Day 167 - Thu 10 Sep 2015
Moored - Castine, ME (Smith Cove)

[photo: one of the historic buildings in Castine. This one is now an Inn.]

We awoke to a partly cloudy sky, but not the dense fog of yesterday. We were well rested and the water was flat calm so we got underway just after 0700 and had a very comfortable run. I was in my shorts and short-sleeved shirt on the flybridge for the first half of the nearly 2 hour trip. I added my windbreaker once the wind picked up a bit from the N.

There were very few lobster buoys to dodge today, thankfully, and we arrived at Castine in short order. I cruised slowly along the waterfront to check it out, because we would be staying overnight in Smith Cove, a much more protected and pretty spot about 2 miles away. We were lucky to be able to use the mooring ball of a cruising friend who generously offered it to us for the night.

Rain could appear anytime in the afternoon, so we got ready early and took the dinghy into town. We completely understand the desires and mind-set of those who choose to get small dinghies with a small (or no) engine. For the cruising we do in FL and especially the Bahamas, however, having a larger dinghy with an engine (9.9 HP) that can move at 18mph makes a big difference. It was nice here to be able to cross those 2 miles with no problem.

We saw many homes of various sizes and apparent age up on the hillside as we approached the waterfront. The most obvious feature was the large freighter, State of Maine, which we found out later is a training ship for the Maine Maritime Academy. In addition, there were 2 wooden sailing ships, a 3-masted and a 2-masted schooner. We tied up at the town dock and walked to the visitor center, which was open from 11-2 on sunny days. Yes, that is what the sign said.

It was only 1015, so we found a store that had a Castine map and explored on our own. As with all towns up here, there was a significant hill involved, but we spent our time until about 1145 seeing the many historic homes and churches. The Maine Maritime Academy is located here, and is quite a large presence in town. It has a surprisingly large campus and we saw hundreds of students everywhere we walked.

It had been recommended to have a crab roll at the Variety Store right downtown. It is run by a Hawaiian woman who is quite proud of the freshness of her ingredients and tastiness of the end result. Diane did have the crab roll and I chose a basket of fried whole-bellied clams with some fries. It hit the spot for the day, but to be candid it was very pricey for what we got. I am also finding that maybe I don't like whole-bellied clams after all.

We had seen everything we wanted to see to get a flavor of Castine, so we headed back to Diva Di. Until the rain started much later, we used binoculars to watch a family of eagles nearby and the occasional seal swimming around. There were 2 other boats with occupants in the large cove, and we saw both run their dogs ashore a time or two.

Other than that, we spent time relaxing and ready, plus a few boat chores. The season is definitely coming to an end, as we continue to see a little food shacks with signs that they are closed for the season. The number of pleasure boats plying the waters seems to be diminishing rapidly, too. After the filling lunch, we only snacked for supper. We played Mah Jongg for a while, too. The rain came a bit later and was heavy at times through the night.

The wind is forecast to be out of the NNE tomorrow (Fri), so our timing to be up here in Castine was good. Now, we can make the 3 hour run SSW to Camden and have the wind and waves at our back. If there is room, we plan to tie up at the Camden Public Landing. We are told there is a lot of see in Camden and despite the rain, the boat could use a good scrubbing with soap and that takes a water hose.