Welcome to historic Damariscotta Mills, Maine – home to one of Maine’s oldest and most productive alewife fisheries. The stone fish ladder that is the centerpiece of Damariscotta Mills was constructed in 1807 by the Towns of Nobleboro and Newcastle because, for nearly a century, mills blocked access for fish to the freshwater falls. In 2007, after two centuries of use, the fish ladder was in poor condition so a restoration project was initiated by a strong community group working with the Towns of Nobleboro and Newcastle and the Nobleboro Historical Society.

 

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Quilt Raffle

Restoration of the fish ladder has had a signficant positive impact on the health of the Damariscotta River alewife stocks. Alewives are an important part of the food chain and they contribute to the health of the marine environment and to the lakes and streams where the fish spawn. In the spring, a few harvested alewives are smoked as “people food” but most serve as a source of fresh bait for local lobstermen. The Towns of Newcastle and Nobleboro have harvested alewives since the 1700s and, by balancing conservation and economic goals, they have carefully tended the Damariscotta River alewife stocks. Today, all funds received for harvested alewives are spent to maintain and restore the fish ladder and harvesting area.
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Fish Happenings

Alewife Quilt Raffle

The Draw will be held on Labor Day September 7. Tickets are still available online under “Support Us”. If you are close to the Fish Ladder you can  pick up tickets for $5 each or 6 for $25 from David Brydges — call 207 832 1790.

The numbers are in….and they’re great!

This year we passed 1,069,488 alewives into Damariscotta Lake to spawn. It’s just great to get more than one million—it’s always our goal since the restoration. It was an interesting year—the fish came in late and stayed late but they did their job.

Big News! The Lower Fish Ladder opens to the public on Tuesday, June 2

Due to changes in state policy, the fish ladder will be open to the public beginning tomorrow, Tuesday, June 2. We are excited to share this year’s great fish run, which will last for at least another week and probably for two more weeks. To take advantage of this awesome opportunity to see Damariscotta Mills […]

The 2020 alewife run is nearly over

The fish have slowed down considerably—very few new schools of alewives are entering the fish ladder and any fish that are coming in are small. Small fish, often 3 year olds, are typical of the end of the run. These young fish, not ready to spawn for another year, seem to be practicing for the […]

Harvesting is over for the year

The last harvest of the year was on Tuesday morning, June 9. Very few fish are coming in now and run-backs, fish that have spawned and are heading back to sea, are abundant—especially at the end of the day.Thanks for a great year. See you next year!

Check out this special webinar that includes the Damariscotta Mills Fish Ladder!

Not to be missed – on Thursday, June 11 at noon, the Natural Resource Council of Maine will host a webinar called Maine’s Sea-Run Fish – Stories of Success. Deb Wilson will present slides showing the Damariscotta Mills Fish Ladder Restoration and Nick Bennett of NRCM will look at other river herring runs in Maine, […]

Still many fish to see!

Many people have taken the opportunity to visit the fish ladder since we opened it to the public on June 2. The alewives have been thick and the show—complete with eagles and Osprey and occasional herons—continues. That said, we expect to see the run slow down in the coming week. The signs are there….many of […]

Harvesting continues

With so many alewives in, we’ve had a great harvest this year. The plan is to harvest this Monday, June 8, although we may not have as many fish as last week. The run-backs have begun in earnest (fish returning after spawning) and fewer schools of alewives are coming in. Still, we’ll see what tomorrow […]




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