Category: People

Danny Staples: a good man puts up a good fight

CUSHING, ME – “I grew up in Rockland, but I spent my summers out on Metinic Island until I was 10.  My father lobstered off there; he did that for years.  I remember going in his workshop and finding a long lath and putting a point on it – like the bow of a boat.  …

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CFN Shakedown Cruise: Mussel Ridge 44.5

by Brian Robbins Welcome to another CFN Shakedown Cruise. Periodically, we will focus on a new launch and dig a little deeper into what went into the project – whether it be a new model or a hull well known to the New England commercial market.  What we hope to do is provide insight and …

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Bob Mitchell of R.A. Mitchell: “You do what it takes”

by Brian Robbins NEW BEDFORD, MA – These days R.A. Mitchell Co., Inc. is probably best known as a source for John Deere-powered auxiliary drives and gensets (along with propulsion engines) – and a full line of Mitsubishi diesels that range from a 429-horse 6-cylinder up to a 1676 hp V-16. But when I was …

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Andy McGeoch’s Cape Island Boats

It’s probably fair to say that Andy McGeoch fell in love with Cape Cod before he fell in love with boat building. The Cape Cod crush started when Andy was four years old, living in the Finger Lakes region of New York. “That summer, my father said we were going to Cape Cod for two …

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New scalloper Orion joins New Bedford fleet

NEW BEDFORD, MA – The 101’ big steel scalloper Orion is the latest newbuild to join the fleet at the Eastern/Nordic Fisheries/O’Hara docks here. Like her sister ship Monomoy, (see CFN May, 2016) Orion was built on a standardized John W. Gilbert Associates design.  A few tweaks here and there, but overall the Gilbert design …

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Goal of Young Fishermen’s Development Program: Recruit more young fishermen to greying industry

WASHINGTON, DC – As a group of small-boat commercial fishing organizations from around the country met and teleconferenced over the past two years, a recurring theme that emerged was the lack of resources available to the next generation of fishermen. Now, that group – the Fishing Communities Coalition (FCC) – is taking steps to make …

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A Wednesday with Rusty Wallis

BARRINGTON, RI – It all began with piss oak, actually. Back in February of 2013 I received an e-mail out of the blue from a fellow named Russ Wallis, writing in response to a Bearin’s column I’d written about long-ago smells of winter.  It read as follows: “Hi Brian, “I am a fourth (and final) …

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Farrin’s Boatshop: 45 years & counting

by Brian Robbins WALPOLE, ME – For years I’ve referred to it as “the crow’s nest” – Bruce Farrin Sr.’s office high over the back bay in Farrin’s Boatshop in Walpole, ME. You have to climb some stairs to get to the crow’s nest up there on the third floor, but it’s worth it.  For …

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Veteran scientist Jon Hare named new director at NEFSC

WOODS HOLE, MA – With 20 years in fisheries research experience at NOAA Fisheries Northeast Fisheries Science Center, newly appointed Science and Research Director Dr. Jon Hare, has an intricate understanding of the center’s mission, facilities, programs and partners extending from Cape Hatteras to the Gulf of Maine. Serving first at the NEFSC Beaufort Laboratory …

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Sharing stories with Paul McFarland

by Brian Robbins ROCKLAND, ME – I’d heard Paul McFarland’s voice nearly 40 years before I met him face-to-face.  I can’t tell you that I recognized the voice when the tall, smiling man met me in the main office of the O’Hara Corporation in Rockland; I’d only heard it over the single sideband radio back …

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