Oh my, lobster pie! Rockland’s Granite Inn shares its recipe

Hilary Nangle
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Oh my, lobster pie! Rockland’s Granite Inn shares its recipe

After sampling the Granite Inn‘s lobster pie (technically quiche) during Rockland, Maine’s, annual Pies on Parade event, I managed to persuade Ed Hantz to share the recipe.

“This is my adaptation of a recipe I found in an old cookbook,” Hantz says. “I serve it fairly often, usually when there are enough people staying at the inn to warrant making more than one quiche so that people have a choice. It’s usually paired with a veggie quiche.”

LOBSTER QUICHE
Makes 8 servings.

Crust

• 2 cups flour
• ½ tsp. salt
• 1 stick butter, cold
• 3 heaping tbsp. cold vegetable shortening
• 6 – 8 tbsp. ice water
• 1 tbsp. sugar

Place flour, sugar, salt, and butter cut into about 8 pieces in a food processer and process until the consistency of corn meal.

Add the shortening and two tbsp. water. Pulse a couple of times, then add two more tbsp. water. Keep this up until the dough begins to stick together. Don’t over-process or the dough will become tough.

Remove from processor and form a ball. Flatten ball and refrigerate in a zip-type bag for a couple of hours or overnight.

When ready to roll out, let dough warm up until pliable. Roll out on a well-floured surface to form a thick crust. You should have plenty of dough. Lay into a 9″ pie pan and trim to about an inch beyond the rim of the pan. Fold the edge of the crust up and inward and crimp with your fingers.I like to build the crust to about ½ inch above the edge of the pan. This makes an extra deep pie.

The dough trimmings can be collected, rolled out again, and cut with cookie cutters into shapes to decorate the top of the quiche.

Filling

• ¼ cup shallots, diced
• ½ slice 12-grain or other “nutty” bread
• Zest of one lemon
• 1 tbsp. fresh tarragon
• ½ tbsp. fresh dill
• 7-8 oz. cooked lobster meat
• 2 cups Gruyère or Jarlesberg cheese, shredded
• 4 large eggs
• 2 cups half-and-half
• 1 tsp. Dijon mustard
• dash mace
• salt and pepper to taste
• ½ cup almonds, slivered

Preheat oven to 400°.

Sauté the shallots until lightly browned, then place in the pie crust.

In a food processor, process the bread into fine crumbs. Add the lemon zest, tarragon, dill, and lobster and pulse two or three times to mix. Don’t over-process.

Spread over the pie shell, and top with the cheese.

Whisk the eggs, half-and-half, mustard, mace, salt, and pepper until frothy. Pour into the pie shell, top with the almonds, and bake for 15 minutes.

Turn the oven down to 300° and bake for an additional 50 – 60 minutes or until center is firm.

Checking Inn: Rockland’s Granite Inn

Hilary Nangle
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Checking Inn: Rockland’s Granite Inn

After an afternoon of nibbling my way through downtown Rockland, sampling pie after pie after pie last Sunday, innkeepers Ed and Joan Hantz invited me to call it a night at the Granite Inn.

The Granite Inn, located on the northern end of Main Street opposite the ferry terminal, opened as Rockland’s first B & B in 1984. But its history predates that by a long shot. Built in 1840 as a private home, it served as the local Elks lodge beginning in the 1940s, and wasn’t converted to a B&B until 1984.

Contemporary updates without losing architectural heritage

I’ve toured the inn over the years, and previously it was a bit dowdy and frumpy, and many of the rooms shared baths. That’s not longer the case. The Hantzs have given the building the loving care it craved, investing in much-needed updates without losing the architectural niceties, such as terrazzo floors and a granite interior wall.

Joan, a graphic designer and the daughter of two architects, has done a smashing job with the décor. She blended family antiques with mid-century-modern furnishings, adding original artwork, and did so in a way that keeps the atmosphere light and airy. An especially spacious living room—essentially an open double parlor—offers two separate seating areas, one facing a fireplace. The backroom, formerly the Elks lodge, is the dining room, where there are always cookies as well as hot drinks available.

