Sleepy Fivemile River

Despite our rule of never sailing to a strict schedule, we had wanted to have time to visit friends in Rowayton then do the East River (timing currents is critical) on a Friday so any NY friends could make use of a weekend to visit us on board.

This is Duck Island Roads - scant protection even for ducks!

Our first problem went like this….”You can’t pick up a mooring at West 79^th Street Boat Basin – we're 5 feet over the limit.  No, can’t anchor out, Coast Guard have just this week changed the channel markers.  Ok, if we do find an anchorage, which I doubt, it will cost  $25 per day to leave Bruce at the dock.    Otherwise, a slip hereabouts will cost at least $2.70 per foot per day (that's the cheapest) and the facilities are somewhat limited”.  Hmmm, forget it!  Let’s move out to Great Kills and catch a bus over to Manhattan. 

Our second problem was refuelling.  Refuelling went ok, no worries but we didn’t get away in time to make our planned destination, the Thimbles.  “Oooh”, said the fuel man, “my friend went onto an unchartered rock there.  Not a good place to be anchoring in the late evening”.  Terrific, not a lot of options - lets hook into Duck Island then.  Duck Island Roads was fine until we got there.  SE winds had by then worked themselves up into a consistent 25kts which blew in over the rock causeway ALL NIGHT.  Scant protection. 

The next was pre-arranging a dinner date.  That little breeze continued well into the morning and we bashed on into strong headwinds over an incoming current.  Short, steep waves and washing machine (on the spin cycle) conditions for hours and hours….  And, we weren’t making any headway either.  Blast, even later for our re-arranged, planned dinner with Scott & Kitty in Rowayton!

WJ3 up Five Mile River

Then it was the phone!  Tamure, is moored in a narrow slither of Fivemile River.  Scott had arranged a mooring for us close by – a tricky little bow & stern mooring ball affair.  We needed to contact him by phone on arrival.  You guessed it – no phone coverage……  “Butt clenching”, said our Cap’n.  Turning WJ3 around mid-river was also on par with the aforementioned experience.  

Lastly (and that makes bad luck in fives not threes), we discovered the East River was closed to all traffic on Friday.  UN General Assembly.  Of course!  A heavy Coast Guard presence with lots of “hardware”, an un-navigable bridge (less than WJ3’s mast needed for clearance), not to mention that devil of a current through Hell Gate didn’t bode for an incident-free trip.  “Scott, can we stay another day on your mooring please”?

I really don’t think we should have got out of bed that morning, do you????

From: Mystic, CT  Lat/Long: 41 19N  71 58W  Date/Time: 21/9/10: 1130

To: Rowayton, CT  Lat/Long: 41 03N  73 26W  Date/Time: 22/9/10: 1615
Time Taken: 82nm (15hrs)  Distance (this year): 1273nm (231.5hrs)
Distance Total (since 2008): 4913nm (930.5hrs)   Fastest Speed: 6.5kts**
Weather: Winds W turning NE 10-15kts; Seas 1-2ft; low vis in the morning – kinda foggy!
(**Motoring again…)

Even More Wooden Boats

Charles W Morgan 1841

The star attraction of Mystic is without doubt, Mystic Seaport.  This museum encompasses 19 acres of shipbuilding history, much of it in situ back in the 1800’s.  Two shipbuilding yards operated on this site; one as early as 1837 and the other 1851.  Mystic Seaport has been set up to preserve, collect and exhibit everything nautical that represented a way of life in a small 19^th century coastal community.

We started with the lumber yard and sawmill (it’s a family thing) where great chunks of live oak and other timbers are cut and shaped into (big) timber boat skeletons.  This area is known as the preservation shipyard and currently, Charles W Morgan (1841), the only surviving whaling ship of its kind, is being restored - to the tune of some $5 million and much patient hand scraping by a couple of young shipwrights.  (GS promised never to complain about antifouling again!)

