Students from local schools were in Orient to release salmon fry into the thoroughfare joining East Grand and North lakes.
On May 23, 43 sixth- and seventh-grade students from Hodgdon Mill Pond School and 23 students from Danforth released the salmon fry they had raised from eggs in their classrooms, while Houlton Elementary (19 students) and Houlton Southside (34 students) schools did the same with the salmon fry they had raised on May 28.
The scholastic fish tank project is sponsored by the Chiputneticook Lakes International Conservancy (CLIC) and is intended to teach students about nature and conservation. The aerated and temperature controlled tanks are located in Hodgdon Mill Pond School, East Grand School and two schools in Houlton, Southside and elementary schools. The salmon eggs are provided by the Division of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife from the hatchery at Grand Lake Stream.
Maine professional guides John Gaskin, Steve Keith and Elbridge Cleaves were on hand with demonstrations in fly tying, fly casting and instructions in cooking a shore lunch over an open fire.
The Houlton students had an opportunity to see Patrick Patterson, owner of Wheaton’s Lodge in Forest City, demonstrate the fine art of preparing a shore lunch over an open fire. Of particular interest to the students was the way Maine guides make coffee in the wild. The guides in Northern Maine carry a one-pound coffee can about a third full of their favorite coffee grounds and an egg. When the water is at a full boil the guide will smash the egg with a knife and the egg is mixed with the coffee grounds and the mixture dropped into the boiling water, egg shells and all. A couple minutes more at full boil and the coffee is delicious and not a coffee ground in sight.
The Division of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife was also on site with a tanker truck to release 2,000 6- to 8-inch salmon into the lake. The students participated by carrying the one-year-old salmon in pails from the tanker truck to two waiting boats to be released in other locations on the lake.
The students were treated to a hot dog lunch with chips, cookies and a beverage. This is the ninth year that CLIC has sponsored the salmon release program with schools in the area. The Woodie Wheaton Land Trust also provided volunteers to help with the event.
CLIC is an advocate for those people on and around the Upper St. Croix River Watershed’s five Chiputneticook Lakes: North, East Grand, Mud, Spednic and Palfrey lakes, as well as for those on Deering Lake in Orient and Bracket Lake in Weston. The Woodie Wheaton Land Trust, based in Forest City is involved in the protection and conservation of waterfront property in the Chiputneticook Lakes Waterway.
