Mainly, the Main Reason to Visit Maine is…

Salem, Massachusetts to Rockland, Maine

Thursday, June 16th:

We decided to depart Salem Harbor late in the afternoon. There was a weather update that forecasted pretty intense thunderstorms Friday morning 1:00 – 3:00 AM, and we wanted to avoid that completely by staying behind the system. Thus, we lifted anchor in Salem around 1:30 PM and set sails for Maine! Sailing past Gloucester Harbor, Paul had a huge hit on his casting rod. The rod looked as though it was about to snap in half! We could see the fish being dragged on the surface behind the boat, but we couldn’t reel in the line by hand. The fish took all the line (40lb braid!), and then 10 minutes later the line broke. Nooooo! We shall never know the mystery fish… other than that, there wasn’t too much excitement on the sail. We had really gusty winds of about 35+ knots, but it was completely from behind so our downwind sail was cruisy and comfortable. We did end up using only the headsail for the first section of the trip, and even needed to reef the headsail when our speeds were started to reach around 7.5 knots and the boat was totally overpowered. The night sail was safe and uneventful (just the way I like them), and we did just narrowly miss the thunderstorm shortly after sunrise as it passed to the southeast.

After our overnight from Salem, we arrived to Rockland Harbor at about 4:00 in the afternoon. Another safe and successful 137 nautical miles under the keel! We had a very light rain on our entrance to the harbor, and it was really neat to see the mist and fog rolling off the coastline. It all burned off at the perfect time, as it was back to full sunshine when we dropped anchor outside of a huge mooring field. Feeling excited to plan out our cruising itinerary for Maine! Based on the coastline – over 3,500 miles – plus the hundreds of options for anchorages, one could easily sail here for months and not see everything. We’re planning for 7-10 nights, then looking for our weather window to Halifax which will require about 2 days/2 nights to cover the 265nm journey east.

Day 1: Rockland (Mainland)

We had a pretty long sleep in this morning, which tends to always happen after completing any length of passage with an overnight sail! It was a relaxed afternoon as we took the dinghy into the mainland for some WiFi and to check out downtown Rockland, known as ‘the art capital of Maine’. We landed the dinghy at Landings Marina, where we were greeted by probably the nicest marina owner we’ve ever met! He was happy to let us tie up our dinghy free of charge, gave us the password to the marina office WiFi, and let us hang out at a picnic table catching up with WiFi for several hours. Afterwards, we walked the short distance to downtown Rockland, where we visited the highly acclaimed Atlantic Bakery & Co. for some treats! Raspberry crumble tarts, chocolate chunk cookies, and blueberry muffins were all taken back to the boat and enjoyed. We also found ourselves in the middle of some type of music and art festival; the downtown streets were closed off to traffic and became pedestrian traffic only. People were out playing music – from electric guitars to harps – and selling locally made art and jewelry. There were food trucks as well; so much to visit and see. My personal favorite gem found was the local bookstore. They had a huge cart of free books (advance copies) and an amazing collection. 5 books were added to Panta Rhei’s library!

Day 2: Rockland (Mainland)

Today was a verrrrrryy rainy day. We hid on the boat all day long! Every hatch closed, every blanket in use, and sweaters and socks layered up. Candles lit, we passed this rainy day with lots of reading and movie watching. Hopefully the weather turns around as we have some anchorages we’d love to explore before leaving to Nova Scotia. Nothing too exciting about this chilly day!

Day 3: Rockland (Mainland) to Pulpit Harbor, North Haven

Finally, sunshine! It was a relief to have clear, sunny skies greet us this morning. The first thing we needed to do was fill up on water; we hadn’t filled up our freshwater tanks since Beaufort, North Carolina (about 4 ½ weeks ago). 400L goes a long way! We also needed to re-fill on diesel as we hadn’t since Port Washington, NY. Hopefully this will be the last diesel fill before Halifax (fingers crossed!) After finishing up at the very helpful Landings Marina, we headed out of

