A different kind of MMA homecoming

Our arrival in Penobscot Bay was made via peaceful, secluded anchorages. We started off in Long Cove, just outside of Tenants Harbor. This spot had tons of pot-free anchoring and short hikes available on High Island. From there, we hit Pulpit Harbor in mid-bay, north of Vinalhaven. The reviews on this spot were mixed, but we gave it a try and enjoyed it! It did fill in a bit, even mid-week, but there was plenty of room for all and we were able to stretch our legs ashore for a bit.

Long Cove

Pulpit Harbor

And yesterday we made the trip I’ve dreamed about for years! Since we got this boat I’ve imagined how awesome it would be to return to Penobscot Bay and the Bagaduce River, home to my marine-focused college, in our boat. With a sweet southerly breeze pushing us up the bay, past Dyce Head light, and into Castine Harbor, I returned to Maine Maritime Academy! I was almost spewing tears of joy as we tied off to one of the Academy’s mooring balls. We ran ashore and walked out to the lighthouse, then jogged back to the waterfront ahead of some storms.

Sweet wing-and-wing sailing, Swab trimming the main, the best mooring evah, and racing the storms to Dyce Head Light. 

Today we started with some jogs, some paddle boarding, and a walk up to campus to meet a classmate’s wife. But then it was time for the main event—welcoming the T/S State of Maine back to her home port! In non-pandemic years, the ship is out for the summer to give future merchant mariners critical training. This year it’s different (isn’t everything?), but the students still have training requirements that have to be met to earn their Coast Guard licenses. The school tried to run a fast cruise (simulating underway, but tied to a pier), but some residents complained about the noise so the ship moved across the bay to another town. Today, the ship returned to her home with fire trucks, boat horns, and music blasting! I never had to go on the training cruise because my major didn’t require it, but I did work in the galley for one cruise and I fully appreciate the critical training that happens on cruise. I am glad our family could be part of this!

We will stay a few more days to visit with friends and monitor the track of tropical storm Isaias. It’s great to be home!

Muscongus Bay: Boothbay to Penobscot Bay via PUFFINS!

As we left Casco Bay with big smiles on our faces, we pointed for Boothbay Harbor to refill our fridge and pantry via a mooring at a marina that generously loaned us a car. On the way, our smiles got even bigger as we again crossed paths with my friend Sean and his family. And they got a nice shot of us just before we gybed!

As we left Boothbay we headed for Eastern Egg Rock. Sean had told us there was a puffin colony there and as the Captain loves birds and we had never seen them, to Eastern Egg we went! And we saw PUFFINS! You can’t land on the island, but we saw them through the binos and saw them flying. So stinking cute!

Now where to? After passing the puffins, we could have just gone to Penobscot Bay, but my dear friend Beth’s hometown of Round Pond was tempting us...we turned northeast and headed there! The path had us sailing on a closer reach than I like (I know, it’s a sailboat, but I don’t love heeling a ton!), through a sea of lobster pots, between ledges and islands. I was totally cool with it.

But it was worth it! Round Pond is so cute! We got a mooring from the local boatyard and headed ashore for ice cream, penny candy, and delicious lobster. While we were in the boat, several folks chatted with us about our travels—it was almost like pre-COVID days, but without the beach social. We really liked this area and would certainly return.

With a forecast for heat and little wind, we went a whopping three miles up the sound to a sweet anchorage in Greenland Cove. This put us a short dinghy ride from Hog Island, an Audubon Society site, for a hot afternoon of hiking. We hiked the perimeter of the whole island, which was a mix of forest trails and trudging through ferns. Our reward? Swimming in the cool waters of the cove and watching a Hereshoff 12 1/2 sail by—love those classic boats!

Today we will make our way to Penobscot Bay, but first we checked out the puffins again! The swells were brutal getting down there, but it was worth it!

Shark! In Maine!

Ok, that title isn’t really shocking—sharks have cruised the waters of Maine for a really long time. However, today a woman died in a suspected shark attack in Harpswell, just a few miles from where we stayed this weekend. Such a terrible tragedy.  I was shocked to see the very Harbormaster boat that we had tied the dinghy up next to in the CNN article. This is a very rare event, and the authorities are investigating, but obviously we will continue to be vigilant of our surroundings before swimming. 

