I was a very lucky teenager to spend a couple of summers at Hendricks Head Lighthouse in the late sixties.
I was the guest of the William P. Browne Jr. Family. My mom had been close to Fran, (Dr. Browne's wife, Frances), when they lived in Cleveland, and she thought it would keep me out of the "drug" scene in the city in the sixties.
The experience remains as one of the most exhilarating in my life.
Of course, as is usually the case, I have only come to realize how lucky I was in my old age.
I was so thrilled to see the 60 Minutes episode that featured Hendricks Head, and am so grateful for my mom's plan for me all those years ago.
Remarkable things I witnessed:
like the two rows of loons facing each other with courting ones who with their wings extended looked like they were dancing their way down the center line; watching the water roiling with thousands of fish followed by seals and porpoises and then finally the whales at the intersection of the Sheepscot River and the Atlantic Ocean. The GIANT seagulls.
Then there is the spooky audio experience that is Maine fog.
Pinkham's white cheddar cheese, the perpetual pot of "garbage" soup on the wood-burning stove, fresh mackerel and the fishing for it from the pram with the leak in it; and the charming New England protocol of "permission to come aboard".
And the rare sandy beach but water cold enough to stop your heart. The beauty of the water at night with the mica flakes reflecting the moonlight.
I could go on and on.
I am so happy that the internet has made it possible for me to see it again, and that the current owners have kept it so beautifully.
I have spoken with Jeff Browne earlier this year and was charmed to hear that Fran lives in the area still.
Respectfully,
MJ
September 19, 2015