Closing out our 2022 Maine Sailing Season and heading south to Narragansett Bay.
We left the Safe Harbor Rockland docks at 7am Friday the 26th of August. As usual, it was cool and the winds light so early in the day, so off we went with the motor doing its job. Bearing right around Owl's Head Light and heading south through the bay we found a thickening fog. Though we couldn't enjoy the beautiful Maine coastline, we could at least see well enough to avoid lobster pots and boats and identify the various navigational aids. It was an uneventful passage southwest along the craggy coast. Eventually, we were able to roll out the genoa which calmed the sea's roll as we motor-sailed all the way to the Boothbay area. Instead of heading into the hubbub of Boothbay Harbor, we crept up into Linekin Bay (on the east side of Boothbay). Years ago when Dream Catcher was moored at Robinhood Marina in the Sheepscot River, we would often anchor in this bay. It is quiet and picturesque. We picked up a mooring at the Linekin Bay Resort and got whisked in to land on their handy launch for a nice lunch at the outdoor restaurant after a welcomed hot shower. The resort was preparing for a weekend wedding, so there were many families enjoying the resort offerings. It reminded us of an iconic Catskills resort of the 50's and 60's.
Back onboard, we were grateful for the mooring as thunderstorms blew through for a couple hours. We were comfy and dry in our wonderful cockpit enclosure.
Next morning, we headed out at first light again, continuing on down the coast. After the evening rain storms, the air was clear and dry. We enjoyed a brisk sail with lovely coastal scenery. Since we were on a schedule, we headed all the way to Biddeford Pool where we again picked up a mooring. This cute little harbor was our first stop in Maine last year as we brought Dream Catcher north. It'll be our last stop in Maine this year. We celebrated a fine summer with another hot shower, a lobster dinner, and a restful night.
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| Seguin Island Light |
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| Spirit of Bermuda |
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| A silly seagull standing on a branch in the middle of the ocean |
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| More views along the way |
Sunday morning we were up early again and continued south. This leg of our trip was about ten miles offshore, so lobster pots were fewer and well marked - much easier to dodge them! Our passages started to become more relaxing as we were able to pay more attention to sailing and less to the lobster pot slalom. While these were longer passages (averaging 45 miles each day), they were fairly uneventful. This time we went all the way to Rockport, Massachusetts and snagged a floating dock in front of Sandy Bay Yacht Club - a favorite spot where our kids learned to sail many years ago. We had clear weather so we got in a couple good long walks, enjoyed visiting the shops in town, and were even able to get two more coats of varnish on the toe rail.
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| Boone Island Light (6 miles off the southern coast of Maine) |
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| The view from our boat in Rockport |
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| Dream Catcher nestled in iconic Rockport |
After a few days we were up early again, freed the lines, and motored around Cape Ann into Salem Harbor. We knew the wind would be right on our nose, so by leaving really early, we were able to get in and settled before the wind kicked up adverse wave conditions. That evening we joined dear friend Renee for dinner at Turner Seafood and caught up on life. She had just completed a two week sail as guest crew on a tall ship from the Faroe Islands to Reykjavik. Super exciting!
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| Straitsmouth Island Light Station |
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| Heading South |
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| Thacher Island Lights |
Our next destination was Boston. The forecast was for moderate winds with gusts into the mid-20s in the afternoon. The direction was forward of the beam, but not so much as to make this trip a wave-bashing affair. So, early (again) the next morning we headed out of Salem Harbor and around Marblehead. Wind was favorable, so with sails deployed we enjoyed a very spirited sail into Boston Harbor. We did see winds in the 20s, and tacked a few times to find the harbor entrance. As we entered the outer harbor we ducked behind a very large ship to find a wind shadow to make dousing the sails easier and safer. So convenient to have an anchored ship around!
We were still several miles from our marina destination. Dodging ferries, large motor yachts, and little sailboats, we motored the rest of the way into the harbor and found our slip at Constitution Marina, way up in the corner of the harbor near Old Ironsides.
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| Eastern Point Light |
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| The Graves Light - entering Boston Harbor |
We washed and cleaned the boat to prepare to welcome our good friend Tony, who flew in from LA for a few days. Greg has three really good friends that he's had since his work at the Foxboro Company years ago. Sadly, one is gone. But, Tony is another and Bob is the third. Bob lives on the east coast, so we get to see him a bit more frequently than Tony. It was so nice to have Tony with us for a few days and share time with Bob and Siham, as well as a few other Foxboro Company friends and their spouses. Of course, we spent a lot of time in the North End since it is easy walking distance. We enjoyed a few neighborhood walks and got lots of laundry done.
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| Boston |
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| Bricco Salumeria |
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| Bricco Panetteria |
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Bunker Hill Monument
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| Scenes on Monument Street |
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| The boys! |
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| Dinner at Tresca's |
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| Zakim Bridge - our walk to the North End |
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| Greg enjoying his cockpit peace |
Finally, on Tuesday, we left Constitution Marina on a rainy day and made our way out of Boston Harbor, then turned south again. By mid-afternoon we arrived at Scituate Harbor. We were fortunate to be able to connect with our good friends Barbie and Paul and share a couple hours over lunch catching up on life. Later we enjoyed a nice walk around Scituate Harbor, stocked up on a few grocery items and prepared for the next day's journey.
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| Scituate Light |
Again, at first light, we raised the main as we headed out the channel and into the Massachusetts Bay, turned South, pulled out the genoa and had a very spirited beam reach all the way to the Cape Cod Canal. We made thirty miles in four and a half hours, often seeing 8+ knots on the speedo - fast for
Dream Catcher.
The currents in the Cape Cod Canal are so fast that you have to time your entry to coincide with the tides and direction of the currents. They change direction and intensity every six hours. This was one reason we left Scituate so early and chose this particular day among a few options (the tide and currents move later about an hour each day). When we arrived the current in the canal was near its fastest, over four knots, and we flew through the 8 miles in just over 30 minutes, our speed over ground topping out at 11.9 kts. As they say up here -
"A Nantucket Sleigh Ride". Since it was still only noon once we transited the canal we decided to sail another 15 miles to Woods Hole. Once there, we motored into Hadley Harbor on Naushon Island. The island is owned by the Forbes family and is very quiet and peaceful. The harbor has been filled with several mooring balls over the past few years to protect the bottom from constant anchoring. We got lucky and grabbed one of the last two mooring balls way up in the head of the harbor. Even though the wind blew and blew, we had flat water and a very quiet night. Delightful!
For those who are not familiar with the Woods Hole channel, it also has very high speed currents, like the Cape Cod Canal, but is bounded by equally fast swirling eddies that can move any boat very quickly in a direction the skipper does not intend. These eddies are the result of huge rocks embedded on the sides and even in the middle of the channel, all marked by buoys. During the tide shifts things get really rocking. So, it's often wise to wait for slack tides that bring low speed currents. We enjoyed a lazy morning for a change and finally slipped away from the mooring ball around 10am to catch the favorable, light current through Woods Hole.
The channel passage was uneventful, and we raised the Genoa for yet another delightful sail. We crossed Vineyard Sound and sailed into Edgartown Harbor where we presently sit in the library on a very rainy day typing this missive!
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| Where's Dream Catcher? |
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| Scenes around Edgartown |
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| Edgartown Light |
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| Ernie Boch's Llamas |
We've been here now a few days and feel like we're back in our old stomping grounds. We're enjoying our time here on the Vineyard with walks, bike rides, watching the boats go by in the harbor. In another few days we'll head West towards the Newport area.
'Til next time -