Granite Inn offers a range of guest options

Guest room are upstairs. Most are spacious. Those in the front of the house, with views over the ferry terminal and working harbor, are more traditional in furnishings. (If you’re especially noise sensitive, despite the views, these might not be the right choice for you).

Suites are especially family-friendly. A few rooms have electric fireplaces, and one newly renovated suite also has a whirlpool bathtub.

All rooms have private baths (all but one en suite), TVs, there’s free Wifi, and a rave-worthy breakfast is included in the rates. All this, and it’s pet friendly.

Cheap sleep: The least-expensive room qualifies as a cheap sleep, as it comes in at less than $100—deal!. It’s small, has a queen-size bed, and although it does have a private bath, it is down the hall (still, quite the deal for downtown Rockland and an inn of this caliber).

Breakfast feast

Let me tell you about breakfast. It always includes a buffet sideboard as well as a hot entrée that’s served to the table (guests have a choice of a central shared table or satellite private ones). On the morning I feasted, the buffet had lemon crepes with a wild blueberry compote and a side of  lemon curd, fresh fruit, and homemade granola. That alone was plenty—especially those crepes! But then, poached eggs with asparagus and prosciutto atop whole wheat bread was served, too. If I’d preferred, eggs to order as well as bacon or sausage and toast were also available. The inn’s equally famous for its scones and its  lobster quiche recipe.

 

 

Natalie’s chef shares his recipe for Meyer lemon risotto with Maine shrimp

Hilary Nangle
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Natalie’s chef shares his recipe for Meyer lemon risotto with Maine shrimp

I convinced another one of Maine’s talented chefs to share a recipe using Maine shrimp. A native of Belgium, Executive Chef Geoffroy Deconinck’s career took him to Restaurant Alain Ducasse, Plaza Athenée in Paris, France, and then on to leading and executive roles in New York City’s Café Boulud, Restaurant Daniel and Bouley Restaurant and now to Natalie’s at the Camden Harbour Inn.

Meyer Lemon Risotto with Maine Shrimp

For about 10 starter servings:

1 lb of Maine Sweet Shrimp
4 Meyer lemons
1 lb Arborio rice
6 oz unsalted butter
3 oz diced onion
2 oz lemon juice (Meyer preferrably)
3-1/2 cups (or more) of vegetable stock
3 oz of Mascarpone cheese
Zest of 2 whole lemons
Chopped herbs: parsley, dill, chives

Process:

Wash the 4 Meyer Lemons, wrap them individually in tin foil and bake them in the oven at 350 degrees Farenheit until tender. Strain the whole lemons through a sieve and reserve the obtained puree

Dice the onion and sweat (stir until translucent ) in 1 oz of melted butter. Add the rice and cook (still stirring) for about 5  minutes

Add the lemon juice and reduce it. Add 2 ounces of the lemon puree and the vegetable stock 1 cup at the time (every time the rice has absorbed the liquid ). Cook on medium heat, stirring continually with a wooden spoon. You want your rice “al dente”

After using all the stock taste the rice, it should be ready or almost ( in this case add more liquid)

Stir in 1 lb of Maine Sweet Shrimp, the rest of the butter and Mascarpone

Season and add more lemon juice if needed

You want the risotto loose, so check the density before serving

Once the shrimp are cooked, add the lemon zests and the chopped herbs

Serve immediately

Bon Appetit!

More Maine shrimp recipes

Bald Mountain Camps winterizes for the future: It’s now a classic Maine lodge and cabins for winter sports enthusiasts

Hilary Nangle
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Bald Mountain Camps winterizes for the future: It’s now a classic Maine lodge and cabins for winter sports enthusiasts

Steve Philbrick, second-generation owner of Bald Mountain Camps Resort, in Maine’s famed Rangeley Lakes region bit the bullet. After much soul seraching, he made the difficult decision to begin winter operations of the  historical, traditional Maine sporting camp fronting on Mooselukmeguntik Lake. Although Philbrick is technically a second-generation owner, he took the operation over from his grandparents. And now, he’s aiming to secure the camps’ future for the next generation.

