--
When we left the intrepid crew of Trader last, they were in Northeast Harbor, Maine. A lot has happened since which we will attempt to describe in this update and the November one which will follow shortly.
 |
| Trader and Katahdin anchored at Mistake Island |
After a couple of days in Northeast Harbor, we left with Katahdin and sailed east to Mistake Island and then to Roque Island where we picked up a mooring in Bunker Cove and spent a couple of nights. The highlight of that stop was a dinghy trip to the great beach that forms most of the southern side of the main island. (Roque is sort of like a pacific atoll with several islands making a circle around a fairly large and deep harbor. Of course there are pine trees rather than palms and one does not go swimming without a wet suit!) There used to be a flight of sixty stone steps that would take one to the top of the island for a great view but now the owners limit visitors to just one end of the beach when they go ashore. The two pictures are the boardwalk at Mistake Island looking back at the harbor and part of the beach at Roque.
The next day we traveled mostly with the current to Grand Mannan Island off of New Brunswick where we cleared Canadian Customs and had a nice dinner with Larry and Cathy. (The current can run 3 knots or more in Grand Mannan channel and this part of the Bay of Fundy. We were up early the next morning and traveled mostly with the current again to St. John, New Brunswick. We tied up to the “Market Pontoon” in downtown St John to wait for the right time to pass through the reversing falls. We timed the falls well and had an uneventful trip up the river to the Royal Kennebecasis Yacht Club (RKYC). We spent two days at RKYC getting organized. We also visited with Bob Harrity, a friend from the Yarmouth Cup Race who kindly loaned us his car for shopping. We then started up river, stopping at Whelpy Cove, and Gagetown where we spent 2 days playing tourist. We then went up to Douglas Harbor on Grand Lake where we reconnected with Mike McKendy and the Frederickton Yacht Club. The next two pictures are the RKYC Clubhouse and typical scenery along the St John.
We spent the weekend with the yacht club, participating in their campfire on Friday night and racing with Bob Bavor on his hot racing boat both Saturday and Sunday. It was fun to race on a boat that was all tricked out for racing with a crew that was very good, We finished first on both days! The following day we sailed to Cumberland Bay where we anchored in a neat cove near the end of the bay. We then returned to Douglas as bad weather was predicted. More bad weather was predicted so the next day we hustled back to Whelpy Cove and then to RKYC. Once again we really appreciated the hospitality of the Frederickton Yacht Club and RKYC. |
| Trader on the market pontoon |
We arrived at Dipper Harbor about 10 AM just as the tide turned against us. We spent an extra day there waiting out another bad day and then spent one of those forgettable boating days that one just endures. We did have the current with us most of the day but we also had heavy fog, big swells and no wind for sailing. We went into Cutler where we tried to clear US Customs and got frustrated. We had been told before we left we could clear in there, but when we called Lubec they refused to come to Cutler (a 10 to 15 mile drive) claiming only commercial boats could be cleared there. There is nothing in Cutler. Why any commercial boat would ever go in there is beyond me! We called Houlton and were informed that as long no one left the boat we would be ok. They also indicated that we could clear in in Bar Harbor and Northeast Harbor.
The following day we again got off very early and motored the last 60 miles to Northeast Harbor. It was another foggy day with visibility less than 100 yards, sometimes as little as the length of our boat. The swells were less than the day before but there were more lobster traps to deal with. We arrived in Northeast Harbor late in the afternoon and called Houlton again to arrange to clear in. They sent a crew from Bangor, three people traveling over 50 miles to clear in Jean and I. I guess it was our tax dollars at work!. The individuals who came were very good and the process took less than 5 minutes!
We spent a couple of days at Northeast Harbor resting and enjoying Mt Desert Island. From there we went to Buck’s Harbor and then to Castine where we met up with another looper, Jack & Patsy McCord on Honga. After a day of playing tourist there ( the museum was quite interesting) we then headed to Warren Island where we spent another rainy evening. The next day we went to Camden for a day where we had a nice dinner with our friend Peter Van Alstine.
The trip back to Portland from there included a stop in Round Pond, Boothbay Harbor, and then Quahog Bay. At Quahog we again met up with Steve and Larry and Cathy. The weather had finally improved and we found the swimming there to be excellent. The trip ended the next day in Portland.
We spent the next few days working on the house and then Ron & Brenda paid us a visit so we went back out on the boat again, stopping at Potts harbor for Lobster stew and then on to Harpswell for the night. After a day at Sebasco Resort, we went back to Quahog Bay again for more swimming. We were again joined there by Steve on Nette and Larry and Cathy on Katahdin and Doug and Maggie on Majica.
The next two pictures are the harbor at Sebasco with Trader in the middle of the picture and everyone swimming at Quahog Bay.
The next two pictures are the harbor at Sebasco with Trader in the middle of the picture and everyone swimming at Quahog Bay.
As Ron and Brenda were leaving on Sunday, we got a call from Tim and Jan that they had already arrived at our house! We got a bunch of precooked lobsters at the store and had a good lobster feed at the house.
Tim and Jan stayed with us for a couple of days and the weather was good so we decided on another boat trip. We took them to Quahog as it offers a good view of what cruising is like on a sailboat in Maine. The trip also included another stop at Potts Harbor for their famous lobster stew. They had to leave all too quickly on Wednesday morning!
We then spent another few days mostly working on the house. On Friday we traveled to Bangor to pick up the Gorgon’s truck which we would bring back to Hilton Head for them.That Sunday night we went to a “Florida night” party at our neighbors and then left on Monday for Cape Cod where we visited my mother and Ron and Brenda. Then on Wednesday it was off again. This time we were headed for upstate New York where we would spend a week or so with our friends Eldon and Dianne on their boat, traveling the western part of the Erie Canal.
We got off early and stopped for a late breakfast with my sister Sue. We then traveled to Seneca Falls where we met up with Eldon and Dianne on “Maine Visions”. Our first day there was a different adventure. We took the truck and did a circumnavigation of Seneca Lake. The scenery in that part of New York State is beautiful and there must be at least 40 wineries located on the roads that circle the lake. We stopped at a number of them, sampling everywhere and buying a few bottles. We also stopped at an Amish store and later an Amish market. It was interesting to see a number of food brands we do not ordinarily find, many of which were processed in New York or Pennsylvania.
From Seneca Falls, we pointed Maine Visions Westward along the canal. It was a wonderful trip! I got in a lot of practice locking and docking a single engine trawler with a thruster and the scenery was beautiful. They had made the trip once already so Dianne decided to follow us with the truck and do some shopping in the smaller towns, meeting up with us each evening. Among other places, we stopped at Lyons, Medina, Fairport and Tonawanda.
The next four pictures are Maine Visions at Seneca Falls, overlooking Seneca Lake, Jean and Dianne at the falls in Watkins Glen, and the Erie Canal approaching Lockport, NY.
The stop at Fairport was on the weekend and they had a festival going on with lots of street vendors and music. It was also an interesting town to walk around. Tonawanda marks the end of the canal and was also the end of our trip on Maine Visions. Thank you to Eldon and Dianne for another great time!
We left Tonawanda and headed for Hilton Head, stopping to visit Jean’s sister Gail along the way. It was two long days of driving but we arrived in Hilton Head just before Labor day weekend to find Sun Cat in good shape and waiting for us. Our adventures in Hilton Head will be continued in the next update.
