Last days in Maine
AJAYA'S CRUISE
Phil & Nikki Hoskins
Thu 19 Aug 2010 20:16
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Leaving Rockland behind us we began our return to southern
waters. It was high water and we witnessed the strange sight of people
wading along the extensive breakwater leading out to the impressive
lighthouse at the breakwater's end. On it's way in was a replica
sailing ship possibly intended as a feature at the forthcoming Boat Show in
Rockland.
  Lighthouse at the end of Rockland breakwater which
has all but disappeared beneath the high tide
The weather didn't allow for a straight shot down to Cape Cod
as the prevailing winds are from the southwest - great for moving north but not
southwards. Our first stop from Rockland was in Turkey Cove on the St
George's River. We arrived in the late afternoon after a tedious day
of dodging lobster pot buoys along with numerous quick stops to clear quantities
of kelp entangling itself around the props. On one such occasion we were in a
narrow buoyed passage between rock strewn islands our speed dropped from 6 knots
through 5, then 4, then 3 with the engine revs still the same. It was as if
we were suddenly motoring through one of Pooh Bear's pots of
honey and became quite concerned given our proximity to the 'hard
stuff'. We took both engines out of gear then engaged reverse with Nikki
watching over the stern reporting a vast mass of weed being returned to the
surrounding waters from our clogged propellers. Back into forward drive, once
more we were soon up to cruising speed and making progress. This manoeuvre
was repeated several times!
We passed some local old whaling boats that combined sailing
with rowing and were full of young people obviously having a lot of fun out
on the water. They all cheered when we motored past taking their photo although
we got the feeling they would have cheered a passing floating log with
their high spirits.
  We saw many of these gaff-rigged whalers - no
that's not a man overboard in the foreground - just another lobster pot
buoy
We had Turkey Cove to ourselves and spent a peaceful night at
anchor listening and then spotting in the early evening a Loon with it's
distinctive call which we'd often heard but not actually seen. A beautiful
sunset sequence then followed before the day ended in tranquil calmness
which made for a restful night. Sunrise was just as spectacular!
  The sunsets we witness on our travels amaze us
with their intensity and diversity
  Sundown on a private slip at Turkey
Cove
Sunrise at Turkey Cove
The next day we moved on into the Midcoast, the
next area of water and islands, west of Penobscot Bay. Our evening stopover was Lewis Cove in Booth Bay, anchoring off a
small hotel resort which seemed very popular judging by the number of people
enjoying the facilities. Hopefully the open-air swimming pool was somewhat
warmer than the surrounding sea! We had not indulged in any swimming activities
whilst in Maine (apart from the ship's diver duties inspecting the keel damage a
week or so back) and still didn't fancy a quick dip in the chilly waters of
Lewis Cove although it was a few degrees up on the mere 9 degrees we had
recorded in Tenants Harbour.
Our final Maine stop was The Basin in Casco Bay.
This totally enclosed inlet is accessed through a very narrow quarter mile
long entrance passage, rock lined each side and festooned in the first 100 yards
with lobster pot buoys to make life even more interesting. Casco Bay isn't as
popular for cruising perhaps not having the natural beauty of Penobscot or the
convenience of the central islands as stepping stones from east to west across
the bay. Casco has long islands and necks stretching south-westwards so
cruising up and down entails an awful lot of sailing or motoring and the
density of lobster pot buoys is just as high.
  You have to be quick to catch seals on camera -
it's the closest we
got!
Entering The Basin in Casco Bay
Once into the bay all round shelter was guaranteed, which was
just as well as there was a blow forecast, so we were in the right place. At
first glance the shoreline seemed deserted but closer inspection revealed
properties scattered amongst the dense tree lined landscape and at night lights
were seen from the various residences.
From here we could have struck out for Bideford as a day hop
with a couple of further stops down the New Hampshire coast before reaching Cape
Cod. In reality we made the 117 mile trip in one hop as
the weather for once assisted our efforts to be on our way south as quickly as
possible.
We stayed three nights seeing other boats come and go. There
was plenty of space in which you could sit out a hurricane. Having sat out the
blow we decided to leave on a forecast of southwest winds which would veer
into the west then northwest - just perfect. But we awoke to dense fog in The
Basin - we couldn't even see the trees 50 yards away! By 0900 the fog had
cleared so we pulled up the anchor and headed out through the lobster pots and
down the bay. Before we had gone 2 miles the fog closed back in to about 50
yards so we threaded our way along the track we had laid down on the
chart plotter when we arrived. Around us we could hear the sound of lobstermen
in their boats whizzing around at great speed. This was unnerving. We discussed
heading into a small harbour close by but it had rocky ledges and numerous
obstructions to make any approach in thick fog stressful to say the least. We
opted to keep heading out of the bay towards deeper water where the density of
lobstermen would be less along with the amount of rock to run into. It was the
best decision as once clear of the bay the fog eventually cleared back and we
laid a course towards Bideford passing close by Portland. The wind was
south-easterly - unpredicted but not a great hindrance so we continued motor
sailing as close as we could to the wind which was a course that took us roughly
towards Portsmouth - New Hampshire. If the wind did as it was predicted we would
keep on that track until the wind turned west when we could head towards
Provincetown, Massachusetts an excellent stop to make before entering the Cape
Cod Canal.
We both agreed that the delights of cruising Maine were
tempered by the frequent fog and ever present lobster pot buoys which for a
catamaran presents quite a challenge when underway. For that reason we felt that
our 2010 visit would in all probability be our only visit to these waters -
by boat at least. The view of a surprising number of fellow cruisers that
have ventured to these waters. However, despite the conditions and of course the
"mishap" we both enjoyed the Maine event (sorry) and have no regrets at having
spent time there. Our last pictures depict the fog on leaving Maine
- similar to our arrival!
  A foggy sunrise in The
Basin
An overnight trip with fair winds and no disasters onboard saw
us approaching the hook of land that is Cape Cod and Provincetown. Nikki saw the
first of many whales in the distance blowing columns of water into the air
making them look like sailing boats on the horizon until
the blown spume dissipated into the surrounding water. It was a
fantastic sight but we decided we would not get close leaving that to the armada
of whale-watching boats leaving Provincetown in the early morning.
We passed a charter boat-full of tourists jigging for
mackerel. It was a strange sight with 50 odd people of all ages jigging
enthusiastically with their rods - but we did not see but one fish emerge from
the water whilst we were in sight of the boat - pretty much summed up our own
fishing exploits in recent weeks. Had they hit a large shoal one could only
imagine the chaos on board with 50 rods trying to land their catch with precious
room to swing a cat let alone a rod!
  Sunrise at sea - much the same as on land
really ...
and our boat-full of mackerel jiggers
We arrived in the anchorage and parked
near some friends we'd last spent time with in Block Island as well as
another catamaran that we knew of from the SSB radio net we check in with each
day. So we were not alone in Provincetown and surprise, surprise - it was
Carnival Week and there was another parade organised for the Thursday
afternoon to look forward to!
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