Further on, a small cove was lined with visiting historic schooners, some privately owned and open for inspection.  Squeezed in between was Sabino, a vintage steamboat taking visitors on jaunty cruises along Mystic River, just as it would have done in 1908.  A graceful oyster boat was docked ready for work at the oyster shack.  Oystering is slightly different here in that sea beds are collected by tonging or dredging, whereas we grow ‘em on trays (with a slice of lemon). (sorry!)

The 19^th century seafaring village is well stocked with artefacts and, short of lots of sailors, noise and not-so-exciting smells, you can picture how life must have been.  Sail lofts, salmon shacks, rope walks, coopers, ships (black) smith and the inevitable tavern are all authentic buildings.  We heard music and songs of the sea and shore wafting over the village green, then moved on to hear tales of heroic lighthouse keepers given in a replica lighthouse’s small auditorium – 12 people, standing room only!  We boarded tall ship, Joseph Conrad (1882) – now a youth training ship, and admired another, L A Dutton, then rounded off the day with stories of seafaring lives (past & present) and came face-to-face with mysterious figureheads, billetheads and catheads (not actually cats you understand).

We did not however, rush to attend a “Lobstering out of Noank” activity at the lobster shack…. we'd had and seen enough of lobster pots for a while!

Relax Lah!

You know the drill – up early and motor endless hours in either no wind or wind on the nose watching for lobster pots….  Two exciting things did happen.  First (we think) we saw a sun fish; one of those huge floating flat disks that often cause keels or masts to fall off on Sydney to Hobart’s.  It was nosing about, munching on jellies no doubt, when we came close by.  It wasn’t fussed and kept on about its business, huge dorsal fin bobbing about in our wake long after we had left.  The next exciting thing was doing 9.8kts through the Cape Cod Canal.  Talk about a roller coaster ride – we had, at fastest & with a strong current, been doing 6.6kts along the coast!  Wahooeeeee!

Zipping along Cape Cod Canal

All this speed meant we reached Woods Hole in time to hear the Coast Guard announce a small boat alert and more storms.  Great!  We managed to secure a spot deeper into Hadleys than last time, much to the annoyance of a big blue power boat who came in on our tail.  Despite those warnings, we woke in the early morning to a mill pond, the other occupants of which did not appreciate our early (Saturday) morning engine noise and clanking 100 feet of rusty chain.  GS didn’t have to shout rude remarks to a deaf Cap’n as she hauled up the anchor, so at least they were spared that.

Passing Traffic on the Cape Cod Canal

We noticed that the sea water was changing back to a nice tobacco brown shade, the sun was warming and we were back to t-shirts & shorts.  A nice big swell was rolling in courtesy of Hurricane Igor, busy pummelling Bermuda, as we crossed sacred waters (America’s Cup battleground) out of Newport, Rhode Island and said a few quiet Hail Mary’s.  Perhaps one day the competition would come back to planet earth and sailing; money, ego and power, wouldn’t be the important things at stake.

River-side viewing from our cafe on Mystic River

The Motleys set their sights on Mystic Seaport and I think it might be safe to say that we actually did some sailing.  We surfed past Watch Hill into Fishers Island Sound along with a catamaran named “Breaking Wind” imagining their VHF radio conversations with officialdom.  This kept us amused for a good couple of hours until we pulled into Noank Village Boatyard, up a lazy Mystic River.  The Boatyard has the best hot showers!  Let me tell you, there is something special about free-flowing hot water in a generously sized cubicle that is reviving.  That and a nice cold beer set us up.  Just what the doctor ordered!

