The Beauty of Bait

Here is a picture of the bait used to lure lobsters into the Crate to Plate traps. The bait used by Captain Dan can be anything from Herring to Rock Fish or Red fish to Hoagies. Every trap is filled with a bag of bait and then replaced with new bait after it has been hauled.

The tote that you see in this picture holds about 200 lbs. of bait. Captain Dan and his crew go through 6 or 7 totes of bait on each fishing excursion. That’s around 1000 lbs. a day!

Want to join Captain Dan and the Fisher Girl for a sail? Contact Crate to Plate to plan your own fishing adventure!

Crate to Plate's Local Catch

Want to know where your Crate to Plate lobsters come from?

Captain Dan and the Fisher Girl sail out of Saturday Cove in Northport, one of the many small inlets that make up West Penobscot Bay. Crate to Plate lobsters come from traps placed along the coast stretching from Lincolnville to Bayside. Coast dwellers may see the Fisher Girl near Islesboro’s ferry dock, at Lincolnville beach, or even as far north as Searsport.

While fishing, Captain Dan sails around many of the islands littering the Maine coast including Flat Island, Seal Island, and Ram Island— all bordering Islesboro’s shore.

The Fisher Girl

Here is a picture of Captain Dan’s lobster boat the Fisher Girl. Captain Dan acquired his fishing boat in 1999 after beginning fishing in 1994. The boat is named after a picture the Captain saw of a girl enjoying a day on the beach.

Lobster Fishing with Crate to Plate

Want to fish with a real Maine lobsterman? Go sailing with Captain Dan on the Fisher Girl and learn the trade that has made Maine famous!

Sailors will live the true fishing experience as they navigate the rocky coast picking up traps. Watch eagles sunbathing on Flat Island while learning to haul traps and pack bait bags. Discover a harem of seals laying on a rocky key while emptying traps and banding lobsters.

Sailors will experience the beauty of ocean life while becoming an expert on all things “lobst-ah”. Learn how to correctly pick up a lobster, the difference between a hard and soft shell, or even how to “V-notch” a hen. Guests will practice the same environmentally conscious lobster procedures that have been a part of Maine life for over 100 years.

So join Crate to Plate and Captain Dan on a fishing adventure and discover Maine’s lobster in a whole new way!

For more information on how to schedule a tour with Captain Dan, please visit the Crate to Plate website.

Meet Captain Dan!

Crate to Plate may have begun in November 2009, but Captain Dan’s relationship with our lobster friend actually began in 1994.

A long time ocean lover, Captain Dan has been sailing since 1979. After graduating from college, Dan moved to Florida to start work in the corporate world. Six years later, Dan got his Captain’s license and began sailing around the world delivering and servicing yachts.

On a routine sail to deliver a boat, Captain Dan ended in up in Maine. Upon seeing the state’s beauty and possibilities, he decided to stay in Vacationland to discover the Midcoast’s rocky beaches, island speckled coast line, and its most famous export—lobster.

Deciding it was time for a career change; Captain Dan embraced his new state’s specialty and began lobster fishing in 1994. A self-taught fisherman, Captain Dan steadily grew his business to include over 800 traps located around the Northport coast.

Today Crate to Plate offers customers a full lobster experience including boat tours for those who would like to learn Captain Dan’s famous trade or the harvest of one of his many traps. Check out the Crate to Plate site for more information on Captain Dan and his lobster friends!

It’s the Journey, Not the Destination

Maine and Washington are continental bookends. Each hugs its coast with perspicacity and neither allows you to be complacent about its landscape. On clear days in Seattle when Mt Rainier looms or on summer nights when the ferries cross the sound their lights speak of magic rather than direction. It is not unusual on a point A to point B trip to suddenly be astounded by unexpected beauty. Point A to point B trips are the lifeblood of our days. We have to pick up the kids, drop off the laundry, take the dog to the groomer. Rushing up Route 1 in midcoast Maine to run the same errands we experience a series of speed zones: 25 through town, 35 on the edge and 55 in between. There's a stretch of road north of Camden that winds through tall pines where you can catch a glimpse of the occasional house, antique stores are prolific and coveys of summer cottages perch on the hills to claim a sea view, if only, when you step on your tiptoes. Clipping along on a two lane road at 55 (65 with the ten mile unwritten leeway) is almost meditative until the Reduced Speed ahead signs begin to appear. The need to slow down is not immediately apparent. The wind of the road and the tall pines continue. Until you reach Lincolnville Beach a town that consists of a post office, B&B, four or five shops, two lobster shacks and two restaurants. One has a sign that says “best pizza in town”. As the only pizza in town it is an indisputable claim. But it isn't the availability of postage or pizza that makes you want to slow down. It is the open water dotted with pristine lobster boats and the backdrop of Islesboro. It is a postcard moment. A scene stopped in time. Sunrise, high tide or light squall lobster boats have anchored and fished from here for two hundred years. Men and boys have risked their lives for centuries hauling traps. It takes little imagination to feel the timelessness of the spot, the continuity wraps around you like a comforter knit by your grandmother.