at the Holbrook Island Sanctuary on Cape Rosier, Maine
By Joseph Anderson
If you have ever been to Maine, you probably already know that it is one of the wildest frontiers left in the United States. Once you pass the southern Maine coast and Portland, Maine, you’ll encounter huge areas of vast wilderness, with few towns and roads. The coast certainly has more human activity, but due to the sheer amount of shoreline, much of it is still undeveloped, and left to those who respect it the most – the wildlife!
If you have ever been to Maine, you probably already know that it is one of the wildest frontiers left in the United States. Once you pass the southern Maine coast and Portland, Maine, you’ll encounter huge areas of vast wilderness, with few towns and roads. The coast certainly has more human activity, but due to the sheer amount of shoreline, much of it is still undeveloped, and left to those who respect it the most – the wildlife!
Holbrook Island Sanctuary is situated on Cape Rosier, just north of Deer Isle, and not far from Acadia National Park. While the animals and habitats have a lot in common with those you’ll see in Acadia, you will appreciate that many fewer people are exploring the smaller Holbrook Sanctuary.
Despite being a relatively small sanctuary, Holbrook has a variety of places where you can spend your time searching for wildlife. Starting on Cape Rosier, there are a few trails through the pine forests which are great places to look for woodland individuals. One animal that seems to be relatively common in this area is the porcupine. The two times when I visited the sanctuary I got great looks at these spiny mammals in broad daylight.
Among the woodland trails, the Goose Falls Trail goes along the shoreline and has the best spots to step out of the trees and gaze upon the waters of the Penobscot Bay. The bay is home to a wide variety of marine animals. Loons and cormorants can be seen regularly flying over the bay, or floating on the surface between fishing dives. Also keep an eye out for sea ducks, like Eiders and Scoters, as well as soaring raptors like Bald Eagles and Osprey. This area is one of the few places on the East Coast of the United States where you have a chance to see a species of Auk from shore. Please, check closely to see if one of the birds floating in the bay is the Black Guillemot.
Besides exploring the trails on Cape Rosier, hopefully you have the chance to explore the island that gives the sanctuary its name. If you do have access to a boat, make sure to look for seals and dolphins as you cross the bay in order to get to Holbrook Island. Once on shore, you can continue to search the bay for seabirds and marine mammals.
Holbrook Island is also home to white-tailed deer that can be seen browsing in the meadows. Also, make sure to look in the grass as many garter snakes inhabit the island as well. Holbrook Island Sanctuary is a very wild place where you can escape the crowds while searching onshore and off for many different types of animals. Getting this far up into Maine gives you the opportunity to see species that are rare or not found lower down in the United States. And while these coastal peninsulas are generally not home to Maine’s largest land animal – the moose – you never know when one might wander out there.
Joe Anderson is an avid wildlife watcher, and enjoys sharing his favorite locations with others.