The Event
Join us in the Eastern Promenade in Portland, ME for a rare blue moon event! Come to meet and greet other cachers, trade trackables, and view the rising of the blue moon. The event will run for an hour from 6:30 pm - 7:30 pm.
The Eastern Promenade is a large grassy reserve sloping down to the waters of Casco Bay. The location offers panoramic views of Casco Bay and the eastern horizon where the moon will be rising. There will be a raffle held shortly after the blue moon rises at 7:02 pm. The event will be held rain or shine. Leashed dogs are welcome. There is parking on Eastern Promenade and Cutter Street. For more information about the Eastern Promenade and a trail map, please visit their website.
Origins of the Blue Moon
For more than half a century, whenever two full moons appeared in a single month (which happens on average every 2 1/2 to 3 years), the second has been called a "blue moon." A "blue moon" is also used colloquially to mean "a rare event", reflected in the phrase "once in a blue moon".
Why is it named a "blue" moon? One explanation connects it with the word "belewe" from the Old English, meaning, "to betray." Perhaps, then, the moon was "belewe" because it betrayed the usual perception of one full moon per month. A second origin for this term came from an article published in the March 1946 Sky & Telescope magazine. The article was "Once in a Blue Moon," written by James Hugh Pruett. In this article, Pruett declared that a second full moon in a calendar month is a "blue moon." A third completely different explanation is that there are normally three full moons for each season of the year. But when a particular season ends up containing four full moons, then the third of that season is called a blue moon!