Rockland Harbor for our next anchorage in Pulpit Harbor, along the Penobscot Bay. Only about 10nm away, it was a sweet and short sail. We had speeds up to 6.5 knots and because we sailed within the coastal islands of Maine, absolutely no ocean swells. It reminded us a lot of our time sailing in the British Virgin Islands – tons of wind, no waves, and so many islands to choose from! Our only ‘hazard’ on this sail was dodging through crab pots, but we’ve gotten so used to seeing them since sailing from New York to Massachusetts. These crab pots are (usually) brightly colored or patterned buoys bobbing on the surface, which indicate that the buoy is attached to a line heading down to a crab or lobster trap on the bottom. They should be avoided for several reasons; if motoring, one wouldn’t want the line to get caught and tangled in the prop; if sailing, one wouldn’t want the line to get stuck under or wrapped around the rudder; and in general, one wouldn’t want to break the crab pot since this is someone’s livelihood. Entering Pulpit Harbor, we needed to navigate around Pulpit Rock – a rock that was not messing around! It was pretty large and daunting, but all good. We anchored next to a huge schooner and

enjoyed a perfectly calm and protected anchorage. A beautiful sunset over the Camden Hills ended this lovely day of cruising in Maine. Known as one of Maine’s “must-see harbors,” Pulpit did not disappoint. A successful first day of being out and about in the Penobscot Bay!

Photo: William Trevaskis – Flickr

Day 4: Pulpit Harbor, North Haven to Point Lookout (Laundry Cove), Isle au Haut

After one of our best night’s sleeps on the boat since arriving to the United States, we woke up to a beautiful sunny morning in Maine. Time to take advantage of the weather and get sailing! Our next stop, about 16nm further east along the Penobscot Bay, is visiting Isle au Haut (“High Island”). We’ll be aiming for Point Lookout on the north end, where there are several free guest moorings available to use. Isle au Haut is a remote wing of the Acadia National Park, and covers more than 8,000 acres of land. Home to fewer than 100 year-round residents, it’s only accessible by a boat ride, either one’s personal vessel or by a seasonal ferry. We left Pulpit Harbor on a rising tide, at 1:15 PM, and set sails for Point Lookout. We had a wonderful day of sailing, much of which ended up being into wind, so lots of tacking was necessary! Tons of fun though, with speeds upwards of 6.5 knots all

under sail. We also saw four harbor seals! (Well, to be honest, Paul saw all four and I ended up spotting one – yay!) It ended up being a 19.5nm journey, and we arrived at our anchorage around 5:30 PM. We were the only transient boat in the anchorage, with a few fishing boats and even rowboats tied up to moorings just off the Point Lookout Dock. It was a lovely sunset behind Flake Island as we enjoyed a homemade tuna casserole for supper.

Photo: Chip Ross

Day 5: Point Lookout (Laundry Cove), Isle au Haut to Buckle Harbor, Buckle Island

This morning we carted the bicycles off the boat and headed into Point Lookout, the northernmost neighborhood of Isle au Haut. It was a sunny, warm day with a cool breeze; perfect for biking and hiking! We biked into town, along the way seeing the one-room schoolhouse, very small firehouse, and a spattering of residential homes. It was our lucky day, as next to the Isle au Haut General Store the “Lobster Lady” had opened for business – today being her first day of the season. Paul enjoyed a yummy fried haddock sammich as we lounged beside the Thorofare.

With many different hiking trails to choose from, we decided on hiking to the tallest peak, Mt. Champlain (so named after the French explorer Samuel de Champlain) at 543’ elevation. A quick hike, about 25 minutes to the top, and so lovely to be immersed back in the forest complete with trees, ferns, mosses, mushrooms, and lichens to our hearts desire. We enjoyed our leftover tuna casserole as a picnic at the top, as well as the scenic views.

Back on the boat, we readied Panta Rhei for another sail as we set our sights on Buckle Harbor, about 12nm northeast of our current anchorage. Buckle Harbor is nestled in the protection of Buckle Island, a privately owned island. There’s only room for about 3-4 boats in the anchorage, and there are absolutely no buildings / amenities / people in general… sounds like the perfect Beaton anchorage! Our sail was super, as we reached speeds upwards of 7.0 knots en route to Buckle Harbor. There were so many crab pots it almost looked like confetti sprinkles on a blue-frosted cake. We’re getting pretty good at dodging between even the closest of crab pots. We saw jellyfish and a few more harbor seals on our way to Buckle Harbor. Upon arrival, we were greeted by two more sailboats in the anchorage.