From: Scituate, MA  Lat/Long: 42 12N  70 43W  Date/Time: 18/9/10: 0620

To: Mystic, CT  Lat/Long: 41 19N  71 58W  Date/Time: 19/9/10: 1635
Time Taken: 113nm (17.5hrs)  Distance (this year): 1191nm (216.5hrs)
Distance Total (since 2008): 4831nm (915.5hrs)   Fastest Speed: 9.8kts**
Weather: Winds turning SW 10-15kts; Seas 3-5ft; Rhode Island Sound seas 4 -7ft
(**Cape Cod Canal of course!; then back to 6.6kts)

Storm over a Tea Party

We had missed out on visiting Damariscove so headed for the Isle of Shoals instead – our last stop in Maine.  These islands are about 6 miles off Portsmouth and save weary travellers heading inshore when transiting either north or south.  They too are remote and barren although have been in known service to mariners, fair or foul, for well over 400 years.  Captain John Smith chartered these islands in 1614.  (Didn’t that man just get about in his little shallop?).  Rock walls (or causeways) have been shaped to provide scant protection in Gosport Harbor from Atlantic swells and open sea breezes.  We hoped our rocna would hold in kelp beds in a small anchorage off Smuttynose Island we shared with one other boat – a German traveller.  The Americans wouldn’t be silly enough to be out here in this weather…

Catching a ride on Bruce

The weather report for our next destination read like a bad dream – gusts to 35kts, seas to 8 feet.  Damn.  We got up early and left Isle of Shoals (not the best place to be in a storm) at 6.30.  Yes, that’s AM, folks.  Unbelievable, but the early morning calm gave us a great start on our trip south.  Gloucester if it’s really bad, Boston if we have to, Scituate at best or even a little closer to Cape Cod, our favourite, Provincetown.  We made Scituate just as the winds started to get above 20kts and before it started to rain - giving us a little time to explore town.  Scituate (pronounced sit-u-it) is a hospitable little village with a huge supermarket, a coin-op laundry, easy access to a town dock and a great pub (TK O’Malley’s - more Irish).  You know – all those things a salty, weary traveller looks for.

On a mooring at Scituate

Storm predictions worsened and the harbour was full of gossip.  At midnight we were to expect gusts up to 60kts, rain and thunderstorms.  Our ever resourceful Cap’n again prepared our faithful WJ3 for another tussle with nature.  Thankfully we only experienced winds to 34kts – though it sounded worse from our locked-down beds as rain beat against the decks.  To make matters worse, our morning calm was interrupted by an unscheduled thunderstorm that quickly whisked across Massachusetts Bay.  So we spent another rainy day hanging off a SHYC mooring planning a quick get-away to make the right tide (according to Mr Eldridge’s yellow pilot) and a speedy exit through the Cape Cod Canal back into Buzzards Bay.  Seems like we were there only last week – hey, wait a minute!


From: Isle of Shoals, NH  Lat/Long: 42 58N  70 36W  Date/Time: 16/9/10: 0630
To: Scituate, MA  Lat/Long: 42 12N  70 43W  Date/Time: 16/9/10: 1430
Time Taken: 49nm (8hrs)  Distance (this year): 1078nm (199hrs)
Distance Total (since 2008): 4718nm (898hrs)   Fastest Speed: See Note**
Weather: Winds W 10-15kts G20kts; Seas 3-5ft; Evening Winds S 20-25kts G35; Seas 8-11ft; showers & TSM’s 
(**Motored with haste to beat the oncoming storm. (Ed. We later heard that tornadoes had flattened parts of Brooklyn, NY.)

Lobster Central

Portland is Maine’s largest city and located in Casco Bay, another island, rock ledge, lighthouse and lobster pot filled waterway.  Curiously, one nasty ledge was called Junk of Pork; we’d like to know what that was all about!  As we rounded the marks into Peakes Island, a little out of Portland’s busy harbour, we were greeted by a curious little harbor seal.  We never did see any seal colonies but oh well, you just can’t have it all….

