Odom Ledge, is a drying ledge in the middle of the main channel 2.7 miles above Fort Point. A drying ledge is a nautical term which refers to a ledge which spends part of the cycle above high tide…hence is sometimes “drying”. The name Odom comes from a yachting term -one meter-3.28084 feet. Odom’s Ledge is marked by a daybeacon on a square stone base on the highest point of the ledge and by a buoy off the southwest side. – See more at: Click Here

I have 40 years of memories with Odom’s Ledge as my Sandy Point cottage looks directly at the channel. In the 1980’s I supported a seal study conducted by the University of Maine on my deck. They counted 50 harbor seals on the ledge at that time. The male may grow to 6 feet and weigh 290 pounds.  The first time I was sitting on the deck at night and heard a male bull vocalizing made the hair stand up on the back of my neck.  I think I know where the myth of the Sirens originated. According to my research , ”

 

Seirēnes were beautiful yet dangerous creatures, who lured nearby sailors with their enchanting music and voices to shipwreck on the rocky coast of their island. Roman poets placed them on some small rocky islands called Sirenum scopuli.”  Sound familiar? Just sayin’.

When I was pregnant with Morgan and out on the deck coping with yet another sleepless night, I watched a tugboat run right up on the ledge. It took two days to pull it off.

 

 

 

We have a cave across from Odom’s Ledge that all the Sandy Pointers call Devil’s Oven. I used to go there to hunt for sea glass. The worst naval disaster in America’s history happened right in front of  Odom’s ledge. In actually.. probably BECAUSE of Odom’s Ledge. Read all about The Penobscot Expedition.  In 1779 the fledgling U.S. naval fleet suffered a catastrophic defeat against the British in the waters of the Penobscot Bay, losing forty ships in a battle that was expected to be a sure victory for the Americans. Read more from our own Sandy Pointer author, George Bukor : https://rowman.com/ISBN/9781608933563/The-Penobscot-Expedition-Commodore-Saltonstall-and-the-Massachusetts-Conspiracy-of-1779

 

Painting of Morgan in 1988 at Devil’s Oven in Sandy Point, Maine

I painted a large work of my son looking through Devil’s Oven. I am not sure this name was given to our cave by local people but there are other  similar formations with the same name. SEE BELOW. Do you know how our Sandy Point cave got its name? Post me!  Fred Deriden told me that his mom called it Devil’s Oven… that takes us back about 100 years.

 

http://barharborguideservice.bravehost.com/devilsoven.html

2. The exploration of Devils Oven in New York  http://bridgescreate.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/The-exploration-of-Devils-Oven-New-York.html
During the Patriot Wars of 1838 a man named Bill Johnston (often referred to as a pirate) spent time hiding in a little cave called Devils Oven. Many stories exist regarding how big the cave really is. The water is really low right now so I decided to do a little investigating and take along the video camera.

3. Another New York Devil’s Oven
For many years the bravest visitors to the Glen Iris Estate would venture down the many stairs once found along De ga ya soh Falls and find themselves on the floor of the Portage Gorge. From there they edged along the river to the Middle Falls, where they could find shelter in the natural cave called “Devil’s Oven”. This view shows four visitors posing in the mouth of the shallow cave.

 

4. My personal favorite is from Peter Muise in  Ashland Massachusetts.

The Devil’s Den  We’re blessed in this part of the country with an abundance of natural features named after Satan. Just off the top of my head, I can think of the Devil’s Chair, the Devil’s Hopyard, Purgatory Chasm, the Devil’s Beanpot and the Devil’s Oven. Lots of towns also have at least one of the Devil’s footprints imprinted on a boulder.

Clearly our Puritan ancestors were obsessed with the Evil One and held him accountable for almost every unusual rock, cave, or crevice. In some cases these natural features were also associated historically with the local Algonquians, whom the Puritans erroneously felt were Satan’s minions.

That’s the situation with the Devil’s Den in Ashland, Massachusetts, a small cave where archeologists have found some evidence of early Indian activity. Tony and I decided to pay a visit while we were in Ashland looking for the witch caves. Why not see two interesting sites on one tank of gas?

 

Pictures coming soon!