Revised February 1, 2007
Text & photos by Tim Tower unless otherwise noted.
Tim Tower , owner and captain of the Bunny Clark,(The dog on the left holding his youngest collie, Finley , on January 5, 2007 - a shot taken by his daughter, Halley ) is a native of Ogunquit, Maine. He was born into the commercial fishing business on the same evening his father made his largest ever set of herring around the Isle of Shoals off the coast of Maine. Life for the next few years after revolved around his father's seiner. A career change put his father in the restaurant business with the inception of Barnacle Billy's in Perkins Cove, Ogunquit in 1961. Tim became one of two of the youngest lobstermen in Maine at the age of nine. After that, Tim's life was split between getting a school education and lobstering, tuna fishing (harpooning and handlining commercially), tub trawling (small trawl and halibut), gill netting and very little dragging. The last two years of high school were spent at Tilton School, a private school in Tilton, New Hampshire, while all four years of college were spent at Alfred University, Alfred, New York, both endeavors partially funded through commercial fishing and summer work at Barnacle Billy's. Between times, he has been a charter skipper and delivery captain, sailing vessels from different U. S. ports to Bermuda, through the Caribbean Sea, across the Atlantic, Indian Ocean and on the Pacific Ocean. He holds a biology/chemistry degree and has worked as a marine biologist for the National Marine Fisheries Service and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution studying fish migration. Tim started taking 6 passenger fishing trips on the Mary E in 1977, built the Bunny Clark and sold the Mary E in 1983 and has been party fishing (fishing with greater than 6 passengers) with the "B.C." ever since. At this time, Tim is scheduled to captain all but three of the marathon trips throughout the 2007 fishing season and will captain the day trip and evening trip on Tuesdays during the summer months.
Ian worked as a deck hand on the party boat Indian II out of Portland, Maine for 14 years before he started working on the Bunny Clark. He is an excellent, kind, hard working individual who has maintained a great attitude, a love for fishing and the fishing business and has fantastic deck and boat handling skills. He has the gift of common sense which is decidedly uncommon among the populace. Ian and Mike Gorham (captain of the Indian II) have been regular customers of mine for many years. Both are excellent fishermen and tops in their field. Ian's success with anglers and people in general is a testament to his ability on the boat.
For the 2007 fishing season, Ian's captain's duties will remain the same as those described in the first paragraph. He will also be the second captain on the Ultra Marathon, the first mate on Tuesdays during the summer and the first mate on various Marathon trips throughout the season.
Jared Keniston has fished on many party boats (including the Bunny Clark) and has worked as a deck hand on several from Portland to Kennebunkport. In 2003 he was overseas working for Uncle Sam with the Marines. He has been working for Bunny Clark, Corp. since he got back (January 2004) and helped me lobstering winters. For the last three winters he has been working with Ian reconditioning the Bunny Clark, rebuilding rods and reels and, generally helping get the business ready for prime time. I have enjoyed an excellent man on the deck in Jared . He is excellent with the anglers, very entertaining (outgoing) on deck, a wonderful individual with excellent boat handling skills and has a great work ethic. Humans don't come any better.
Captain Tom has spend most of his life on the ocean. Before he worked for Bunny Clark, Corp., he worked for Shaftmaster Corp. as the captain of an eighty-five foot steel offshore lobster boat working the Georges Bank area for fourteen years. I've always thought that Tom knows the offshore bottom better than most commuters know the road to Boston. Probably the most stable personality on the water I have ever known, he has been wonderful to have as part of the Bunny Clark team. For this reason, I have gone out of my way to keep him with us as much as we can. Wonderful with anglers, an excellent boat handler, great with engines, super working the deck and extremely dependable, I rely on his expertise greatly and have never been disappointed with his fishing trips.
During the 2007 fishing season, Captain Tom will remain the skipper working most Sundays (full day trip & afternoon trip) during the summer.