This is why we liked Maine

Portland is a very busy harbour, being the only ice-free (brrrrrrr!!) one in the Bay.  (Did we happen to mention that we were wearing our fleecies, thick sailing jackets, gloves and beanies now?  GS was in her thermals too!  We wanted cold – we got it!)  Still, that didn’t stop us from exploring Portland; on land it was a little warmer.  Bruce took us safely over to DiMillos where we could leave him for $10 a day – cheap babysitting really!  From there we explored the cobbled streets of the old port and took a trolley tour to learn about the city’s heritage, drive passed the home of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and visit a working historically listed lighthouse.  Although lobster could be had from the fish markets for $6 a pound (uncooked), we decided over a few brews at Gritty’s (yet another Irish pub) that we would try a curry.  Yes – it was worth it and the naan was melt-in-your-mouth.

We didn’t get to the Museum of Art but, in some ways, it came to us.  Portland supports a thriving College of Art.  We saw more tattoos and piercings per female and more skin heads than you would have expected – that’s art!  Street and shop signage was amazing and sculptures graced every available vacant space.  Portland was trendy, vibrant and compact.  We loved it!  But it was time to hit the road.

Art on the Sidewalk
(and it really is a piece of Berlin's famous Wall) 

From: Portland, ME  Lat/Long: 43 39N  70 12W  Date/Time: 15/9/10: 0830

To: Isle of Shoals, NH  Lat/Long: 42 58N  70 36W  Date/Time: 15/9/10: 1645
Time Taken: 47nm (8.5hrs)  Distance (this year): 1029nm (191hrs)
Distance Total (since 2008): 4669nm (890hrs)   Fastest Speed: See Note**
Weather: Winds NW 10-15kts G20kts; Seas 3-5ft; overcast; bumpy into the night
(** Did our usual 5-6kts; did a little sailing today too; cutter rig works well)

Ghosting Along

Leaving the delights of Camden far behind, WJ3 turned her nose down Penobscot Bay to our next over-nighter, Tenants Harbor.  We anchored for the night in a cosy Long Cove (with its 12 foot tidal range!!) after negotiating a current filled Muscle Ridge Channel.  Again, we passed any number of tranquil anchorages.  A restored lightkeeper’s house on Southern Island at the entrance to Tenants is home to the current generation of Wyeth’s, famous for painting Maine seascapes and portraiture.

An early start, again!

Plans go astray as always.  Our next stop was to be remote and barren Damariscove Island (Boothbay Harbor region).  Once this island was home to a major trade centre and the earliest permanent European settlement in the New World – it seems hard to believe it when you see it.  Even the Mayflower stopped here in 1620 to trade for food. (“Trust the Europeans”, said the Cap’n, “heard the pilgrims were on their way so headed out and opened up a shop ready for ‘em.”)  Things changed somewhat when in 1676 settlers in Maine fled to outlying islands to escape the Indian Wars.  However, Damariscove was attacked and again in 1689.  The island’s unfortunate owner was killed aboard his sloop and his body later washed ashore.  It is said that a headless Captain Pattishall and his faithful dog still walk the headlands on foggy nights.  Well, we won’t be meeting him because the wind was blowing straight into Damariscove’s harbour.  With some daylight left, we set our sights on Portland and more windjammers.  And ocean liners…

Feeling a bit chilly 

From: Castine, ME  Lat/Long: 44 27N  68 46W  Date/Time: 11/9/10: 1045

To: Portland, ME  Lat/Long: 43 39N  70 12W  Date/Time: 13/9/10: 1720
Time Taken: 111nm (18.5hrs)  Distance (this year): 982nm (182.5hrs)
Distance Total (since 2008): 4622nm (881.5hrs)   Fastest Speed: 7.4kts (whoo hoo)**
Weather: Winds SE-S-SW 5-10kts; Seas 1-2ft; overcast;
(** Confirmed today there are NO fish in the sea only lobster pots)

Nice Sunsets at Cocktail Hour too!

