how to live, travel and explore the world from your van

Lobster Farming Western Island Maine

This is part of an 18 week, 7,532 mile, Vanabode road trip detailed in the book from Amazon
titled Big City Wild Country East Coast Road Trip on $20 a Day for just $2.99
See East Coast Road Trip for more pictures, itinerary, maps and trip overview.

We drive about twenty miles an hour through the coastal towns, all over the Mount Desert Island areas, and in and out of the national park boundaries. Southwest harbor hosts interesting small marinas and a busy lobster shack.

lobster harvesting area in maine

lobsters alive in crates in water

I walk around back and see where they have the live lobsters floating in the water in plastic crates. Notice the piling here to stabilize the dock is made from what appears to be a big pine tree cut down and shoved into the water. If I know the ocean it won't last long like this? But maybe because the trees are "free" around here the overall cost works out in their favor.

Above: This is the meat they feed the lobsters to keep them happy and alive.

lobsters wait to die in crate

Above: Notice the little feelers coming out of the crates. The lobsters are caged this way until the consumers in the adjacent restaurant want their meat. This leads to an ugly death in a boiling pot of water.

Above: It is easy to romanticize this way of life when the weather is perfect and the boat is shining pretty and the picture turns out just right. But working a lobster boat and business is hard work. A big long list of things have to happen to get a healthy wild creature out of the sea and into someone's mouth at a price they can afford.

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Click to see the book "Big City Wild Country East Coast Road Trip on $20 a Day"
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