Update—confirmed to be a great white. There are lots of seals around right now, so it’s believed the sharks are here feeding. We will definitely not be swimming anywhere that we see active seals.

Casco Bay

We sailed, we motor sailed, and we survived minefields of lobster pots to arrive in Casco Bay! With plans to meet a friend in the area next weekend, headed for the Goslings to see if one of the moorings would be available on a Sunday night. As luck would have it, boats were leaving as we came in and finding a mooring was no problem. This spot ended up being a great place to get away—swimming, paddle boarding, exploring the islands...we even got to see the comet, NEOWISE! We were also surprised by a visit from an old college friend and his family! We really came to understand why so many boaters like to head to the Goslings, even if it’s only for lunch.

After a few days we ventured a few miles to Jewell Island. This place was amazing! I mean, you anchor in Cocktail Cove. Does it get any better? Trails and campsites on the island are maintained by the Maine Island Trails Association (MITA) and weave you through the island’s history as an ammunition depot and lookout in WWI and WWII. There isn’t a ton of anchoring room, and with any real wind I would have been nervous, but it was calm for our stay and we slept well. We enjoyed our stay so much that we decided to become MITA members!

As plans with our friend changed, we decided to skip Freeport on this leg of the journey and head to Potts Harbor and the very cruiser-friendly Dolphin Marina and Restaurant. What makes it cruiser-friendly? Nice moorings, friendly staff, a self-service pump-out float, free laundry, hot showers, and blueberry muffins and coffee delivered to your boat in the morning! The restaurant and Erica’s Seafood next door were awesome surprises, too. I mean, if you have to do laundry, access to great food is a bonus.

The Dolphin was our first interaction with shore in Maine and my impression is that folks here are taking the pandemic seriously and all doing their part to keep cases down. Masks were worn, groups gave each other space, and the restaurants did take-out and had tons of well-spaced outdoor seating. We will continue to stay in our little boat bubble for the most part, but it was nice to be in a place where everyone seemed to feel they had a part to play in keeping the community healthy.

We have also benefited from the Maine Maritime alumni and cruiser families so much already! We have gotten so many great recommendations on places to visit that we can certainly fill several seasons here. But you know what’s funny? We only chatted with one other cruising boat this week, a couple from Maine who said they haven’t cruised these waters for five years, but with Canadian borders closed they have returned. Why don’t they normally cruise Maine? The lobster pots! 

Hello, Maine!

After our brief stop in Onset, MA, we grabbed the end of the favorable tide today to shoot us through the Cape Cod Canal (9.6 knots over ground!). Fog surrounded us as we slipped our mooring and stayed with us for the first hour. It was hauntingly beautiful.

As we raced across Cape Cod Bay under the iron gennie (no wind), I saw two fin whales! By midday we knew that getting to Isles of Shoals or Portsmouth/Kittery before dark was well within reach, so we scrapped our “sail overnight” plan and headed for Isles of Shoals. It’s Saturday night on a beautiful weekend, but somehow we lucked out and got a mooring just before sunset! And though many think this is in NH, it’s actually split between ME and NH and our mooring is in Maine!!! The islands here are closed due to COVID, but it’s fine with us. We are just happy to soak in this beautiful, rugged land!

Quick stop in Woods Hole

Almost 21 years ago I showed up in Woods Hole to begin grad school and while I’ve returned via land a few times over the years, this was the first visit via our boat! With no moorings that could accommodate our draft in Woods Hole, we headed to Quissett Harbor and I’m so glad we did. What a special place! 

Moorings offered by the boatyard were easy to grab in this peaceful harbor and we were entertained by kids sailing Optis and the locals sailing their beautiful Herreshoff 12 1/2’s. It’s a simple place—facilities include a dumpster, a port-a-potty, and a hose, and the $40 cash fee is collected by the launch around 5 p.m. “The Knob” offers a lovely seaside walk with great sunset views and nice beaches. It’s a 40 min walk to Woods Hole, or you can hop on the trolley for $2 during the summer. We walked in and took the trolley back.

We walked all around Woods Hole so I could show the kids which building my lab was in at WHOI, the bar I spent too much time in (Captain Kidd’s), and the bakery I used to work at (Pie in the Sky). The Sea Education Association’s boat, Corwith Cramer, that I took a week cruise on was also in port so they got to see that, too! It was a great trip down memory lane! We had a great lunch at the market, beers at Captain Kidd, and the kids had no trouble finding ice cream.