A Barrel of Salt Pork

Learning to sail on Eggemoggin Reach

Camden was close, the weather had broken, and amazingly the wind in our favour, so we decided to take the scenic route via Fox Islands Thorofare.  This convenient and scenic east-west 8 mile passage across lower Penobscot Bay made us feel we were really “doing Maine”.  Anchorages abound, bays are not all filled to overflowing with (expensive) mooring balls, seals search for their dinner, so it is still possible to experience remote Maine as it may have been 100 years ago.  Except for the lobster pots!

Outer Harbor Camden

Windjammers however, were in our sights.  Camden’s well protected inner harbour was packed with ‘em, by crikey….  Camden has done itself proud.  The harbour, though compact, has been well planned and great care taken to be transient sailor friendly.  The place was head to toe with windjammers and day trippers; the little village catering to every need, including a nice little greengrocer.  Supplies, and access to them, are important when you need to restock regularly.  (We can only keep 3 to 4 days of fresh goods at a time.)  The Cap’n found a good bookshop to resupply his dwindling stock of Mark Twain books and GS was able to pick up Kaffe Fassett’s latest really, really cheaply (compared to aussie prices anyway).  Other than that, Camden is just steeped in nautical history.

Camden's Inner Harbor bursting with Windjammers

Down on the harbour, our Cap’n took a tour over Schooner Lewis R. French, a 65 footer launched in 1871 and currently Maine’s oldest.  She’s taking just 21 passengers for multi-night cruises of the Maine coast.  Sounds romantic and so it is; windjammers look just stunning out on the water under full sail.  Mind you, we discovered that “windjammer” was a disparaging term once used by steamship seamen to describe a sailing fleet then considered old-fashioned.  We didn’t dare tell WJ3 – no ruffled feathers on our little (fibreglass) gal thanks!

Land of Wooden Boats

Finally, it was time to move on – the Cap’n was getting fidgety; this was the start of our “coming home” leg.  Well, it’s back to Deltaville.  So we filled WJ3’s sails and threaded our way through a filigree necklace of lobster pots, over a shallow Bar Harbor bar and out into Blue Hill Bay, carved by glaciers some 13,000 years ago.  Open ocean sailing had been replaced by bay cruising, negotiating hundreds of islands, some little bigger than the houses that rest on them.  Passages between, some navigable, some not, are riddled with rocks, ledges and worse, lobster pots.  The Motleys had to concentrate.

Now this is island living...

Pond Island Passage led us through to Jericho Bay and the start of Eggemoggin Reach.  This fabulous stretch of water is home to Wooden Boat School and if you’re into traditional sailing, this is the place to be.  We sailed past head-turning schooners in full sail, noting that they needed a few more (active) crew aboard than WJ3.  We dodged simple gaff-rigs, tanbark sails, acres of (pristine) varnish work and forests of wood in all shapes and sizes out for an afternoon’s fun and fresh air.  We looked forward to playing with famous windjammers in Camden. 

Historical Castine

Bucks Harbor, at the end of Eggemoggin Reach had been our planned destination, but as is often the way, the weather had turned against us and we sought better protection off Castine, up the Bagaduce River, in Smith Cove.  Castine is a heritage listed town having been occupied since early 1600’s by French, Dutch, British, Colonial America and now summer tourists (locally called rusticators) of all persuasions.  Its strategic location and convenient source of raw materials (timber) made it once a busy ship building port.  Even salt was sourced here to supply Grand Banks fishing fleets.  With British built Fort George (1799) and connections to Paul Revere (Revolutionary War) it is easy to imagine soldiers marching about town, sailors checking rope works, sea shanties wafting over the docks and washing flapping behind pretty cottages.  Today, the people on the streets are more likely to be students from the Maine Maritime Academy.  We followed some of them to their favourite Friday night drinking hole at Dennett’s Wharf then enjoyed, over a few local pints, a large serving of cod and chips...