Like most traditional Maine sporting camps, Bald Mountain was open spring through fall. It’s easy accessibility made it a family favorite, not just a place for avid hunters and anglers, although it attracts those, too. The main lodge and outlying cabins look down the length of Mooselukmeguntik Lake toward the distant Presidential Range of the White Mountains; sunsets are stunning.

Choices, choices

While families return generation after generation during the warmer months, eager to swim, boat, fish, hike, and play in the surrounding wilderness, it wasn’t enough to sustain the business.

“It was a financial choice,” Steve says. “We had to make a decision, either sell — and I can hardly even talk about that, never mind consider doing it — or take the financial plunge, invest ever saved and millions more, and winterize it to keep it going, to keep the heritage alive. It sounds mushy, but that’s the choice we made.” Spurring that decision was his oldest son, Tyler, who shares Steve’s love for the property. “He expressed an interest in it and attended college for hospitality and tourism education. He wants to be part of it, he’s a new face for a new future.”

Over the past two years, the Philbricks have been winterizing the property, first the main lodge and now the cabins. (see video; and take a look at some of the other videos, including this one on ice harvesting. Now the main lodge with dining room is open and serving dinner not only to overnight guests but also the public on Wednesday through Saturday nights. It also serves lunch on Saturdays and both lunch and dinner daily during vacation weeks.

Unpretentious dining and lodging

We went for dinner last week. The camps serve classic Maine sporting camp fare: hearty, good, and warming with a few special touches and choices ranging from burgers and salads to chicken and steak. It’s easy, comfy, unpretentious. What I love most is the setting, a room anchored by a big fieldstone fireplace and adorned with animal trophies, even a handsome wooden canoe suspended from the ceiling.

Sitting in the room, with the fire glowing and casting a warm light on the age-burnished wood, it’s hard to tell that the lodge was rebuilt, taken apart and reassembled in order to winterize it—a process that must have required expert jigsaw puzzle skills.

What they learned winterizing the main lodge is now being repeated in the cabins, with seven open for winter guests. “We picked up each building, put a furnace in the basement and insulated each from the outside in,” Steve says. In the process, a small fridge and microwave also were added to each cabin, allowing guests to make simple meals when the dining room isn’t open.

The goal is to make the cabins more pleasing to the modern-day traveler while maintaining the rustic appeal. “We have families who have been coming back to the same cabin for multiple generations—this was their home away from home; there are a lot of memories inside that we didn’t want to cover. We took each apart stick by stick; we took great pains and effort to do so.” When those families return in the summer, the cabin looks exactly as it did inside, but now there’s heat beyond the woodstove or fireplace that’s in each one.

Restoring for the future

Preserving and restoring was important, he says, because of the property’s history. Teddy Roosevelt stayed in one cabin, and a gable had some water damage. “We dismantled the gable end to repair it, and put it back together in the same way. When I say ‘restored,’ I mean we literally restored it.”

In the process, they’ve uncovered some interesting items. When restoring another cabin, they found a carving that had been covered up by an earlier restoration. It had the date 1828 with names inscribed. “We thought the first cabin was built much later, then we found this,” Steve says, adding that property’s none of deeds go back that far. He plans to frame that and display it in the dining room, along with other artifacts and historical photos.

Nature tourism at its best

While summer visitors fish and swim and boat and hike, Steve expects to attract some snowmobilers, but more snowshoers and cross-country skiers in winter. “We’re nestled at foot of bald mountains, with thousands of state-owned land behind us,” Steve says. Currently, it’s make-your-own trail, but he’s negotiating for permission for an entry-level cross-country trail, a single loop from the lodge’s backdoor that he’ll groom with a small snow machine.

