Penobscot Bay

FOG! Have you ever skied in thick fog? We have. It is so disorienting. It feels like you could ski right off the side of the mountain and kill yourself because you can't see where the the trail ends and where you need to turn. So, you turn early and often! Sailing isn't much different. If you must hand steer, you need to watch the compass all the time and stay on a particular course. Otherwise, you are simply sailing around in circles. We say thank you all the time for modern technology: auto-pilot, chart plotters and radar. They are literally life-savers!

We left Belfast Town Docks in the early morning to keep the tide with us, as currents run fast in that harbor. As we made our way into the bay the air was clear. In short order, however, the fog rolled in and stayed heavy until we made Castine harbor, 20 miles away. We got a visual on the red entrance buoy as we passed it just inside the harbor entrance. The fog was lighter inside due to the surrounding ground temperatures, and we easily made our way deep into Smith Cove - a beautiful and mile-wide cove where we anchored away from everyone else. Once we anchored the sun came out and the fog faded to a memory. The rest of the day and the next day in Castine were filled with clear blue skies and a gentle breeze. 

Soon we dropped the dingy and motored into town - about a 15 minute ride. Castine, founded in 1613, is one of the oldest towns in New England, predating Plymouth Colony by seven years. It is the home of The Maine Maritime Academy and the town boasts the second oldest continuously operating post office in the country. The Academy is responsible for a constant injection of business to the local economy. So, most properties are clean, newly painted and quaintly New England. A walkabout town was interesting and fun.

Remember you can click on the photos to enlarge

Looking from the helm - heavy fog out there

Starting to lift

Trinitarian Congregation of Castine

A boot cleaner in the shape of a seal

Second oldest continuously 
operating post office in the US

After the fog

A history lesson

What stands there now

Maine Maritime Academy

Another history lesson

What stands there now

Sunset reflections that evening

The next day we headed out again; this time the weather was sunny and warm. Greg learned to ocean sail in Maine. Summer vacations for him were often a sailing charter with the kids in the years before he met Sharon. He has many happy memories of Maine's harbors and bays that he is able to now share.

One memory he's mentioned many times is Pulpit Harbor, located on the north western side of North Haven island. Sharon had never been, but heard a lot about what a peaceful, quaint, quiet spot it was. Of course, this was high on the "must do" list. Our destination out of Castine was, indeed, Pulpit Harbor. 

We braved the overabundance of lobster pots, passed Pulpit Rock, and motored into the small harbor in the middle of Penobscot Bay. The quiet, sweet harbor of Greg's memories was no more. It was full of moorings, noisy lobster boats, a jet ski that wouldn't quit, and very little room to drop the hook. But, we made it work. Once we were confident we were anchored well in 35 feet of water we took the dingy to shore and walked a mile to the only market on the island for provisions. By nightfall the noise abated and we felt some of the serenity Greg had experienced years ago.

Dice Head Light, entrance to Castine

Our friends on Neverland heading east

Entering Pulpit Harbor

The following morning was an easy sail out of Pulpit Harbor, around the south end of Islesboro, and into Camden Harbor for the second time this trip. Light winds and sun were an invitation to raise the sails. But, as we rounded Islesboro we hit a morass of lobster pots and the "easy sail" turned challenging as we sailed between them, avoiding catching one on our prop or rudder. With light wind and significant currents the boat can have little steerageway. It can be dicey trying to miss all those pots! We finally made it into the Camden, grabbed a mooring deep into the calm cove from Lyman-Morse, and hailed the launch to visit town center. Coincidently, our dear friends Nancy and Ted were staying in Damariscotta for a few days, a 45 minute drive to Camden. We were thrilled they'd make the trip to join us onboard Dream Catcher for the afternoon. We enjoyed good conversation among beautiful shoreline scenery, a light breeze, sunshine and a yummy lunch of home-made lobster rolls, gazpacho and iced tea....followed by "big boy drinks" (otherwise known as gin & tonics and vodka tonics.) It was a superb afternoon!

Curtis Island Light at the entrance 
to Camden Harbor

In case you haven't figured it out yet, Sharon loves lighthouses - the symbolism and their purpose. According to Google, Maine has 65 working lighthouses. It seems like that number should be higher, based on how many we have seen on this trip.