Today we are heading north! We were going to go through the canal this afternoon, but with the timing of some south wind and few good anchoring options close to the end of the canal, we are headed to Onset, MA for a few days! The kids have expressly asked for a “gentler” transit to Maine, so we will take our time and wait for it. 

A rocky, rolly transit to the Cape

This picture of Trent sums up the first half of our transit from Newport to Woods Hole. As we left Narragansett Bay we were met with six-foot swells out of the south and they were rolling us pretty good on the beam/quarter. This kiddo didn’t get out of bed and when he did, he was green! Some fresh air, a seat at the helm, and a little food finally got him feeling better, and soon the Elizabeth Islands were blocking the seas. But then the fog moved in! Once again we were socked in with less than 1/4 nm visibility and the radar, nav lights, and fog horn were turned on. It was like this almost the entire way up the bay to Woods Hole.

With winds forecast to stay out of the south overnight we headed for what is called the “Penzance Bay” anchorage in Active Captain, but is known as Stony Beach to the locals. While there ended up not being anywhere to beach the dinghy and go ashore, it was nice to see the familiar beach and relax and plan the next move for visiting Woods Hole. As the water was reading at a balmy 78F, I also jumped in wipe down the boat’s waterline and take a little swim. It’s great to be back!

A pandemic, a tropical storm, and a walk down memory lane—Newport

As Navy veterans, and specifically as former Surface Warfare Officers, we are no strangers to the delights of Newport, RI! But this visit offered a few new twists—visiting via water, during a pandemic, and in the path of a tropical storm. Tropical Storm Fay just pushed us to extend our stay on our mooring and smartly plan shore excursions. The pandemic? Other than closing the Navy marina to transients and closing the showers at the town wharf, it had very little impact on our stay. Masks were required in town—an easy rule to comply with—and stores and trails asked folks to maintain physical distancing.

We used this stop to do laundry, grab some provisions, top off water, explore a bit, and watch movies when the weather was crummy. It was awesome! We are rested and ready to move on!

Getting the latest on TS Fay at the mariner’s center.

Haven’t seen $5/wash since Bahamas! 

Obligatory stop for lobster rolls.

The have this great little float just for water fills!

We walked all the way around Fort Adams.

Cleaning and marking the chain for deeper anchorages!

Weather to leave or not? (A.K.A. A tale of two transit days)

In hindsight, the heat made us do it! We were so ready to be free of the 90F heat wave and get to new places! We debated, straight to Rhode Island, or via NYC and Long Island Sound? Both would work, both were interesting, but in the end, straight to Newport on a 2-night run was better. There were some afternoon thunderstorms in the forecast along the NJ coast for the first day, but figured they would lessen a bit out at sea and we could use some maneuvering to avoid the worst of it. We departed Cape Henlopen for the open sea around 0830. How did that work out for us? Not well. Not well at all.

Five hours into our journey we started to see the storms popping on radar. They were well to the north of us and isolated. As Frank’s 1600-2000 watch approached, a weak front dropping in from the north brought another ingredient to those isolated cells and we were staring at an intense blob. Run to Ocean City, NJ? We would be coming in the channel as the storms reached there. Head south towards Cape May? Another batch of storms was brewing there. Stay out to sea, maybe even a little further out in hopes that some of the energy would dissipate by the time it got to us? We would be so alone and vulnerable. As you may have guessed by now, we stayed out at sea. Frank took his watch, the kids went to their rooms, and I stayed below in full fowlies and my life jacket and harness, ready to spring into action. He took down the sails and motored, trying to keep us steady in the gusts that approached 40 knots. Lightning was all around us for about 3 hours and he got drenched. Around 1900 things calmed enough for me to take him some food on deck. We had some stuff down below that wasn’t secured well enough, but we came through without taking a lightning hit or any damage—what a relief!

The radar picture we were facing and the edge of “the blob.”