“I make my guests happy for free. I can tell them where to go to look for moose antlers, where to go to see deer. There are places I can send you to where you’ll never hear snowmobiles , never see them, places where if another human’s see it in the last 15-20 days, it’s because I’ve sent them there.”

And as I finish poking around the lodge and cabins, I take a few minutes to gaze skyward and am quickly mesmerized, seduced the vast expanse of inky black sky lit only by a brilliant canopy of stars,  captivated by the symphonic silence of a wintry Maine night, and wishing I had booked a cabin. I will return.

Rockland’s Limerock Inn shares Frank’s pizza rustica recipe

Hilary Nangle
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Rockland’s Limerock Inn shares Frank’s pizza rustica recipe

 

When Frank Isganitis and PJ Walter owned Rockland’s LimeRock Inn, Frank’s pizza rustica was a specialty. I asked Frank to share the story behind his pizza rustica recipe as well as the recipe in this guest post.

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LimeRock Pizza Rustica: The story

By Frank Isganitis

Growing up Italian-American (especially with immigrant grandparents) was quite a unique experience.  You have to first understand people that came here with nothing, but were so grateful for the opportunity that they compromised the very essence of their identity in order to assimilate into American culture.  Well, let’s say they “Americanized” themselves for the outside world, but their home was pure Italian.

With marble-topped tables and hand-made linens, my grandma’s house was a little slice of Italy, and as often as possible (and EVERY holiday), my family along with my two uncles and their families were beckoned for dinner.  But this was no ordinary dinner.  I used to enjoy inviting my non-Italian friends to watch my grandma guilt them into eating so much food they thought they would explode.  For her, it was a way of life.  I mean to be the center of attention by preparing the greatest meal of your life, but always there was her humility that the food was only OK or she would be disappointed that something didn’t turn out the way she wanted.  Trust me, she was an expert cook, and everything was always delicious.  I digress.

Pizza Rustica is one of my most favorite dishes and was the centerpiece of dinner the Saturday of Easter weekend.  Remember, good Catholics (all Italian-Americans are) were required to abstain from eating meat on Fridays during Lent culminating to the ultimate sacrifice (i.e. fasting on Good Friday).  I don’t know why Jesus wanted us hungry on the day he died, but again, I digress.

If you haven’t already peaked, take a look at the recipe for Pizza Rustica.  A sweet pastry dough (pasta frolla) filled with ricotta, mozzarella and pecorino romano cheese (no parmagiano reggiano for my grandma), Italian and American ham, prosciutto and mortadella…. Tutti buoni Italiano. Everything good Italian.

My mom and grandma would spend Friday evening preparing these pies knowing that we could not indulge until Saturday, but man, it was worth the wait.  The smell of this dish cooking in the oven caused uncontrolled salivation and evoked an immediate need to put on a Mario Lanza album.  Patiently we waited for time to pass as the pies were removed from the oven and allowed to cool.  Because the pies keep for up to a day un-refrigerated, they were perfect for this, and perhaps many other occasions.

I could ramble on and on about growing up in this special world, but that will keep you from enjoying this great dish.  So get cooking!

LimeRock Inn Pizza Rustica:Pork & Cheese Pie
Serves 6

The sweet egg pastry (pasta frolla):

2 cups flour

2 egg yolks

A Tiny pinch Salt

1 stick butter cut up into small pieces

1/3 cup ice water

2 tablespoons granulated sugar

Mix all ingredients, and knead them together briefly, preferable on a cold surface, such as marble.  Just as soon as they are well amalgamated into a compact dough, wrap the dough in wax paper and put it in the refrigerator.  Leave it in the refrigerator at least one hour before proceeding with the rest of the recipe.  It can be refrigerated up to 4 or 5 hours.

