Stonington is Your Destination for Puffins & More June 19-23

The Town of Stonington’s Main Street Committee, comprised of more than 40 local, year-round businesses including the Isle au Haut Boat Services Company, is excited to present the first in what they hope to make an annual event: Puffin Passages: Exploring Penobscot Bay’s Wildlife Haven from Stonington. Visitors for the special weekend are encouraged to reserve for and arrive the evening of Wednesday, June 19 and experience the Town and special events beginning on Thursday, June 20.

The Isle au Haut Boat Company will run three special, guided puffin tours June 21, 22, 23 each leaving at 1 pm. Noted Maine birders and naturalists Bob and Sandi Duchesne of Maine Audubon’s Penobscot Valley chapter will guide the tours and present a slide show / lecture, “WHAT’S OUT THERE? Birds and sea life in the Gulf of Maine,” to open the festivities on Friday at 11 AM before the first tour.

Reservations for the puffin tours can be made by calling the Isle au Haut Mail Boat and Ferry at 207-367-5193.

These special guided puffin tours provide a showcase for a variety of activities in Stonington in early summer – including but not limited to the breathtaking displays of lupine, wild roses, and other wild flowers blooming during this period. In addition, residents and visitors alike are urged to:

Thursday, June 20: Attend the world premiere professional production of a new play, SALVAGE, at the Stonington Opera House. Tickets at www.operahousearts.org
Friday, June 21, 11 am: Puffin Slide show/lecture with noted naturalists Bob and Sandi Duchesne, 2nd floor, Town Hall, 36 Main Street
June 21-23: Visit a new trunk show at J. McVeigh Jewelry, 27 West Main Street
June 20-23: Take a Walking Tour of Stonington with a special guided soundscape by artist Galen Koch, starting at 44North Coffee, 70 Main Street
June 21: Visit the state’s largest Farmers Market on Friday morning in Stonington’s Upper Village across from the Town park and playground, School Street
June 20-23: Visit the Deer Isle Granite Museum, open from 10 am – 4 pm
June 20-23: Visit the expanded Discovery Wharf at the Maine Center for Coast Fisheries

Puffin Passages: Exploring Penobscot Bay’s Wildlife Haven is coordinated and sponsored by the Town of Stonington and local businesses including Boyce’s Motel; Fin & Fern Restaurant; the Island Agency; Isle au Haut Boat Services; J. McVeigh Jewelry; Maine Center for Coastal Fisheries; and Opera House Arts.