Flying Jib: Half Traditional, Half New Cottage with Pool

About John Brigham

Jan, my wife, and I live a quiet retired life in beautiful Asheville, North Carolina. We live in a big old house and I use my extensive handyman skills to fix up the house. Jan is a bookkeeper/ accountant (useful if you are managing a vacation rental) and recently got a job. I am so proud of her. How many 70 year olds could walk into a job paying $20.00 per hour. I take my handyman skills to Flye point every other September and work on the Flying Jib. I got back on September 17th 2017. I went up to Flye point with the intention of finally finishing up the exterior porch. I was going to take out six of the eight windows, rebuild them and reinstall them properly. And I was going to seal up the lower part with a different use of the Plexiglas, replace the floor and the carpet. There have been improvements, but it is still an embarrassment. I go to Flye point every other September, it never goes as I planned and that happened again. Instead I finished the overhead lights in the second story bedrooms. (this part is essentially an old cabin) I installed eleven state-of the-art LED recessed lights. I love the light that comes from them and I think that the subtle contrast between the old and new works well. I put in an exhaust fan in the ceiling and straightened out and labeled all the screens. I refit all the doors, hung a zillion picture, and did some cleaning and organizing. The hot water heat has been through two 80-gallon electric hot water heaters. In 2016 one of them died (they are 25 years old). From the surveys, I know that there have been no problems with the one remaining tank, but we thought it best to replace the remaining old heater with two 40-gallon tanks. We had Snow’s Plumbing complete this in Fall 2017. I cleared out a lot of brush and trees around the cottage. I was careful not to interfere with Sara’s responsibilities. (Sara is the head of the cleaning crew) I love it at Flye Point and love the Flying Jib.

John Brigham purchased this Cottage in 1920

Why John Brigham chose Brooklin

There are many hundreds of miles of rural roads in the Acadia area. There are hundreds of miles of coastline with even thousands of seaside houses. What makes Flye Point different and so special? Flye Point has an unusual history. In the 1600s land in the Acadia area of Maine was given to the Flye family. It quickly became known as Flye Point. The Point has been largely sold and disbursed, but the very tip, the 30 acres at the very end of the point, are still in the Flye family. The land is private, but is almost like a park. The seacoast is essentially open to the public. Butch Smith, a grandson of Lettie Flye, is the owner and superintendent of this little sanctuary. He runs Flye Point like a very large scale bed and breakfast. The center of all this is the Lookout Inn, with rooms and a very fine restaurant.. But there also are eight little cabins and a large house with rooms. The space is large enough to accommodate medium sized weddings. It is all sort of like an exclusive private country club. The geography is an important factor. Flye Point is a narrow peninsula, about a quarter mile across and coming to a sharp point. This makes it a closed community. You cannot get to Flye Point without driving down Flye Point Road driving past the Flying Jib. But that does not mean there is lot of traffic. Flye Point has about fifteen houses in addition to the Lookout. Why do we keep coming back to the same place? It is not about the scenery, but about the very long connection we have with the people at Flye Point. We love it and know you will too.

What makes this Cottage unique

Every evening I walk the three hundred yards out to the shore. I sit on the rocks and watch the birds and sea and listen to the sounds. The tide goes in and out an incredible twelve feet and the ocean is always different. I was on Flye Point for many weeks this fall while working on the Jib. If I was lonely I could wander over toward the Lookout and find somebody to talk with, either an old friend or a new one. I had breakfast at the Lookout several times and went into Brooklin and had breakfast at the Morning Moon cafe. To the Brighams, Flye Point has a sense of being a real place with a real history you can see and feel and real people. The Flying Jib is burned into the collective Brigham psyche. For better or worse, the cottage is only now being run as a business so that others can enjoy it. This is our eighth year and we are starting to make money. (not much!)