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Monster sand beach on western shore of Five Mile Island, Kennebec River, Sidney.

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This sand beach appeared out of nowhere this spring with the removal of the Edwards Dam last year. To give a sense of perspective, when the dam was in place, the 15 foot high log boom islands in the right of the photo were mostly underwater as was most of the "land" below the tree line to the left. The restoration of the Kennebec to its free-flowing condition is allowing the river to quickly rebuild its historic sand bars and beaches and other natural features. On the day when this photo was taken (June 17, 2000), the river in the foreground was full of spawning alewives, several large striped bass eating them, several 5-6 foot Atlantic sturgeon leaping and two bald eagles flying overhead. Based on actual "product testing" conducted by stalwart volunteers, this sand beach is a real cool place to take a midday nap.

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