The Cabbage Island Swim continues to be an event that draws large numbers of Sprucewolders … this year there were over 100 of us on our beach, 24 of whom swam the traditional course from Cabbage Island to Sprucewold Beach, and of those 24, this year seven were under the age of ten. Ray Hopkins started this tradition in the mid-1980s, and since then Barbara Smith, Margaret Schwartz and our neighborhood associations have picked up the baton.

This year’s swim champion was Larry Jaeger, with John Gilroy and Jeff Goodell taking second and third place, respectively. (See attached photo) Special thanks go to Alan and Carol Fisher, clerks of the works who registered and photographed the swimmers, Carole Gonzales and Elisa Goldsmith who organized remarkable quantities of hot chocolate and sweets, and especially to our Harbor Master, Sandy Young, and to the U.S. Coast Guard, whose important presence assures our swimmers’ safety.

In an impressive show of community cooperation, last Tuesday evening Chief Gamage of the Southport Fire Department, Chief Spofford of the Boothbay Fire Department and Chief Nick Upham of the Boothbay Harbor Fire Department brought their respective departments together for a joint training exercise in Sprucewold. The trucks rolled in at 6 p.m. simulating a fire at the Sprucewold Lodge.

Two attack trucks drove past the Lodge and set up to aim hoses into the woods. Firefighters brought a large pumper truck to a position in front of the flagpole and immediately set up a 3,000-gallon portable tank. At the same time, three tank trucks were loading up at the fire hydrants on Lobster Cove and Sunset and began delivering water to the portable tank for pumping to the attack trucks, which was then hosed onto the imagined fire. During the exercise, the tank trucks, holding roughly 2,000 gallons each, made numerous round trips to the portable tank to keep a constant supply of water going to the attack trucks.

As Chief Upham explained, “If this were a real fire, we would also have firefighters and equipment from Edgecomb, Wiscasset, Newcastle and others to augment what you see here. What would really make a difference would be the ability to have permanent, fully charged hydrants at the top of Crest and the corner of Crest and Sunset. Then, we could simply hook up a hose and reach our destination in no time.”

Your Safety Committee, headed by Greg Muzzy, is working with the Water Department to make that happen and we are now on a priority track with them. Our thanks to all the departments in the area and especially to Nick Upham for advocating for permanent water on our behalf. Residents of Sprucewold who were not able to attend missed a very impressive demonstration on our behalf.

It was very nice to see so many Sprucewolders at the thank you reception for volunteers at the Botanical Gardens last week. I think all of us would say that we gain more than we give during our hours of service there. Many others of us volunteer at other institutions in town as well as here in Sprucewold, out of a sense of gratitude for all we are offered in our Boothbay community.

Despite this glorious weather, the numbers at the beach are dwindling, as school bells call many of our children and grandchildren and their families back to their winter communities. Special thanks go to Patrick Rayball, our beach attendant who did such a fine job this summer, before returning to college.

The final social event of the summer will be the breakfast for Sprucewold Residents at the Lodge this Sunday, Sept. 1, from 8 to 11 a.m. We are offered a special rate of $12.50 per person and Richard Pizer will take reservations at 207-633-3600 or by email: richard@sprucewoldlodge.com. He reminds us that the Lodge breakfasts will continue to be served on Sundays through Columbus Day, and on the Mondays of Labor Day and Columbus Day weekends. We hope to see many of you there this coming Sunday!