ROCKPORT — Ian Stewart, who oversees Beech Hill preserve in Rockport for the Coastal Mountains Land Trust, is tallying up the costs associated with vandalism at the popular walking, blueberry picking, and star-gazing spot at the top of Beech Hill Road. So far, it’s in the thousands of dollars, he said.

And Dan Ford, a contractor from Hope, whose tractor was also vandalized at Beech Hill Monday night, asks simply: “Why would they do that to somebody else’s stuff?”

An employee of Ford, who owns Ford Enterprises, showed up Tuesday morning, May 6, to mow the blueberry fields at Beech Hill. That’s when he discovered a pile of glass by his tractor cab that he had parked there the day before. The window had been smashed into shards.

He called Stewart, and Ford called Rockport Police Department. Sgt. Travis Ford responded to begin investigating what happened.

“We discovered someone had been through Beech Hill, turned over the bog bridging, pulled out all stakes for the small fencing, broke a window on a contractor’s mower that was parked in a lower field, and then went up the hill,” said Stewart.

It was, by all appearances, a drunken rampage through a popular preserve, and one that is lovingly cared for by many people. Its history is long in the community, and Beech Nut, the sod-roofed stone hut at the top of the hill was designed and built by Hans O. Heistad, of Rockport, as a picnic spot for the Weatherend summer estate. 

Beech Hill currently is open to the public until dusk, although many climb the short trail at night to view stars and the moon rising over Penobscot Bay. Beech Nut is visible to sailors on the water, and is an unofficial navigational aid appreciated by mariners. Beech Nut is also listed on the National Register of Historic Places.  Maine Coast Heritage Trust purchased the 295 acres of Beech Hill in 2003 with support from the Land for Maine's Future program, the MBNA Foundation, and individuals. Ownership was subsequently transferred to Coastal Mountains Land Trust, based in Camden.

Up the hill at Beech Nut, Stewart discovered even more vandalism Tuesday morning. The kiosks presenting the history of the property and interpretive signs about habitat had been smashed. 

“They threw signage into field,” he said. “It was like they were messing with everything in front of them.”

One of them also tried to smash a southwest-facing window, leaving three or four sneaker prints marring the glass.

But there were many broken beer bottles at the Nut, and someone jumped all over one of the kiosks, “until it finally gave in,” said Stewart. “These things are built to withstand this stuff.”

 Stewart and Coastal Mountains Land Trust have been finishing the rehabilitation of Beech Nut over the past few years.

“Now we have to pause and fix this stuff,” he said. “It is frustrating.”

There are not a lot of leads to go one to determine who was involved in the rampage, said Stewart.

“It was definitely a rogue incident that greatly disappointed everyone,” he said. “We have a deductible on insurance and I am disappointed to have to spend charitable dollars on this,” he said. “It’s not forward progress for me in my mind. This is not normal wear and tear.”

To Ford, the broken window in the tractor does not disable his operations, and he probably won’t fix it until this coming fall, but it represents a couple hundred dollars and a lot of aggravation.

“It is just people being stupid,” said Ford. “It’s tough. You spend a lot of money on equipment and this makes it hard to get anywhere. We are already busy as it is.”

Reach Editorial Director Lynda Clancy at lyndaclancy@penbaypilot.com; 207-706-6657