BANGOR DAILY NEWS • July 22, 2023
My friend and I are camping on a remote island in Upper Pierce Pond trying to dodge wet summer weather and catch a few of the pond’s famed landlocked salmon. We’re the only people around. There’s no cell service here, no Wi-Fi network to join. Like many of Maine’s remote waterways, this pond exists in a dead zone where cellphones are useful only as cameras and clocks. Later, there’s a spot on Route 16, heading south, where cell service returns. I know once I reconnect the screen will brighten with notifications, voicemails. I open the driver’s side window, let the cooler morning air come in. There’s fog lifting and patches of blue sky overhead. At least for a little while longer, I ignore my phone completely. ~ Ryan Brod