From: Northeast Harbor, ME  Lat/Long: 44 17N  68 16W  Date/Time: 10/9/10: 0900
To: Castine, ME  Lat/Long: 44 27N  68 46W  Date/Time: 10/9/10: 1530
Time Taken: 46nm (6.5hrs)  Distance (this year): 871nm (164hrs)
Distance Total (since 2008): 4511nm (863hrs)   Fastest Speed: See Note**
Weather: Winds SW 5-15kts G20kts; Seas 2ft; overcast; blustery thru Eggemoggin Reach; freezing!
(** Mostly motor sailed; dodging lobster pots & wind jammin’ schooners)

Land of Wooden Boats for sure

Maine Event

We had chosen Mt Desert to leap into our Maine cruising schedule.  The area is considered “quintessential” Maine.  Acadia National Park covers much of the island and elsewhere, stately homes owned by the likes of Martha Stewart, sit in stands of pines along rocky granite bays - inspiration to wordsmiths, artists and even left-brainers.

Acadia National Park, Mt Desert Island

Mt Desert’s wild beauty has always attracted the wealthy; the Astors, Fords, Carnegies, Rockefellers and Vanderbilts were among those who retreated to their summer “cottages” to partake of Maine’s cool air, pristine hiking trails and chilly waters.  Mt Desert’s first recorded sighting by Europeans was as early as 1524 and Samuel de Champlain formally named the island in 1604; it was part of “New France”.  The island’s interests were then held by the French for many years until after the Revolutionary War.  Preservation came much later but under the leadership of George B Dorr who, inspired by Mt Desert’s rugged beauty, encouraged land and financial donations to preserve it.  In 1916, 6000 acres became a designated national park.  Artists, naturalists, campers and rusticators (summer people) made the island a fashionable retreat until a devastating fire in 1947 consumed many homes and much of the woodlands.  The park, long since recovered, has some 35,000 acres to explore, including smaller islands off the coast.  Cars can traverse some of the roads and byways, but it’s much better to take a horse & carriage or ride the LL Bean eco-buses (gas powered).

Bar Harbor

The Motleys had already covered one of Mt Desert’s famed harbours, Southwest, and now sailed Somes Sound in search of shelter.  After Earl’s terrible tantrum, we spent a few pleasant days – true gunkholing – watching bald eagles fly, kayakers paddle about nooks & crannies, gorgeous sunsets and people swim (including our Cap’n but he is a Victorian) in the oh, so clean waters.  Then it was on to Northeast Harbor to pick up a mooring ball.  This harbour too was pretty; we were tempted to stay a few days.  The village and its conveniences were only a step away, including a fabulous library (with free wifi & a fireplace) and an island explorer bus stop.

We stepped aboard to take the scenic loop road – 27 miles past Sand Beach, Thunder Hole, Jordan & Bubble Ponds and Cadillac Mountain.  We didn’t hike on account of GS’s still recovering ankle but the drive was nice.  Bar Harbor retains its quaint village atmosphere despite the influx of tourists (millions), including glamorous passenger ships nearly every other day in season.  You could tell the difference between cruisers and cruisers.  We had that windswept, clothes more than 3 days old, unshaved look…  GS poked around in touristy shops and even found a quilt shop to buy a few Maine themed prints – moose, bears, eagles, pinecones etc.  There’s a zoo close by with the real thing (moose, bears etc) in Trenton across from Mt Desert, but we had come to our “turnaround” time.

Northeast Harbor

One of the joys of sailing is catching up, often unexpectedly, with friends you meet along the way.  “Cricket” (home to Pam, Ben & lovely Lila) had also spent some time in Deltaville Boatyard.  They set sail a little earlier in the season, so it was fun to catch up and compare ports of call and sights seen.  They were on their way to Rockport to have some electrical work done before heading back down to the Chesapeake – maybe.  See you on the water!

