What have we done for you lately?

Development

State Sites

• Completed Phase 1 improvements to the Rockwood Pier Boating Facility, Rockwood, Somerset Co., on Moosehead Lake.
• Obtained bids for construction of the Branch Lake Boating Facility, Ellsworth, Hancock Co., but bids came in over budget. We are working on sources of additional funds and alternative methods of construction to reduce costs. Expect to complete project in fall 2012.
• Will start construction of Phase 2 Improvements to the Rockwood Pier spring 2012 with completion expected in the summer of 2012.
• Have completed renovations to the Kennebec River Boating Facility, Skowhegan, Somerset Co.

Municipal & Other Sites

• Worked with the Town of Camden, Knox County, to complete improvements to the Rte 105 Boating Facility on Megunticook Lake.

Navigational Aids

• Since adding a second Navigational Aids crew in 2009, we have marked navigational hazards on an additional 12 lakes by the end of 2011. The expansion includes a second lake in Aroostook County (Long Lake - St. Agatha), three lakes in Washington County (Cathance Lake, Gardner Lake/Second Lake, and Hadley Lake), our first two in Hancock County (Toddy Pond and Green Lake) and our first lake in Penobscot County (Pushaw Lake). We have also completed on-the-water surveys of several additional waterbodies Downeast and in Penobscot/Piscataquis County in anticipation of marking them in 2012 or 2013.
• Working with the Dept. of Enviromental Protection, we installed 54 navigational channel markers in the Songo River in order to reduce the likelihood of watercraft users coming in contact with invasive plants that are present there.

Website Updates

• Early in 2011 we began tracking Maine Lake "Ice-Out" conditions in order to provide our lake users a reliable place to locate this information. We have received many positive comments about this service and will continue it during the Spring of 2012.
• Recently, we setup three separate surveys where our website visitors can comment on our Program performance and needs. Please visit these surveys and share with us your experience in utilizing our State Boat Access Sites and Navigational Aids.
• We now have available 2 different Google Earth applications that display Public Boat Launch Sites and "State" installed Navigational Aids. If you have Google Earth already installed on your PC, you can launch these applications and learn more about the individual sites you are interested in.

• Completed improvements to Natanis Pond Boating Facility, Chain of Ponds, Franklin Co., on Chain of Ponds Public Lands Unit

• Completed development of Androscoggin River Boating Facility, Mexico, Oxford Co.
• Completed development of new St Froid Lake Boating Facility, Winterville Plantation, Aroostook Co.
• Completed development of new St John River Boating Facility, Madawaska, Aroostook Co.

• Acquired permits and will start construction of the new state-owned Branch Lake Boating Facility, Ellsworth, Hancock Co. later this year with construction completion expected in the fall of 2011.
• Acquired permits and will start construction of Phase 1 Improvements to the Rockwood Pier this winter with completion expected in the spring of 2011.
• Started construction of new boating facility on Long Pond, T10 SD, Hancock Co., on Donnell Pond Public Lands Unit with completion expected in the spring of 2011.

• Long Lake - St. Agatha - 19 buoys
• Little Sebago Lake, Windham - 69 buoys
• Lake Winnecook (aka Unity Pond), Unity - 65 buoys
• Kezar Lake, Lovell - 43 buoys

• Secured and renovated an existing boat access site on Megunticook Lake, Camden off Route 52. This site is operated by the Town and was renovated with a grant from the Department of Conservation, Boating Facilities Division. Renovations included repair of the launching ramp, addition of an accessible boarding float system, addition of an accessible portable toilet, repaving a portion of the lot, and painting the lot to improve traffic flow and parking utilization. In addition, some storm water management improvements were made to reduce the transport of sediments into the lake.

In addition, the Division is working with the Town of Camden to secure and renovate the boat ramp to Megunticook Lake on Route 105. The effort here will be to provide an improved boat launching ramp, and adequate parking that will be protective of the lake environment, and to make the site accessible to those with disabilities.

