“Weekends with Yankee” Episode 605: Preserving New England

In this episode of Weekends with Yankee, co-host Amy Traverso is in South Berwick, Maine, where growing heirloom beans is a treasured skill. First, she meets bean farmer Charley Baer, who specializes in New England varietals in a gorgeous array of colors and patterns. Then, she heads across town to North Berwick to the property where homesteaders Rebekah Yonan and Peter Kellman have created a modern-day Eden, growing everything from walnuts and rye to pears and herbs, and, of course, beans. Also visiting the homestead is Rebekah’s brother Joe Yonan, the food editor of the Washington Post and author of several books, including Cool Beans. In the outdoor wood-fired oven, Joe prepares a vegetarian spin on traditional New England–style baked beans for a lovely outdoor dinner. Next, we travel to Lyme, New Hampshire, to meet Ben Kilham, who rescues and rehabilitates orphaned bear cubs. We tour his property, meet some of his youngest cubs, then head to a remote woodlot to visit some of the oldest bears he’s raised who are back in the wild and thriving. Then, we head to Freeport, Maine, where co-host Richard Wiese gets a behind-the-scenes peek at what it takes to become a Registered Maine Guide, a program with a long and storied history. Following in the footsteps of the first-ever Registered Maine Guide, Cornelia “Fly Rod” Crosby, L.L. Bean guide Kristen Roos shares her outdoor savvy with Richard as she demonstrates everything from righting a capsized canoe to baking a pie in a campfire.