Although we were not able to take a sail the first day we got the Orion II into her transient slip at Northeast Harbor, were able to go for a sail the next day, June 22, 2010. The picture is of the lighthouse on Bear Island which is located just out of the harbor. There are a number of islands and other harbors that one can sail to or around. During the week we spent at Northeast Harbor, there always seemed to be plenty of wind for our Hunter 216. We had bought a gennaker from North Sails and did have the opportunity to try it out during the week. This was an advantage as the couple of times we had tried it while sailing on the Mississippi were difficult as we often have to tack as we follow the river. Sailing among the islands and not having to tack or jibe every few minutes seemed like a luxury.
Being from the Midwest, we enjoyed taking pictures and sailing past the different lighthouses in this area. Since we don't have a chart plotter on the Orion II, we carry a handheld GPS. I had updated the navigation charts in it as well as ordering several hard copy charts for the area. Since this was our first sail on the Orion II in the Atlantic, I wanted to ensure that we were aware of all navigation hazards. We found the tide not be a major issue. Although there was a 10-12 foot tide, it really had little effect other than when we sailed back into the fjord and getting through the 'narrows'. Otherwise, one notes that the ramp to the dock changes from almost flat at high tide to fairly steep at low tide. Here is an on-line source I used for tides in this area - http://www.maineboats.com/tide-charts/downeast.
There are charter boats taking tourists to Little Cranbury Island to visit a museum and we read that they eat lunch at a restaurant there. On this first sail, we sailed around Bear Island and Sutton Island and by Greater Cranberry and Little Cranbury Islands. We had hoped to be able to sail and dock at Little Cranbury Island later in the week and see the museum and catch lunch there. This is not really possible or encouraged. Docking space is limited primarily to commercial boats and residents. We did read that kayaks can be pulled up onto the shore but we were limited as our small daysailer does not have a dingy. We decided there were plenty of other things to see and do without purchasing a ticket to cross to Little Cranbury.
We had a great sail. For us, it was even enjoyable viewing all the other boats in the harbor on the way in and out. It was definitely worth the effect to tailer the Orion II the 1400 miles one-way to have an adventure instead of a passive vacation.

Since Orion II does not have sleeping quarter or a galley, we need to support our extended trips with housing and local restaurants. The Asticou Resort seemed to meet our needs so we made reservations for the week. It would serve as our base for both day sailing and exploring Desert Island and Acadia National Park by land. If I had it to do over, I would probably stay at the Kimball Terrace Inn at Northeast Harbor instead. We stayed a week at the Asticou and then one night at Kimball Terrace Inn when rain came our final scheduled day and we postponed taking Orion II out one day. It was very clean and very friendly staff. Asticou had inconsistent service and we had to change rooms during our stay. The Asticou has multiple cottages surrounding the main building. We had difficulty when a wedding party (groomsmen) rented all the rooms but ours in a cottage and proceeding to have a party into the wee hours of the morning. There was little assistance from management in controlling the noise or locating us to another room and I had difficulty in locating the evening manager.
We weren't impressed with the food or service at the Asticou. The first night we wanted to try Maine seafood only to be told 15 minutes after ordering that their lobsters all died in the cooler from getting too cold and they were not able to obtain any fresh ones from their supplier. If you sail in the Acadia area, you KNOW there is an abundant local lobster supply. Although the resort had great views overlook Northeast Harbor and a nice deck where one can enjoy a cool drink, it wasn't worth the additional cost. There are many good restaurants on Desert Island. In fact, we enjoyed visiting the different coastal villages and sampling their offerings. Don't overlook Jordan Pond too. It is on national park land but has good food as reasonable cost (lots of families with children). It is also known for their pop overs and even have an afternoon tea/pop over experience that is reminiscent of the early years of Acadia.

This is a picture of the ramp at Bar Harbor. The steep ramp leads one right into the pivoting docks of several commerical boats. Also note the crowded parking lot on the left. It would be difficult to find a space to park a truck and trailer. We appreciated the honesty of the Bar Harbor harbor master in guiding us to Northeast Harbor.