If you have a food processor, all the mixing and kneading can be done in it.  Put all ingredients into the beaker and spin the blade on and off until balls of dough form on them.  When you take the dough out of the processor, shape it into a single ball before you wrap it and refrigerate it.

The filling:

2 egg yolks

3/4 pound whole-milk ricotta

1/4 pound prosciutto or country ham, salami or boiled ham, chopped not too fine

1/4 pound mortadella, chopped not too fine

1/4 pound whole milk mozzarella, cut up in small pieces

2 tablespoons freshly grated pecorino romano cheese

Salt

Freshly ground black pepper

1-quart soufflé dish or similar ovenproof crockery dish

Butter for greasing

The cold egg pastry form above recipe

1.   Put the egg yolks into a bowl, and beat them briefly with a whisk

2.   Add the ricotta, and beat until it becomes rather creamy

3.   Add the chopped meats, the mozzarella, the grated cheese, a liberal amount of salt, and several grindings of pepper.  Mix all ingredients roughly.

4.   Preheat oven to 375˚

5.   Thickly grease the inside of the baking dish with butter

6.   Cut off about 1/3 of the pastry dough.  Over a sheet of kitchen parchment, roll it out into a round shape large enough to line the bottom of the baking dish, and come a little bit up the sides.  Turn th dough over into the dish, peeling the sheet away from the dough.  Fit the dough into the bottom of the dish, spreading it evenly.

7.   Cut another third of the dough, and always over parchment, roll into rectangular strips as wide as the baking dish is deep.  Line the sides of the dish with these strips.  You can overlap where necessary: where there are gaps, they can be filled by pressing them into little bits of dough where the sides meet the bottom into a tightly sealed seam.

8.   Pour all the filling from the bowl into the dish.  Press it lightly to force out any air bubbles trapped in it.

9.  Roll out the rest of the dough into a disk large enough to cover well the top of the pizza.  Place it over the filling, and press its edges tightly against the dough lining the sides of the dish, making sure of a tight seal.  Trim away the dough along the sides wherever it comes up higher than 1/2 inch above the top of the pizza; fold the rest of it down.  Smooth out all rough connections with a moistened fingertip.

10.   Place in the upper level of the oven.  Bake for 45 minutes, until the top has turned a light golden brown.  Do not open the oven door during this time.  If after 45 minutes the crust seems to you to require a little more browning, turn up the thermostat to 400˚, and bake for another 6 to 8 minutes.

11.   When cool enough to handle, the pizza may be unmolded by being inverted on a plate.  It is also very nice served directly from the baking dish.

Pizza Rustica may be served while still warm, or at room temperature, but not piping hot.  It will keep for one day without refrigeration, at normal room temperature.

Lunch at Flagstaff Lake Hut: A winter day trip on the Maine Huts trail

Hilary Nangle
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Skiing or snowshoeing hut to hut along the Maine Huts Trail isn’t for everyone, but just about anyone can enjoy walking into the Flagstaff Lake Hut for lunch. The Flagstaff Lake Hut, the middle of three along the trail, has an enviable setting on the shores of Flagstaff Lake. It’s remote, wild country, and in winter, when blanketed in white and shimmering, it’s positively magical.

Free recreation

The free trail network is designed for hut-to-hut skiing and snowshoeing, but you don’t have to ski or snowshoe, nor do you have to bunk in overnight to enjoy the trail or hut experience. It can be a pleasant day trip and a relatively easy one requiring no special equipment.

The trail extends from Carrabassett Valley to near The Forks, with three overnight lodges with dorms en route. The Poplar Falls Hut is a 2.5-mile mostly uphill trek from Carrabassett Valley; the Grand Falls hut is way out in the williwacks, 8.6 miles from the nearest trailhead, and nearly 13 miles from Flagstaff Hut. But the Flagstaff Lake Hut is just 1.7 miles from  the trailhead parking lot on the Long Falls Dam Road (off Route 16 in North New Portland), making it an easy half-day trip.