From: Somes Harbor, ME  Lat/Long: 44 21N  68 19W  Date/Time: 6/9/10: 1130
To: Northeast Harbor, ME  Lat/Long: 44 17N  68 16W  Date/Time: 6/9/10: 1330
Time Taken: 7nm (2hrs)  Distance (this year): 825nm (157.5hrs)
Distance Total (since 2008): 4465nm (856.5hrs)   Fastest Speed: See Note**
Weather: Winds SW 10-15kts G20kts; Seas 1-3ft; a bit of a slop on the Sound
(** Motored back down Somes Sound (into the sun) dodging lobster pots!)

Waiting for Earl

There was no wind; the calm was eerie.  All craft were nosing south expectantly.  To our front, the largest sailboat in the anchorage had both masts up-lit and looked like some medieval warhorse.  A dense New England fog settled into the small harbour just on dusk and a few boat owners fidgeted with last-minute mooring or anchor line adjustments.  It seemed like, and was indeed, the calm before battle.  An advance party of strong winds, gusting 45 to 60kts was expected at midnight. We were waiting for Earl... 

Somes Harbor

We had been following, as best we could, reports on Earl as he whirled his way up the east coast.  The Cap’n had pinpointed the destructive eye on our charts and had spent almost two days preparing for the worst.  Earl was forecast to hit Cape Cod and then move down east (NE) to the Maine coast.  That’s exactly where we were.  Isn’t it odd that we’ve been dodging hurricanes for 2 seasons in the Caribbean now and finally, when we pop out of that acknowledged hurricane box*, one comes to find us.  Aagggghh!

We had arrived in Southwest Harbour, Mt Desert Island in Maine and the news of Earl’s progress stunned us.  Our friendly Harbourmaster advised us to seek better shelter, in Northeast Harbor if we could.  But all moorings were taken. (It was Labor Day weekend after all.)  Kindly, Dickie Beal (of Beal’s Lobsters) recommended, when we re-fuelled and re-watered at his lobster dock, staging ourselves up Somes Sound in better protected (& muddy bottomed) Somes Harbor.  Off we went, then and there.  Lucky because we were in and set (on two tandem anchors and 200 feet of chain) before stragglers and late-comers tried to snuggle into this tiny protected harbor. 

Same view (as above) with fog as Earl approached

The Cap’n went off to get a few supplies and an internet connection.  Bad luck, Somesville is little more than a few pretty cottages.  He then set about taking down sails and clearing the decks, taking the motor off Bruce and other measures to “hurricane-proof” as best we could.  At worst, Earl’s eye was currently reading 90kts, gusting 110kts (say that slowly) and at best, we could look forward to 60kt gusts.  Thank goodness for Skymate.  We were able to download regular (12hr) NOAA weather reports for this specific area and data on Earl’s progress.  To add to the drama, GS had twisted her ankle at the fuel dock and was now incapacitated.  Surely her bad temper was enough to scare Earl away?  The Cap’n wanted to leave home too – except he’d probably either starve or face a diet of 2 minute noodles & canned corned beef.  Facing Earl seemed a far brighter proposition…

Cold Water Swim

Our after-dinner weather update brought us better news – well, sort of.  Earl was slowly running out of puff and our Tropical Storm Warning, though still in effect, had forecast winds 40 – 45kts.  Thankfully too, our hurricane hole proved perfect.  Around midnight, winds tore over us; we could hear roaring as the wind rushed through high pine forests, sounding for all the world like a giant steam train.  Those marvellous mountains of Mt Desert Island directed the flow of winds over and above us.  Rain beat in but we stayed quite dry, only a couple of hatches leaked.  Bruce filled to the gunnels with fresh water – and our house-proud Cap’n is now using it to swab the decks, making WJ3 and Bruce shine.  We’re grateful Earl amounted to little more than a storm in our locale but both agreed preparations were well worth the effort.