The anchor set beautifully and we enjoyed a lovely sunset behind Buckle Island after adding another 12.6nm under the keel. Biking, hiking, and sailing – a heck of a day in Maine!

Day 6: Buckle Harbor, Buckle Island to Little Cranberry Island

Today was a full, full day! Waking up this morning, we saw that our two neighbors had departed the anchorage – leaving us as the only boat in scenic Buckle Harbor. We took the dinghy into shore and explored the many trails, both inland and coastal, on Buckle Island. It was a soft, spongy, mossy forest floor, very different from our rocky climb yesterday. We loved exploring all the nooks and crannies and our only companions were seagulls excitedly squawking over their mid-day feast of mussels and crabs found at low tide. [There’s about a 3.3 metre tidal range in Maine!] Neat to see was a doorway that’s been on the island for decades. From the University of Maine’s Undiscovered Maine site: “This unique island is known for its various natural pieces of art and mementos left by visitors. The most famous is a green door between two trees that leads from a dark, shadowy path to a bright field.” We also found a few ‘fairy-houses’ created by visitors left along the path.

Back on Panta Rhei, we made a quick lunch and then got ready to depart for our next destination: Little Cranberry Island, also known as Islesford. We had very little wind and flat water as we exited the anchorage; almost perfect conditions, one could say, for easily avoiding the plethora of crab pots. Even though the water was flat, we had no sails out, and were motoring along at suuuuper slow speeds, I still managed to (finally) hit a crab pot. Face palm! Ugh. Thankfully Paul was able to detach us quite quickly, as the crab pot was attached via a rope to its next-door neighbor crab pot, creating an even more tangled-up situation. Paul also re-tied the crab pots after we had to cut the ropes free from our rudder, so that they wouldn’t float away from the traps on the bottom. Most of the mess was cut loose, but we did end up having one piece of rope attached to our rudder that just wouldn’t come out. We decided to leave it until our arrival to Little Cranberry Island as the helm was steering freely without any unnecessary force. Well, I guess after passing thousands of them since our arrival to Beaufort, NC, it was bound to happen eventually! After about 20 minutes of a bit of stress, we were on our way to Little Cranberry. The winds were pretty fickle, and most of our journey was dead into wind so we needed to rely a bit more on our diesel engine than usual. For the first time, I spotted a harbor seal on our sail! So… I ran straight into a crab pot with dead calm water, but spotted a harbor seal relatively far away while under sail on choppy water. Seems about right! We picked up one of three free town guest moorings upon arrival after our short 13.2nm trip, and Paul immediately surveyed the rudder to check things out. It turned out that in addition to a small piece of rope being lodged, one of the crab pot buoys was also underneath the boat! Paul managed to free the buoy using our boat hook, plus a lot of patience and perseverance, but the rope still stayed stuck. With the time reading 7:30 PM, we decided to leave it for tomorrow when the sun warmed things up a bit. Paul doesn’t seem too plussed about having to get in the water to survey the situation tomorrow – even though our temperature gauge reads 13-degree Celsius water temp! Brrrrr! Good thing we have a water heater on board for afterwards. After a long, eventful day, we decided to treat ourselves to dinner at the Islesford Dock Restaurant. It was both a treat and a small escape from our kitchen; our propane supplies ran out two days ago, so we’ve either had cold meals or been trying to improvise with our tiny BBQ. Dinner was delish; mussels in a white wine cream reduction for Paul, a smoked beef sammich for me, plus a blackberry cobbler with vanilla ice cream for dessert. The sunset over the Acadia National Park mountains was one of the best we’ve seen so far in Maine.

Day 7: Little Cranberry Island to Bar Island, Bar Harbor

Today we awoke to another beautiful day in Maine. We ventured back into Islesford to check out a few things that were closed yesterday evening when we arrived for dinner. First stop was a pottery shop, with a few very nice artists who were happy to tell us all about Little Cranberry Island. With a lot of self-restraint, only one beautiful mug was bought to add to our collection – I really could’ve just spent a fortune in the tiny shop! Next, we stopped at Islesford Boatworks, a non-profit organization that teaches children traditional boat-building techniques. We then meandered over to the town pier, where we had a great view of Cranberry Islands Fishermen’s Lobster Co-op. Before heading back to the big boat, we met a very entrepreneurial 10-year-old hauling his lobster trap out onto the dinghy dock. We chatted with him about how he catches his lobster, and he showed us how to free ‘pesky’ crabs from the traps, as well as his supply of fish bait. A cool little guy!

