Penobscot Bay, Maine.
1896
June 24
(no 3)
  White Horse Ledge of[f] the charts but called Red Horse Ledge by the fishermen here. A rocky island of a reddish brown color totally devoid of soil or
vegetation, about ½ acre in extent, rising about 30 ft. above the sea & lying
about ½ mile S.E. of Little Spoon Island. From its steep sides & exposed
situation this island is inaccessible save in the calmest weather. Conary
& Watrous landed there while I was on Little Spoon Island. They found
about 50 nests of Herring Gulls, about 30 of which had eggs. They took
10 sets of 3 eggs each and 9 of 2 eggs. the nests were larger than those on
Little Spoon Island. Many of them were built of the same weeds & grass
(this weed is a pretty little plant with white flowers which show in
some of my photographs) others of black sea weed (the kind with bladders).
No other kinds of nests were found on this island but Conary &
Knight took two sets of Cormorant's eggs there last year & to-day
a pair of cormorants were flying about the island.
  Black Horse Ledge. Another solitary, precipitous, rocky island smaller,
rounder, steeper & a little higher than Red Horse & lying about ¼
mile S.E. As its name indicates the rocks are of a rather dark
color. We did not visit this island for the reason that before
our boat reached Red Horse we saw another boat from Green's Landing
at anchor there. Conary recognised it as belonging to his cousin who
is sailing a young man from Boston whom I met on the wharf
at Green's Landing last week & who is collecting eggs & birds among
the island. He told me then (June 20) that he visited Black Horse
a few days before & found several Cormorant's nests with one egg each
there.
  After finishing my work at Little Spoon Island we set sail
for home having a fair but light wind all the way &
reaching the house at 5 P.M.
  After supper I walked across the neck behind the house following a
beautiful wood road, seeing a fresh deer track & hearing a great many
small birds singing.