MODERN kayaks and other small boats follow in the wake of the first discoverers of the Maine coast who paddled these waters in dugouts and birch-bark canoes. Recent archeological finds have confirmed that natives camped, dug clams, hunted, and fished on these shores as long as 5,000 years ago. Evidence of more recent encampments in the form of middens, shell heaps from generations of feasting, are numerous along the coast. Many of the oldest sites are now submerged under a rising ocean, but by conservative estimates, there are still over 1,000 prehistoric shell heaps along the coast. COPYRIGHT 2002 DIAMOND PASS PUBLISHING Unfortunately the thought of shell heaps seems to trigger the same response in some people as the image of gold mines, and over the years the middens have been wantonly plundered in search of arrowheads and pottery shards. Such pilfering, however, disturbs the natural stratification of the midden and scrambles any archaeological record it may hold. Also, the shells neutralize Maine’s naturally acidic soil, thereby preserving bones and bone tools that would otherwise have decomposed, and any disturbance accelerates that process. For these reasons, this guide deliberately does not mention the location of Indian middens except in the most obvious cases. Please, do not disturb any middens you may discover.
Unauthorized digging of any archeological site should be reported to the local police department.