Four of us walked in a few days ago wearing winter boots. A short spur connects the parking lot (where there’s an outhouse) to the main trail, an eight-foot-wide corridor that’s groomed and tracked for Nordic skiing. (We were careful not to step in the tracks). En route, we passed snowshoers and skiers, families, and couples. The trail is mostly level, with a few ups and downs, but nothing too steep or long. If we’d been wearing snowshoes, we likely would have ventured onto one or more of the rustic side trails that veered closer to the lake; instead, we enjoyed the occasional distant views.

Lunch!

We made it just in time for lunch, served 11:30 a.m.- 1 p.m. in the big dining room, with cathedral ceiling and walls of windows taking in the woodsy views. The day’s menu offered a lentil soup or vegetarian chili each accompanied by a chunk of homemade bread or cornbread; simple sandwiches, such as tuna or chicken salad, BLT, or grilled cheese; and a nice array of homemade sweets, including maple walnut pie, brownies, and just-about-to-go-in-the-oven chocolate chip cookies. Prices were reasonable, around $6-7, or we could opt for a $10 special including soup or chili, hot drink, and dessert.

We all opted for the lentil soup, a big bowl thick with ingredients; nothing watery or weak about this flavor-rich soup. And we each opted for the cornbread, a big, warm hunk that managed that delicate balance of being both moist and crumbly. Despite being full, I couldn’t resist the just-out-of-the-oven cookies. Maybe it was the place or the perfect timing, but these are in my top five for Maine’s best. I would return for these alone.

After taking a tour of the hut, we lingered by the wood stove, and trust me, the comfy leather sofa and the rocking chair made it hard to get moving again. But we eventually rallied, but before trudging back to the car, we took a short detour down a side trail to a vista point. The location on a finger of land reaching into the lake provided views of the Bigelows that made us vow to return not only in winter but also in summer.

 

Free map details Maine’s Public Reserved Lands

Hilary Nangle
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Free map details Maine’s Public Reserved Lands

Ease into the great outdoors on Maine’s Public Reserved Lands. Download a free map from the Maine Bureau of Parks and Lands (BPL) that details more than a half-million acres of public reserved lands.

Your Maine Lands: Recreational Map & Guide to Public Reserved Lands describes each of Maine’s Public Reserved Lands units and the recreational opportunities available on them. Use this fabulous resource to plan everything from a day hike to a week-long escape.

In comparison to state parks, Maine’s Public Reserved Lands are remote and managed for for recreation, wildlife, and timber harvesting among other things. BPL organizes the public lands into 29 units ranging in size from 500 to more than 43,000 acres. Also part of the program are many other smaller scattered lots. All are open for recreation, and many offer unique, back-country experiences.

What’s special about Maine Public Reserved Lands

“We have so many special places in Maine besides our 48 state parks and historic sites,” says Will Harris, director of Maine Bureau of Parks and Lands. “We want to help Maine folks find their own special places to experience, to go camping, hiking, fishing and hunting, and in general to have a great time and create wonderful memories.”

Many of Maine’s public reserved lands offer outstanding landscapes and vistas, such as the Bigelow Preserve, which includes the entire Bigelow range. And many provide remarkable hiking and camping opportunities, such as the Cutler Coast overlooking the Bay of Fundy. Some areas, such as the more than 41,000 acres of the Seboomook Lake unit, offer excellent hunting, fishing and boating. And others have unique habitats, such as the alpine landscape at Mount Abram, the Great Heath peat bog, and the Machias River Corridor’s wild Atlantic salmon run.

Year-round recreational opportunities also including bird-watching, wildlife-watching, biking, swimming, snowshoeing, snowmobiling, and cross-country skiing.

 

Sugarloaf lift accident update

Hilary Nangle
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Direct from Sugarloaf’s communications department:

Carrabassett Valley, ME (Dec. 29, 2010) – Inspectors from the State of Maine Board of Elevators and Tramways, along with mountain operations personnel and representatives from Sugarloaf Mountain are investigating the deropement of the Spillway East chairlift, which took place at approximately 10:30am on Tuesday, December 28.

