Spent only part of August at the cabin this year, and much of our stay was in silver. There were clouds often, a chill in the morning. We still jumped in the lake the first afternoon, and most days after that, always trying for a swim in whatever minutes of sunshine that day would give us. The water temp at the end of the dock ranged from 70-75 degrees.

The upside to summer rain was the best wild berry season we’ve seen. Mainers agreed… we talked to several people who said that the blackberries, raspberries and blueberries were bigger and much more in plenty this year. I started carrying baskets on our hikes. What we didn’t spill and squish in the bottom of my backpack, we ate fresh or some other way most every day. We had blueberry pancakes for breakfast, blackberries cooked with sugar to make a hot syrup to pour over ice cream, and a cold blueberry bread pudding recipe (which was even better the next day when I mixed in a couple of eggs, milk and cinnamon and baked it awhile.)

Peter Frank did most of the fishing. Actually, I did some fishing too… it was just that he did most of the catching. We pan-fried the bass from the lake, and grilled the mackerel that he and his friend Dave Cassidy (a Maine guide) caught down in the harbor at Stonington. The local farm stands are terrific here, so we had plenty of fresh corn, squash and tomatoes, and from an organic grower, a bag of tiny purple potatoes and a great little purple cabbage smaller than a softball. (I’m a big believer in the better flavor of smaller vegetables.) We also bought a fresh chicken and made a skillet of tomatoes, rice, chicken and beans. I’m always soaking dried beans at the cabin for soup and chili. PF bakes bread. On the best days, we eat yogurt and fruit in the morning and have cocktails in the afternoon. One afternoon, our friends Lynn and Ray brought over delicious blackberry margaritas (see them below)… yes there were tiny bits of seed in the blend of ice and tequila. We joked about the great fiber we were getting. I love summer in the tiny cabin — really a kitchen house with a bed in the loft.

– August 2008, Sandy Lang