As promised I am passing along data about fog signals collected from the Coast Guard by Donald Duncan. He noticed, as perhaps you have, that we hear fewer fog signals these days. Many summers the moan of the fog horn was accustomed background noise to our time on the coast of Maine, but with most boats now having GPS, and thus able to follow a lighted line to their destination, some fog signals operate only on demand. The Coast Guard tells us Burnt Island and Seguin still sound continuously when the fog rolls in. Hendricks Head Light has not had a fog signal for many years. Ram Island and Cuckolds signals are activated only on demand.

During times of reduced visibility, turn your marine radio to channel 83A. For Cuckolds, key microphone five times consecutively to activate the fog signal for 45 minutes. For Ram, turn marine radio to channel 83A/157.175MHZ, key microphone five times consecutively to activate the fog signal for 45 minutes. The Coast Guard encourages all boaters to have access to a marine radio. Cell phones will not suffice to activate the horns.

Travel on land will be more complicated for Southporters this fall with major repairs underway on the Southport Bridge. I hope you all noted the front page article last week in the Register by Sue Mello explaining the work and the times our bridge will be one lane traffic and for three nights, Oct. 1, Oct. 16, and Oct. 31 closed completely between the hours of 9:30 p.m. and 6:30 a.m., except for emergency vehicles. If you missed that article and cannot find it online, signs are posted around the island at the Town Hall and Post Office. Currently those signs give different closure dates, but a call to Prock Marine, the contractors in charge, say the Register dates are correct, but flexible. Eventually, large signs will be posted with updated information at both ends of the bridge. The bad news is this construction will not correct the bumps in the road surface.

In other bridge news the bridge keepers now have three new ladders with cages on the west side of the bridge on which to climb down under the bridge to check conditions and to make minor repairs. Above the bridge on the osprey nest the three chicks have hatched and fly about on their own adventures.

Good news for families who love trains. The Southport Memorial Library has obtained free passes good for two adults and four children for the Wiscasset, Waterville and Farmington Railway and museum in Alna. For more information on this attraction, you can go to www.wwfry.org. The passes are good for the days our library is open, which are Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. Just pick them up at the library desk. They do not need to be returned.

A sad “Whale’s Tale” from the Island Store. Sometime during the afternoon on Wednesday, Aug. 27, the small blue whale, made by Mike Lewis and to which the “open” sign for the Gift Barn was attached, was lifted from its moorings and taken away. Such actions on our small island are not only disrespectful, but disrupt the harmony in life we like to think exists here. I understand others have recently experienced yard thefts too. If you know the whereabouts of this whale, the open sign, or other misappropriated property, please report it.

Students have returned to the Southport Central School, most of them happy to be back in the classroom. Before school opened teachers were busy readying the classrooms, so that all was colorful and bright for Tuesday morning’s opening.

A former Southport resident, Joe Fodera, has died. His funeral will be at Our Lady Queen of Peace on Tuesday morning, Sept. 2.