One might ask why we decided go to Acadia for a sailing adventure. Our two previous trips included the inland waterway of Michigan and a week long stay at Lake Rathburn, Moravia, Iowa. In addition, we had completed a one-week live aboard sailing course through the Blue Water Sailing School of Ft. Lauderdale, Florida last summer (2009). This including sailing from Ft. Lauderdale to Miami and then down Biscayne Bay to Key Largo and back the same route to Ft. Lauderdale. Both Marilyn and I passed our Basic Sailing (ASA 101), Basic Coastal Cruising (ASA 103) and Bareboat Chartering (ASA 104) during the week. Although it gave us confidence in our sailing abilities (and possibilities to bareboat charter in the future), it was hotter than Hades. The coolness of the Northeast during June or July sounded good as well as 'new scenery'. Although we might have been able to find a suitable sailboat to rent for the week, the price for this still seems very steep. Although our Hunter 216 does not have a finished cabin (more of an area to store a cooler along with your sailing stuff), this seems the better choice for the dollars - plus we are completely familiar with our daysailer. There is possibly room for a porta pottie in the unfinished cuddy cabin but the lack of head room makes it difficult. No galley or sleep quarters limits overnight or extended cruises. The advantage of the Hunter 216 is the good sized cockpit, possible of seating six adults
I contacted the Bar Harbor harbor master. He had the wisdom to encourage me to look to Northeast Harbor. The limited ramp at Bar Harbor would have been very difficult for my novice launching abilities. Just getting the truck and trailer to the area to launch would have been difficult. Bar Harbor is a noisy, tourist packed (and I believe we were two week or so prior to their 'peak season' and less tourist during the recession than normal perhaps), and lacking much parking especially for vehicles towing an RV or sailboat. President Obama and his family came to Acadia and Bar Harbor at the beginning of July. I was glad we went two weeks or so earlier.
Although we have a lot of challenges and excitement with sailing in the Quad Cities (Moline, IL; Rock Island, IL; Bettendorf, IA; and Davenport, IA)area of the Mississippi with the normal 2 knot current, wing dams, power boats, and commercial barge traffic, tides and tide currents were new to us. Researching the tides of Southwest Harbor (closest tide chart data), showed a 10-12 foot tide. In the Mississippi River valley, most boat ramps have docks on one or both sides of the ramp. This has enable us to put the trailer in the water up to the back tires of the towing vehicle and then use our docking ropes to pull the sailboat off of the trailer. With the boat safety tied to the dock, it allows both of us to work with the boat and control it at the dock while moving the truck and trailer to the parking lot.
In Maine, we had to 'power launch' and load the boat. This required me to ride the boat on the trailer into the water while Marilyn backed the truck. There would be no docks to pass lines to by the ramp. It required floating off the trailer, lowering the outboard into the water, starting the motor, and then going to the assigned transient slip. Marilyn did super with putting the trailer in the water. One of assistants of the harbor master helped push the boat off the trailer. The only difficulty was keeping the outboard running. It died two or three times to the slip. Normally too we both work the lines to dock, suddenly there was just me. It worked but certainly got the adrenaline flowing.
It was even more exciting in loading the boat. The harbor master's two assistants were in training and the harbor master had left to check on them. Fortunately a park ranger was willing to hook the boat to trailer while Marilyn again did the truck driving duty. My concern was to try to motor up and onto the trailer never having done this before. To add to my anxiety, a stout Maine fisherman showed up and quickly put his power boat into the water next to the ramp by himself in less than two minutes while I was coming around from the slip. I could see the embarrassment of the Midwestern sailor in missing the trailer and bow roller. Luck or Neptune was watching over us. Orion II went right up on the trailer and the bow just kissed the roller! Although we had to try two times to get the keel (the Hunter has a hydraulic lead pivot keel) to rest on the keel plate, I appreciated the Maine fisherman comment, "Couldn't have done a better job myself. Looks like he's done that his whole life."

This trip to Acadia National Park and to sail in the Atlantic was our third trip towing our daysailer, Orion II, to a location for extended sailing. It was approximately a 1400 mile trip from Orion, IL to Northeast Harbor on Desert Island. Although Yahool Maps states that it is a 22 hour trip, we planned four days to go east. This allowed us to start around 9 a.m. each day and get off the road around 7-8 p.m. while stopping to take breaks and have meals out of the truck. We used to two Orion II, a 216 Hunter, with an Aerostar van but found it difficult on several occassions to put the boat on the trailer out of the water when the ramp was slick or a 'hole' had developed just below the ramp in the water. The 2008 Ford F-150 with 4-wheel drive makes the matter simple - more than enough power and traction to get past the lower slick part of a ramp.
Pictured Marilyn, my wife - first mate and capable captain in her own right, in front of the truck and trailer boat just prior to starting out. We spent two days preparing for the trip. This included trailering Orion II from her normal slip on the Mississippi at the Isle of Capri (a river boat casino with land based hotel and marina) located in Bettendorf, Iowa at the west end of the Interstate 74 bridge (Moline, IL is on the IL -east side of the Mississippi River at this location).
The trip to Maine was enjoyable. We skirted the south side of the Great Lakes. We couldn't very often see Lake Erie or Lake Huron as we stuck to the interstate highway system but could have extended the trip by taking more rural roads by the lakes or even putting in for a sail. There appeared to be even the possibility for a future trip in visiting some of the islands reachable by day sailing the south side of Erie or Huron.