The investigation, which is still on-going, began on the afternoon of Tuesday, December 28.  Today, the State of Maine Board of Elevators and Tramways believes that wind was a contributing factor in the lift deropement.

“Our two primary concerns right now are for the rapid recovery of those injured yesterday and the safety of all Sugarloaf guests,” said Sugarloaf spokesman Ethan Austin. “We’re incredibly grateful for the help offered by local and state agencies.”

A detailed report will be issued by the State of Maine Board of Elevators and Tramways once the investigation is complete.

Timeline of incident; mountain personnel response
Sugarloaf experienced winds immediately following the major snowstorm which dropped 22” of snow on the resort this Monday.  As a result, several lifts at the resort, including the Spillway East chairlift, were placed on wind hold at the start of operations Tuesday.

Winds diminished as the morning progressed, and Spillway East was evaluated by the ski patrol director of Sugarloaf Mountain and a chairlift mechanic.

That evaluation included towers, top and bottom terminals, and the completion of Sugarloaf’s standard safety checks.   The chairlift was opened to the public at 9:55 am.

At 10:23am, the Lift Operations Department received a maintenance request for Tower 8 from a Sugarloaf ski patroller.  Two chairlift mechanics were dispatched at that time.  The chairlift cable was observed to be running toward the outside of the rubber liners of the sheave train (the wheels on which the cable is supported) on Tower 8.

At 10:30am, one lift mechanic arrived at Tower 8 and another arrived at the bottom terminal of Spillway East.  Working in tandem, the mechanic at the bottom terminal of Spillway East communicated with the mechanic on Tower 8 while he made an adjustment to the sheave train per Sugarloaf’s operating and maintenance procedures.  The lift was slowly started to enable the cable to settle back into the correct location on the sheaves.

The realignment effort was unsuccessful. The mechanics repeated the procedure, again unsuccessfully.   The mechanic on Tower 8 determined that it would be inappropriate to run the chair at normal operating speed and the lift should be closed.

Mechanics started the lift at a slow operating speed to begin off-loading the guests who were on the lift.

Shortly after starting the lift at reduced speed, the lift cable deroped from Tower 8, leaving the cable suspended between Tower 9 and Tower 7.  Lacking the support of the sheave wheels on Tower 8, five chairs struck the snow below.

When the deropement occurred, the mechanic on Tower 8 immediately notified the mechanic at the bottom terminal of Spillway East about the deropement.  The lift was immediately stopped and locked out from further movement.

Ski patrol was immediately notified of the deropement, and lift evacuation procedures began at 10:45 am.  At 12:14pm all guests had been evacuated from the lift.  Sugarloaf ski patrol estimates that 150 people were evacuated.

Members from ski patrol, grooming department, snowmaking department, resort ambassadors, lift maintenance personnel and the Carrabassett Valley Fire Department responded to the scene.  In total, 54 people contributed to the evacuation of the lift.

Update on injuries:
Six people were treated for injuries and sent to Franklin Memorial Hospital in Farmington, Maine.  A seventh person, who initially was cleared to leave the scene, was admitted later in the day.  Today, Sugarloaf Mountain learned that an eighth guest, who was initially cleared to leave the scene, checked into Franklin Memorial Hospital.

Three patients were transported from Franklin Memorial Hospital to Maine Medical Center in Portland.

Due to patient and family confidentiality regulations, Sugarloaf cannot release information regarding the identity or nature of injuries to individuals. Further updates on the conditions of those injured can be obtained by contacting the hospitals.

Three guests who were unhurt requested to be transported to the base of the mountain after they were evacuated from the lift. One was taken via toboggan and two were taken inside a heated snow grooming tractor.