By the time I came on watch at 2000 the winds had subsided. I killed the engine, unfurled the genoa, and sailed away on a broad reach while keeping an eye on the veins of lightning astern of us. We were exhausted, but safe. In a total contrast to the first day, the second day was sunny with delightful sailing and tons of visits from playful Atlantic white sided dolphins! I even saw a Minke whale on my morning watch! The only down side? So. Many. BALLOONS! Broke my heart to see so many of them out there. Don’t do a balloon release. Just don’t.

Beauty after the storm.

The kids came out for most of the day, too. The seas were a little rolly, but they were happily tethered into the cockpit with their books. 

How our kid crew handle passages.

We took a lot of beam seas through the night, but made it to Narragansett Bay with the favorable flood tide in the morning. Fog enveloped us as we approached land—we couldn’t even see a marker that was 0.2nm away! We turned on our navigation lights, fired up the radar, and started blasting our automated fog signal through the PA horn on our mast (I LOVE that feature!). And we made it! We grabbed a mooring and some much needed showers and rest. 

A foggy Newport welcome.

Weather decisions are the hardest part of this lifestyle, and that’s coming from someone who used to have to give weather info as part of her career! It is the aspect that brings the most anxiety, yet sometimes the greatest reward. For now, we will enjoy this safe port for a blow that’s coming in two days!

New territory! Delaware Bay

With the 4th of July holiday (and all the boating craziness it brings) on the horizon we left Annapolis in search of quiet anchorages in new places. Our final stops in the Bay, the Sassafrass and Bohemia Rivers, ended up being surprisingly nice anchorages with warm, fresh water, good holding, and not too much small boat traffic. That said, we did end up having to rescue a guy who had fallen off his jet ski in the Sassafrass! Booze, an improperly worn kill switch, and inexperience left this big guy worn out from holding on to a circling ski, but Frank took the dinghy and managed to turn the ski off so the guy could rest and get back on. Never a dull moment!

Northbound under the Chesapeake Bay Bridge!

Our first trip through the C&D Canal was planned to use the tide to our advantage and we had a very pleasure full trip through some quite pretty scenery. We dropped the hook for a few hours off of Reedy Island to wait for a favorable current down the bay, then went to the Cohansey River for the night. We ended up shifting our anchorage to further up river for a smoother night, but the current made for my least-favorite, least-restful conditions—wind versus current—for half the night. I may be ready to try a kellet to keep the chain and keel from interacting. Add in the horse flies and I can’t say I’m excited about going back!

Flying the big flag on the 4th through the C&D.

The picturesque C&D Canal

Our final night in Delaware Bay, after dodging a big thunderstorm, was spent anchored off of Lewes and Henlopen Point. The plan is to head out tomorrow and head north. I rank the Chesapeake Bay, with its many peaceful rivers and quaint coves, above the Delaware Bay with its silty water and swift rivers. It was ok, just not my favorite. Time to move on.

More work, some play in Annapolis

While we were still in Herring Bay we knocked out one more project—move the jerry can storage. We had cans port and starboard back aft by the cockpit. While it was convenient to have the fuel near where we would use it, I got sick of trying to wedge my foot between the cans and the cabin top and they didn’t make for the nicest view either. We also had too much weight back aft and on the port side. Moving the boards forward and putting most of the cans on the starboard side would help. While this was in no way a “must do” project, I’m thrilled with the result. While we now have boards forward on both sides, all of our cans fit on the starboard board so we are going to try them out there. It’s where we need the weight and it keeps them clear of the genoa.

So much tidier on deck now!

With a part for the engine on its way to Annapolis, we headed there, too! We picked up a mooring ball right off of Bert Jabin’s Yacht Yard for a few nights and enjoyed gawking at the yard operation, making a small dinghy repair, walking to marine and grocery stores, and paddle boarding on Back Creek. When the part came in, a quick dinghy ride saw it delivered and install of the new engine coolant lines began immediately. While wrapping up that project we were surprised with a visit from the crew of S/V Traveler whom we had met in George Town, Exuma! It was great to see them again and was yet another reminder of how small the ocean and cruising community can be.

Hot work, but the fuel line has been repaired!

I told them it was a STAND UP paddle board!

Mid-project. It went back together! (Whew!)

With all the work done we decided to shift to the main Annapolis mooring field for one last night so we could relax, walk around town, and get ice cream and Painkillers. Pro tip: you can get a half gallon of Painkillers to-go from Pusser’s for $40! It was a great way to officially wrap up this work period!