• Secured and developed a hand carry boat access onto Hall Pond in Paris, in conjunction with Hebron Academy and Hebron Water Company. The facilities are on Academy property and managed by the water company, and include an accessible launching float and portable toilet as well as an expanded parking lot.
  
• Secured and developed a trailer accessible boating facility on the St. John River in Madawaska. This is a Town-owned facility and is not completed, but will be available for boaters to use this coming spring. Additional work will be done next year to complete the parking lot.
  
• Secured and started development of a new trailer accessible boating facility on St. Froid Lake, Winterville Plantation, Aroostook County. The plantation-owned site will include a concrete planked launching ramp, with handicap accessible boarding floats, and a parking lot. The site has been cleared and rough graded and we expect to finish the work next summer or early fall.
  
• Completed the renovation of the Pembroke-owned, Pennamaquan River Boat Ramp. The ramp here had to be replaced to provide a continued safe access. This site provides access not only to the Pennamaquan River estuary, but also access to Cobscook Bay in Washington County
  
• Completed the expansion and renovation of the Greenville Junction Wharf Boat Ramp onto Moosehead Lake. This project was part of the Town of Greenville's wharf redevelopment project which saw the wharf cribwork totally renovated. Work still needs to be done to complete the project, but the boat ramp has been completed and was put into service this summer. Additional handicap accessible floats were provided to help alleviate the congestion around the boat ramp.
  
• Completed the renovation of the Webber Pond Boating Facility in Vassalboro. This Town-owned facility needed to have the ramp repaired to fill in a power loading hole at the end of the ramp which had caused a few of the planks to shift making launching difficult at low water levels. The parking lot will be paved next spring in an effort to maximize the amount of parking available at this small site. A boarding float has also been added to make the site easier to use and all aspects were made accessible to persons with disabilities.
  
• Completed the development of a trailer accessible drift boat launching facility at the Bear River Rips Boating Facility on the Androscoggin River in Hanover. The Division worked with the Mahoosuc Land Trust to add this ramp to what had been a hand carry only facility. This ramp will provide ready drift boat access to the river just below the Bear River Rips, a popular fishing area.
  
• Funded the renovation of the Aroostook River Boating Facility in Caribou. The Division worked with the Town of Caribou to add a concrete planked launching ramp and to improve the parking and make the site accessible to persons with disabilities.
  
• Completed the renovation of the state-owned Woodbury Pond Boating Facility in Litchfield. This state-owned facility needed to have the boat ramp renovated, to keep it safe for public use, and a number of improvements needed to be made to make the site accessible to persons with disabilities and to address storm water management issues.
  

• We have added a second Navigational Aids crew and are now in the process of marking additional publicly accessible lakes where boating use is high and there are many navigational hazards. During 2009 we marked underwater navigational hazards with state staff on three additional water bodies: Androscoggin Lake in Leeds and Wayne, Pushaw Lake in Old Town/Orono, and Great Moose Lake in Hartland. All three of these lakes were previously marked by lake associations. Due in part to the degree of difficulty and the number of underwater hazards in marking these lakes, it was determined it was in the Programs' best interest to take over the marking efforts. Other water bodies are currently being evaluated in order to develop a list of future marking priorities. We will continue to mark additional lakes until we reach a point where we cannot manage any more with our second crew.
  
• We have been working with several other state agencies and an advisory panel of non-governmental organizations to update our Strategic Plan for Providing Boating and Fishing Access to the Waters of the State.
  
• We continue to enhance the mapping of our state-owned and state-assisted recreational boating facilities on Google Earth. This has been a joint effort between our agency and the Department of Environmental Protection, whose staff has already developed expertise in placing geographic information on Google Earth. Users are able to search for boating facilities by water body name, county, town or by "flying" around in Google Earth. They can also get driving directions to any site and print directions as well as maps. Further modificationsin this application are being developed this winter.