After having checked the “fun” errands off the list, it was time for the not-so-fun errand… freeing that last pesky piece of rope still wrapped around our rudder. Donning his 6/7/8mm (and, in some places, worn down to 0mm!) semi-dry Hollis wetsuit, boots, and hood, Paul bravely held his breath in the 13 degree water to fix the issue. It took a matter of seconds, and he was up and back on the transom after the chilly dip.

Still without propane in the kitchen, Paul cooked up a creative lunch on our little marine BBQ – a ‘mash’ of sweet potato, butternut squash, onion, and crispy-fried spam (from our Bahamas provisions, the first can we’ve cracked since living on the boat for a year). It was quite delicious! Around 4:00 PM, we set out for our final stop in our Maine cruising itinerary, Bar Harbor. With its close proximity to the iconic Acadia National Park, plus grocery stores for provisioning and an airport to clear customs before leaving for Canada, it sounds like the perfect final stop. There was hardly any wind at all today, so we meandered our 12.1nm trip mostly under engine. It was a beautiful view on our way in, as we rounded Bald Porcupine Island and anchored west of Bar Island. The mountains of the Acadia Park were a gorgeous backdrop to the spattering of islands. We also spotted a few dolphins, which is always so fun to see! With only a few boats in a very roomy and flat anchorage, we dropped anchor with tons of space to spare. The next few days will be busy as we plan our departure for Halifax (sounds so crazy to even write the sentence!) with laundry, provisioning, clearing customs, and hopefully finding some propane. We’ll also find some time to bike, hike, and enjoy some local eats!

Photo: Courtesy Acadia National Park

Day 8: Bar Island, Bar Harbor

It was a busy, busy day in Bar Harbor! We took the dinghy in at high tide to be able to maneuver over a sandbar – normally out of the water but submerged when the tide is rising. The harbormaster was super friendly and helpful, even taking our trash for us and marking on a map the specific places we wanted to go (laundromat, propane refill, and grocery store). We divided and conquered, me tackling laundry and Paul tackling propane. We had purchased a new fiberglass propane cylinder back in Port Washington, NY – more expensive than the usual

steel tanks, but allegedly not supposed to rust when left outside in the elements. Unfortunately, we couldn’t find the necessary adapters to make it work with our kitchen set-up, but at least we have a TON of tiny propane tanks for our little marine BBQ! After these errands were finished, we reconvened at Bar Harbor Lobster & Co., a restaurant specializing in New England dishes and seafood. We then walked (or should I say, trudged, with being gluttonously full) over to the Village Green, a green space in the middle of downtown complete with benches, fountains, and even a community piano housed in a gazebo. The Village Green also had free public WiFi,

so we settled in for a few hours to tackle some WiFi ‘errands,’ most importantly, checking the weather for our sail to Halifax. Before getting groceries, we made a very important pit stop at the Atlantic Brewing Company. With a very full and heavy dinghy, we made our way back over the sandbar (again, at high tide) and enjoyed the last sunset over the Acadia National Park mountains.

So in conclusion, MAINLY the MAIN reason to go to MAINE would have to be all of the green! The hundreds of islands covered in huge trees, our hiking through the lush forests, the Acadia National Park mountains, it was just stunning to be surrounded by such beauty. It reminded us of our time living in East Vancouver. Plus, the views (and the sunsets) in our anchorages just could not be beat. Plus plus, seeing dolphins and harbor seals on every sail was incredible. Plus, plus, plus, the locals were super friendly on every island we went to. Hmm… maybe more than one reason to go to Maine… So, to all of our friends and total strangers who urged us not to miss out on Maine – you were 100% right!

Jumping on a weather window, we are excited to set sail for Halifax, Nova Scotia! It’ll be about a 265 nautical mile journey, and should take us a solid 2 days/2 nights to reach our destination in the Northwest Arm. There’s a lot of mixed feelings towards this final passage; a bit of apprehension and nervousness, but also a bittersweet feeling that this year off is finally coming to a close.

Thanks for following us again, as we near even closer to home!

Lots of hugs,

Toni & Paul