Status of the Spillway East Chairlift:
The State of Maine Elevator and Tramway Board has noted that there was some damage to lift components due to the deropement. All mechanical components remained in place after the incident and those components are currently being removed and will be analyzed further. The resort plans to replace the damaged parts with new equipment and go through safety testing and inspections prior to reopening the lift to the public.

Other lifts at Sugarloaf continue normal operations.

“Sugarloaf Mountain wishes the best for the people injured in the accident,” said Austin.  “The resort remains committed to guest safety and its culture of safety instilled in every employee.”

Maine shrimp recipes, chapter 3

Hilary Nangle
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Backatcha with more recipes for Maine shrimp. Bangor News foodie Emily Burnham collected recipes from chefs and fishing folks, including Chef/Owner Kerry Altiero of Rockland’s Cafe Miranda and Port Clyde Fresh Catch’s Carrie Yardley, and shared them here. By the way, Maine shrimp meats freeze very well, so you might want to hit the fish trucks or your local fish store to stock up on them. I sure have.

Maine shrimp recipes chapter 1: from Jay Villani

Maine shrimp recipes chapter 2: from Nancy Harmon Jenkins

Some thoughts on Sugarloaf’s lift incident

Hilary Nangle
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I love the word incident, it’s so understated, so British (I was stuck on a train once in Scotland during a rail incident, actually a suicide attempt up the line that stopped all train traffic passing on that track, but I digress). Unless you’ve been off line and out of range of TV and radio, by now you know there was a lift accident at Sugarloaf resort this morning. Yes, that’s where I spend a good deal of my winter, and no I wasn’t there today. But I’ve followed reports and talked with friends who were there.

What happened: Short version, the Spillway chair derailed and six [updated to seven eight] people were injured after their chairs fell about 30 feet, more than 200 others were stranded on the lift and had to be evacuated.  The cause of the derailment hasn’t been determined.

Is it a story that merits worldwide attention: Not really, but when there’s a CNN reporter stranded on the lift and it’s the slowest news week of the year, well, it was inevitable that it went viral.

Have I talked with friends who were there: Yes, and most first heard about it from other friends who were calling them from distant places asking if they were okay. In other words, at the ‘loaf, the incident was under control.

Aren’t you understating it: No, this is a very serious issue. The lift derailment itself is a big problem; compounding it were the frigid temps and high winds. I’m very thankful that no one was killed or seriously maimed (one update two, make that three people were evacuated from Farmington’s Franklin Memorial Hospital to Maine Med., in Portland—two by ambulance, on via LifeFlight heli—but no updates yet on their conditions; five were treated and released from Franklin). But the rumors are egregious. (Someone actually called me to let me know that a gondola had dropped and there were dead bodies all over the mountain: Sugarloaf hasn’t had a gondola in ages, and no one was killed).

Isn’t that an old lift: Yes.

The Spillway East chair is A 2 passenger monocable fixed grip chair manufactured and installed by Borvig in 1975. This lift was modified in 1983. Spillway East is 4,013 feet long with a vertical of 1,454 feet. This chair moves at a speed of 500 feet per minute and the chairs are 50 feet apart. There are 162 chairs on this lift each weighing 140lbs. Spillway East has a 250 horsepower motor and has a capacity for 1,200 skiers per hour.

The chairlift receives routine daily inspections for safety.  Additionally, the chairlift receives weekly, monthly and yearly maintenance and testing.  The lift is also inspected annually for it’s safety from the State of Maine Board of Elevator and Tramway Safety.

—Sugarloaf statement

Who do you trust for info: I’m reading  stories in the Portland Press Herald and Bangor News and augmenting that with updates from Sugarloaf’s media page and its Facebook page. I don’t expect much more info to be posted on the ‘loafs pages until a full inspection is done and a cause for the derailment is determined. I do expect reporters from the local papers to stay on top of the story and to provide updates when new info is uncovered.

Will you ski Sugarloaf: Only reason I wasn’t there today is because of vehicle troubles. I hope to be carving turns on the mountain later this week. Maybe I’ll see you there…

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