Two Distinct Seasons

We ship lobsters only two times a year. Here on Grand Manan Island, our sustainable harvest season runs from the 2nd Tuesday in November through the end of June. Orders for immediate shipment are taken from November through mid January, and from the end of April to the end of June. Why? Lobster migration. Through the summer months and into the fall, lobsters in the waters around Grand Manan Island cast off their old shells ("molt") so they can breed. During the breeding period, the fishery is closed to sustain lobster populations. When the fishery reopens in November, lobsters are migrating toward the colder, deeper waters of the Gulf of Maine. During this period the lobsters are mobile and can be caught by our lobstermen. Once they arrive in the waters of the Gulf of Maine, usually around the middle of January, lobsters become less mobile. Because of difficult weather conditions and "sleepy" lobsters, our season enters a period of dormancy between January and April. The second distinct season arrives when lobsters become mobile again and return to the waters off Grand Manan. This migration begins at the end of April, but is subject to air and water temperatures of each particular year. Read more.