Machias, ME request for information

[mollysmiles]

Originally Posted by maineguy8888

Be aware that the hospital is embroiled in controversy regarding terrible patient care as well as small town politics........not a good situation at the moment. Has been the focus of much media attention statewide.

This I do agree with.... it's a very scary situation and one that is very deep. It's never a good thing when the hospital board is tied to employees....

[Alyeska]

What interesting comments! Thank you very much for them. I won't bore you with the differences between Maine and an area that you have to fly into in a small plane but let's just say that having a road, even a road that's only passable 75% of the time is great. Interesting hospital comments, I'll have to do more web searching to read what you are talking about. How close are the other hospitals? 50 miles or more?

I'm hoping to go out at the end of this month and see the area firsthand. Thanks for the information on the other areas in the County, I was considering renting if I can find anything short term till I get a feel for the area. I've seen real estate by lakes and rivers also. The ocean is great but do you loose feet of ocean front property during the winters? And which direction is down Starboard way? Shall I assume the boat is heading north? Hadn't heard that before.

[Alyeska]

What are the rules about clam digging and fishing in Washington County? Some sandy beaches were mentioned at Rogue Bluff's? Can you dig clam's there? How many/day? I confess to having been spoiled by almost limited less opportunites for fishing and clamming elsewhere. Do you have alot of trout, etc.... you can catch in lakes/rivers? Can you buy fish off the boat at whatever port? Lobster is great but I like halibut. Do you have halibut? Thanks.

[AustinB]

Originally Posted by Alyeska

What interesting comments! Thank you very much for them. I won't bore you with the differences between Maine and an area that you have to fly into in a small plane but let's just say that having a road, even a road that's only passable 75% of the time is great. Interesting hospital comments, I'll have to do more web searching to read what you are talking about. How close are the other hospitals? 50 miles or more?

I'm hoping to go out at the end of this month and see the area firsthand. Thanks for the information on the other areas in the County, I was considering renting if I can find anything short term till I get a feel for the area. I've seen real estate by lakes and rivers also. The ocean is great but do you loose feet of ocean front property during the winters? And which direction is down Starboard way? Shall I assume the boat is heading north? Hadn't heard that before.

Starboard is a small village to the south east of Machais. Near Bucks Harbor.

[Alyeska]

Excellent. Thanks. Will definately check it out.

[mollysmiles]

Austin!!

Alyeska Starboard is not a town, but you probably know that by now You can dig a certain amount of clams each day, for personal use, but I can't remember the exact amount. The tides are huge here, and when they go out they leave the "flats", so the beach doesn't have to be sandy to dig I'm not sure what you mean about losing shoreline in the winter, but for the most part we don't have a lot of coastal erosion because we're primarily rocky. That being said though, Roque Bluff's is primarily sand, and there are some other sand beaches in the county too. I have some pictures I took while I was there last week that I'll try to post tomorrow--I'm way behind on getting things up in that photos thread! oh, to get those clams for personal use, no license necessary.... salt water fishing doesn't require a license, but inland lake and stream does.... and yes, fish off the boat Once here you can ask around about that!

[toadling81]

We moved to the Machias area last fall from a remote village in New Mexico. I actually spent part of my childhood growing up in nearby Eastport, so I was familiar enough with the area. We decided to move back to raise our family and be near the ocean and nature more.
Now it is one year later and we are planning to move away in January, once our lease is up. These are the reasons:
1. The locals are unfriendly and seem distrustful of people 'from away', which has prevented my husband from getting a decent job (no one will hire him, we have actually been told because 'I've never heard of you'!!).
2. There are no jobs to speak of in the area worth getting, unless you want to work cashier at the unhappy grocery store or dig clams for a living. You have to drive at least an hour to Ellsworth or Calais to work.
3. We have discovered a disproportionate problem with prescription drug abuse here which means a lot of burglaries and thefts.
Case in point: in the single year we have lived here, our (locked) car has been broken into, and just this past weekend our (locked and secured) home was broken into and not only were all prescription medications stolen, including my infant son's antibiotics, but several of our electronics as well. We were informed by the investigating state trooper that he was not surprised, there has been an increasing amount of burglaries lately and there are several 'pillheads' on the remote road we happen to live on.!!!
My husband is 37 years old and has lived most of his life in cities like Los Angeles, Denver, and El Paso, and has never had his home burglarized or car broken into.
We moved up here to be safe and to raise our son, and it's turned into a tough situation.
People do not want change here.
I think you would do much better living in Eastport, where there are many more people 'from away' and these problems aren't so pronounced.
But as for us, we are disillusioned and are planning our move closer to Ellsworth. There are plenty of small towns and villages in that area that have the beauty and charm, but at least you have 'civil' civilization closer by.
This may not be how it will be for you, but I don't hesitate to throw a word of caution to anyone thinking of moving here from out of state, as we did. Maine is tops - but the Machias area is not for everyone.

[Maine Writer]

What a shame, toadling. I hope the Ellsworth area is much better for you.

[Zymer]

Originally Posted by pc-not

Knew all of those landmarks well, Zymer. Especially Charlie Berry's Esso. We'd hang out there as mischievous young teenagers, but he was wise enough to keep us occupied and out of trouble. Long before the term "mentor" was popular.

I *think* I might have one of the old signs from there. I had an aunt...great aunt actually...that lived just about next door. I used to go into the Western Auto and drool over the pocket-knives in the display case until I finally saved enough money to buy one.