Wednesday, August 19, 2009
August in Maine
August has been full of guests and socializing. Everyone is curious to see the new boat. We have tours down to a science by now but are very happy to show her off. She continues to be very comfortable and seaworthy. The weather has definitely improved and has even been warm enough the last few days to swim. With guests in tow, we continue to explore old favorite harbors and new ones. Dinghy expeditions to collect mussels for dinner, check out different coves, watch the seals sunbathing, check out other boats in the harbor, hike of various islands are always in order. Dodging lobster pots is not as much fun and we have picked up a few but not on our prop and we have been able to extricate ourselves one way or another. John has had to go swimming a few times in the fridgid water, but once he catches his breath, he has been able to untangle us. We continue to marvel at the number of other cruisers that we are able to connect with and have over to catch up on their comings and goings. Everyone chips in with food or drink and good conversation to make the evenings more enjoyable.
In between guests, we were able to go further East to Roque Island. This island is part of an archipelago of islands and is about 70 miles east of Rockland. The main harbor of Roque has a crescent one mile long and very deep white sand beach that reminded us of Cape Cod. We spent the morning walking the length of it and beachcombing for small speckled granite rocks for my "living" Maine trough garden that I have on the boat. The weather was calm and glorious for the whole trip. I was nice to be just the two of us and to enjoy this beautiful spot. For our return trip back to Rockland, we decided to go outside of all the islands along the coast as to avoid most of the lobster pots. This worked well and we were able to briefly spot two whales along the way! The tides are serious up here and we were able to use the current to our advantage to save ontime and fuel both ways. This saving fuel stuff is new to us.
Now we are waiting for some more guests and are planning our next few weeks of time still left in our Northern Paradise.
In between guests, we were able to go further East to Roque Island. This island is part of an archipelago of islands and is about 70 miles east of Rockland. The main harbor of Roque has a crescent one mile long and very deep white sand beach that reminded us of Cape Cod. We spent the morning walking the length of it and beachcombing for small speckled granite rocks for my "living" Maine trough garden that I have on the boat. The weather was calm and glorious for the whole trip. I was nice to be just the two of us and to enjoy this beautiful spot. For our return trip back to Rockland, we decided to go outside of all the islands along the coast as to avoid most of the lobster pots. This worked well and we were able to briefly spot two whales along the way! The tides are serious up here and we were able to use the current to our advantage to save ontime and fuel both ways. This saving fuel stuff is new to us.
Now we are waiting for some more guests and are planning our next few weeks of time still left in our Northern Paradise.
Welcome to our new boat and continued adventures while cruising. This Windermere is our first trawler and replaces our Mason 54 sailboat that we have been cruising on since 2003. We bought the boat in April of this year and, after a few months in the boatyard, have been cruising up here in Maine. We hired a captain, from Nova Scotia that was very familiar with these boats, for a few days to help us bring the boat up here. After we dropped him off in Portland, we proceeded, (on our own!) down East to Rockland in Penobscot Bay.
The month of July was a bit foggy, wet, and gray but with a few much appreciated sunny days here and there. Being on a trawler was wonderful because it is so warm and cozy on matter what the weather. Luckily, when we had guests aboard, the weather mostly cooperated. On several occasions, we were able to reconnect with our cruising friends who were still willing to talk to us even though we had gone to "the dark side".
The highlight of our month was the visit by John's daughter, Alison, and her husband, Tom, and most importantly the first grandson, Ethan. The boat was perfect for the 16 month old to run up and down the wrap around decks. Her loved climbing up into the pilotberth, going exploring in the dinghy, splashing in the inflatable kiddie pool, being in his dad's backpack for hikes in the woods, and keeping us on our toes chasing after him. By nightfall, we all fell into bed and passed out.
Everyday we are learning more about handling this new boat and getting our teamwork fine tuned. There are a whole new set of good and bad noises to learn. So far, she is working fine and John is enjoying working in an engine room in which he fits! I love having a real refridgerator and a window to look out of while washing the dishes!
The month of July was a bit foggy, wet, and gray but with a few much appreciated sunny days here and there. Being on a trawler was wonderful because it is so warm and cozy on matter what the weather. Luckily, when we had guests aboard, the weather mostly cooperated. On several occasions, we were able to reconnect with our cruising friends who were still willing to talk to us even though we had gone to "the dark side".
The highlight of our month was the visit by John's daughter, Alison, and her husband, Tom, and most importantly the first grandson, Ethan. The boat was perfect for the 16 month old to run up and down the wrap around decks. Her loved climbing up into the pilotberth, going exploring in the dinghy, splashing in the inflatable kiddie pool, being in his dad's backpack for hikes in the woods, and keeping us on our toes chasing after him. By nightfall, we all fell into bed and passed out.
Everyday we are learning more about handling this new boat and getting our teamwork fine tuned. There are a whole new set of good and bad noises to learn. So far, she is working fine and John is enjoying working in an engine room in which he fits! I love having a real refridgerator and a window to look out of while washing the dishes!
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