The next morning we filling our water tanks at the yacht club and motored out of Camden Harbor toward North Haven again. This time, however, we headed through the Fox Island Thoroughfare which runs between North Haven and Vinalhaven Islands to more islands on the other side of this cut. This is a beautiful sail where you encounter scenic small harbors, lots of other cruising boats, and antique schooners. We continued past the town to the eastern side of the thoroughfare and East Penobscot Bay. 

We dodged the ubiquitous pots, the navigation marks, and the small islands, and finally made a slight turn north to find quiet, remote Pickering Cove, east of the town of Stonington. It was a perfect anchorage in fifteen feet of water to escape the north wind. As we entered the anchorage Greg was on the bow, ready to drop the anchor. He saw five seals in different places around the harbor, all fishing for dinner, it seemed. We were the only boat anchored there - no one else around - our favorite anchoring situation.  It was a very beautiful, peaceful night. 

Anchor up the next morning around 10AM, we motor-sailed east across Jericho Bay, through the channels to the north side of Swan's Island and dropped the hook at day's end in Mackerel Cove. This was another sweet anchorage where we heard, more than saw, the seals and cormorants stirring up the fish for a feeding frenzy. Again, another peaceful night.

Goose Rocks Light in Fox Island Thoroughfare

A schooner out for a sail

Deer Isle Thoroughfare Light

Views along the way

A fish trying to avoid capture

Next morning, hook up around 9, we motored our way back through the channels and found our way to Stonington harbor. Stonington has consistently ranked as the largest lobster port in Maine. An article in The Ellsworth American this month reported that Stonington was named 2020 top port in ex-vessel value (the price that fishermen directly receive for their catch) at $43.26 million and brought in 11.91 million pounds of lobster. And that's only half of the overall seafood catch. 

We dropped the hook just inside the harbor and took the dingy to town. The Stonington Opera House is a big draw, there are a few nice shops, a library and a few churches. It is the quintessential Maine lobster town for sure. 

Stonington Harbor

Public Library

Lobstermen's dingy dock

Dream Catcher at anchor

After our little walkabout, we brought the hook up and motored in and out of the dozens of islands south of the larger Deer Isle. The goal for overnight anchoring is to find a place protected from the wind, sea swells and traffic created waves, often from working boats at 6AM. A couple of our first choices were occupied by others, but we found a sweet spot on the eastern side of McGlathery Island. We were anchored only 100 feet from the rocks. Oh man, what a gorgeous spot that was! Here are the photos to tell the story.

We ended up staying for two days. The second afternoon we were joined by three more boats. Still - it was serene and the night sky was filled with thousands of stars!

Next stop was North Haven harbor. Again, we dropped the hook just inside the harbor, and went into town for a walk. We had been here some years ago on a charter with daughter Courtney and a couple of her girlfriends and had fond memories of our time. Much was closed, but we found a few treasures and had a few chats with the locals before hopping back on board and motoring around the bend into Seal Cove for the night. 

Outside

Inside the old boat building shop

Wind turbines on Vinalhaven

North Haven

Rockland was next on our itinerary. We were to meet a friend who was to sail with us for a few days, but unfortunately she had to cancel. We still enjoyed our time in Rockland. We took dock space at Safe Harbor, Rockland, and enjoyed the excellent services they offered; really nice shower rooms, free laundry and a courtesy car - such a gift when you are cruising. We filled the propane tanks, hit the Walmart, and enjoyed many of the town's offerings. Very nice stop.

After riding out the remnants of Hurricane Ida, we headed back out of the harbor and down-east again to Mackerel Cove for one overnight. Then, we continued on to Northeast Harbor on Mt Desert Island (is it desert like the place with lots of sand or is it dessert like what you have after dinner?) We found the locals just call it MDI! Brilliant!

Many years ago, Sharon and her sister spent a few vacations here camping and hiking. Her older sister, Cathy, and husband vacation here for a week every year. It was so nice to be here. We visited Asticou Gardens and Thuya Gardens on the recommendation of our friends on Neverland. We climbed Eliot Mountain, stopped in at Jordan Pond House (which was a mob scene, so we left) and spotted several eagles while hiking and at anchor. Our time here coincided with Sharon's sister and brother-in-law's time and so she got to share a day shopping and lunching in Bar Harbor with her sister.  So special! 