* The hurricane box is reputed, for insurance purposes, to be below Grenada (since Ivan 2004) at 12N and above 35N (Cape Hatteras & Cape Lookout, NC).   Deltaville VA where we stored WJ3 is at 37N.  Maine (where we are now) is 44N.  Since 1851, only 15 major hurricanes (about one every ten years) have leapt outside this box to damage areas above the North Carolina/Virginia border.  The last one was Alex in 2004.  It seems that record high temperatures and unseasonably warm waters beckoned storms further north this year.

From: Southwest Harbor, ME  Lat/Long: 44 16N  68 18W  Date/Time: 2/9/10: 1100

To: Somes Harbor, ME  Lat/Long: 44 21N  68 19W  Date/Time: 2/9/10: 1220

Time Taken: 6nm (1.5hrs)  Distance (this year): 818nm (155.5hrs)

Distance Total (since 2008): 4458nm  (854.5hrs)   Fastest Speed: See Note**

Weather: Winds SE 5-10kts; Seas 3ft; seas followed by a quick tropical storm to drench us

(** Motored up Somes Sound on a mission!)

Old Jonah He Lived in a Whale

Lighthouse, Cape Cod

Provincetown has whale watching tours reputed to be second best in the world (rated on chances of seeing whales).  Summer is also the time these great beasties mooch around Stellwagen Bank – their summer holiday residence.  GS wanted to take a tour.  Cap’n Blanched at $32 a head, especially when we already had a boat…. 

We left Provincetown early to make use of forecast W winds to push us as far down east as Penobscot Bay, Maine in an overnight trip.  Stopping each night is easy (and very achievable up and down the New England coast) but we’d get to Maine in time to turn around and scoot back to Deltaville.  The Cap’n said this way we’d also cross Stellwagen Bank, so GS had the binos ready.  As luck would have it, the Whale Watch tours passed us full steam ahead, and our headings were similar. 

Then it all happened.  In the distance, great spouts of water were blown high and huge tails rose and fell in slow motion.  As we neared the pod, one rolled on his side and repeatedly slapped the water with a big white fin.  The noise alone was scary enough.  The Whale Watch boats moved on following the pod (possibly 10 or more whales) as it breakfasted and played.  WJ3 continued on her course to Maine.  We saw a huge splash, maybe 500m away and watched as a whale breeched.  The show moved on, but not in our direction. 

Cape Cod to Bar Harbor dodging whales

We were still chatting about our good fortune an hour later when the Cap’n spied another spout in the distance.  We’d happened upon another pod.  Though not so lively as the last, lazy tails slapped water and spouts blew all round us - at a respectable distance.  Then suddenly one surfaced, no more than 20-30 metres on our port side.  This was indeed a close encounter.  He wasn’t interested in us (thankfully) and continued on with his breakfasting as we gaped, stared and said things like “oh, fruit”. 

Real Maine Lobsters

The rest of the trip wasn’t nearly so exciting even though a huge moon lit the slow roll of Atlantic swells making viewing easy.  But it was freezing!  Early next morning, closer to the Maine coast, we saw a couple of seals.  Their lovely whiskery faces and big eyes staring in surprise – as if we’d just caught them in the act of robbing from a vast field of lobster pots.  Who could blame them?  We celebrated our arrival in Maine.  In August (just).  We’d really made it.  Celebrations involved a secure mooring, local beer AND a huge lobster feast. ($US11 a pound…envious???)

From: Provincetown, MA  Lat/Long: 42 02N  70 11W  Date/Time: 30/8/10: 0845

To: Southwest Harbor, ME  Lat/Long: 44 16N  68 18W  Date/Time: 31/8/10: 1400

Time Taken: 170nm (29.5hrs)  Distance (this year): 812nm (154hrs)

Distance Total (since 2008): 4452nm  (853hrs)   Fastest Speed: See Note**

Weather: Winds W-NW 5-10kts; Seas 3-5ft; We didn’t notice the Friday tropical storm warning at the end of the report – doh!!

(** 10ft tides no less; abundant rock ledges makes anchoring interesting!)