitat to the estuary, benefiting brook trout, other migratory and freshwater fish, and the watersheds ecology.

  • Living on the Edge

    | September 19, 2015

    On the edge

    The following was published in the Biddeford-Saco?Journal Tribune Sunday edition, 9/20/2015, and Making It At Home newspaper.

    To a man with a hammer, everything looks like a nail. To a man at a coastal research center during Maine Coast Week, all the worlds a coast.