Bass Harbor Head Light

Neverland leaving Northeast Harbor

Bear Island Lighthouse - east of Northeast harbor entrance

Asticou Gardens

Dream Catcher seen from the roadway above

Thuya Garden

Land & Garden Preserve adjacent to
Acadia National Park

An eagle sighting at the top of Eliot Mountain

The trail to Jordan Pond House

Interesting Fungi

View from the top of Eliot Mountain

After a few days at Northeast Harbor, we headed around the bend to Somes Sound. This is a spot Greg has always wanted to sail. It is described as a fjord-like sound with the mountains climbing high from the sea. It was a beautiful day and there was only a small spattering of lobster pots. At the north end of the sound is Somesville. Here, you can pick up a free mooring, enjoy the peace, and dingy into town. We did just that. We learned about the fish ladders and the spawning grounds in lakes and ponds above sea level for Alewifes. We stopped at a really inspiring art gallery and we enjoyed the gardens in the area. Our second day there, we heard again from Sharon's sister and they picked us up so that we could all enjoy a yummy lobster dinner at Thurston's in Bass Harbor. We figured with all the lobster pot dodging we were doing we were going to get our fill of lobster! After lunch, we drove over to Bass Harbor Head Light and viewed it from land and checked out Seawall where there are always seal sightings.  

We haven't mentioned the seals. We saw several every day but they are shy and slippery in front of the camera. While we got some photos, they aren't really worth sharing. They do have the cutest little faces ever!

Somes Sound

Eagle sighting

Somesville

Alec and Cathy

Greg and his favorite food!

Land side of Bass Harbor Head Light

It was time to get back to Rockland,  where we had decided to leave Dream Catcher for the winter. But, we had a few days to get there. After another stop in Pickering Cove we headed back to Camden for a couple days. 

Motoring past Seawall
where the waves were crashing

Heading West passing Bass Harbor Head again

Evening in Pickering Cove

Back in Camden, we pulled the bicycles out for the first time since the Vineyard and enjoyed a ride up and down the hills - everything is hills near the shore! The harbor was so rolly later that day that we moved from our mooring near the mouth of the harbor to one of the floating docks deep inside the harbor. What a great spot! Eight schooners were also docked there. We watched the comings and goings of these big antiques filled with tourists. Our friends Jim and Cynthia on Neverland were there as well, and we treated ourselves to a drink together at The View, an outdoor bar at the top of the new 16 Bayview Hotel overlooking the harbor. Later, we all shared dinner onboard Dream Catcher.  The next morning we headed south to Rockland under a full genoa. Returning to Safe Harbor Marina was a delight. We worked hard for a few days to prep Dream Catcher for haul, removing sails, bagging all of our stuff, cleaning out the frig, hauling the dingy onboard, winterizing the outboard motor. The use of the courtesy car was again of huge assistance. We shared one last dinner with Jim and Cynthia before saying goodbye for now. 

We splurged for a really nice end-of season dinner at Natalie's in Camden Harbor Inn on Wednesday night.

Early Friday morning, we did our last load of laundry, packed our bags and got a ride to Knox County Airport, just ten minutes away. We hopped on a tiny (8 seater, plus pilot and co-pilot) Cape Air flight to Boston. It was a clear beautiful day as we took off and flew over much of the area we had sailed.  It took us an hour and a half to fly over the area it took us a month to do under sail. Soon we were above the clouds and laid our heads back for a sweet little nap. 

Schooners in Camden

Dream Catcher from The View

The view from The View

Rockland Breakwater Lighthouse

Neverland following us into Rockland

Ready for haul

Views from Cape Air flight to Boston

We spent the night in Boston in order to catch an early flight to Philadelphia. Once again, we took advantage of our location and headed to the North End for dinner. Friend Renee joined us and we enjoyed a yummy Italian meal and great conversation. 

It was a wonderful summer onboard Dream Catcher. It is difficult to describe just how different it is to live on a sailboat. We were fortunate to share time with several friends and relatives, see people we hadn't seen for awhile, discover new cruising grounds, and return to old favorites. We look forward to getting back onboard next summer and discovering even more.

In the words of Jimmy Buffett - "It's Been a Lovely Cruise."

'Til next time -