IMAGE: colorful sailing in Maine

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Well - there are just so many things that make MAINE SO MAGNIFICENT - here are so some of our most memorable and enjoyable highlights.....
PLACES
• Southport Yacht Club is our 'homeport' in Australia - and Bruce & Maureen's mooring in SOUTHPORT off the Boothbay Region Boatyard became our Maine 'homeport'. Access to Southport from the beautiful BOOTHBAY HARBOUR is via an hourly opening road bridge, through Townsend Gut (yes Gut not Cut) - and we have now made this beautiful and scenic short trip in both the dingy and the boat in all weather - beautiful sunshine and fog.
• Our southern entry port into Maine waters was Portland, and a furthers point 'Down East' the area bounded in the north by the Acadia National Park in landscape that reminded us very much of our sailing in Norway & Sweden and the Baltic States - well it is named The Pine Tree State. Along with the unspoilt natural beauty and many safe harbours with good anchorages came the downside - thick fog, 1000's & 1000's of lobster trap buoys, a tidal range of up to10 feet with the associated tidal currents.
• NORTH HAVEN ISLAND is part of a small archipelago known as the FOX ISLANDS. The very pretty PULPIT HARBOUR was our favourite amongst this areas various channels, coves and inlets. The bird watching was fascinating - watching the local Ospreys building nests and catching small fish for their supper. Over 90% of the Fox Islands have only summer residents in spectacular waterside mansions - a sign of the typical summer residents here we watched a few small private helicopters coming and going ...on how the other half live up here in Maine in their 'summer houses'.
• STONINGTON is a very active lobster port at the south end of DEER ISLE. We anchored one Sunday afternoon off the town amongst ALL the lobster boats. There must be about 60 lobster boats based here... crazy - how can this amount of fishing be sustainable! and yes come Monday morning they all went out - a go out at least 6 days per week. This little town of white houses sits on the side of a hill sloping down to the harbour. This town has a rich history of quarrying granite, and a long ago sardine cannery. We had an enjoyable few hours ashore in a town with a great mix of fishing families, summer tourists. The town had a 'real' feel about it and not just art galleries and fancy restaurants. In the afternoon we set sail in light winds, to enjoy an afternoon sailing with our coloured lightweight genoa up enjoying the sunshine and lovely clear blue skies. We sailed past a private island with an interesting name - Grog Island, sounds more Caribbean than Maine.

• The inner cove at BLUE HILL had just about enough water depth to anchor in (even easier with our lifting keel) - but the little quay off the town totally dries out for at least an hour either side of low water. We had been told to watch/listen out for a special local steel pan band based here, and sadly at about 7pm on our 1st night we heard their big band music coming from the town - but couldn't get in the dingy to go a have a look as it was close to low water - very frustrating! Blue Hill is a classic Maine mainland town that has become a magnet for artists, artisan and musicians - with a very 'artsy' exclusive private estate feel with some very grand waterfront homes, a waterfront golf course and some beautiful small wooden yachts on private moorings. The town is named after the 940 foot hill overlooking the town - and yes it is a lovely blue when seen from a far off distance on a clear day. Whilst having breakfast in the cockpit here in the bright sunshine we sat watching the fog roll in! it cleared enough that at about 2 hours after the tide turned we started to make our way out of the tricky entry and out into Blue Hill Bay and the fog rolled in again.... so our sailing plans needed to change. We motored down the bay in thick fog with the aid of the radar and the chart plotter and anchored in splendid isolation in Allens Cove - still thick fog. About 7pm we felt the boat roll a little - then looking out we saw a lobster boat loom out of the fog and pass behind us at speed! This was not good for my nervous disposition, and made us jumpy for the rest of the evening.
• The mainland town of CASTINE, at the head of East Penobscot Bay is one of the oldest towns in New England - and was a real favourite of ours. During colonial times Castine changes hands 25 times between the English, French,. Dutch Spanish and American colonists - and each has left its mark. The town is rich with reminders of its existing past - in fact the entire town is listed on the National Historic Register. It is a real pleasure to wander around following the Walking Tour of Castine guide past some of the prominent homes, lighthouses and exhibits. The town is pristine, and the white timber churches and some 100 listed historical markers are proudly maintained. Castine is also home to the Maine Maritime Academy housed in the 500ft training ship permanently moored at the town pier . Every wednesday afternoon in the summer Musical entertainment is provided for the public in the harbour carpark -in late August we really enjoyed being in this fantastic setting to listen to a few hours of great Jazz music in this wonderful harbour setting.
• We enjoyed a lovely day sail up the East & West Penobscot Bays into CAMDEN - a true 'where the mountains meet the sea' mainland town. We took an exciting shortcut pass through Lime Island - thankfully it was high water and we had just enough water to clear without raising the keel. We arrived in clear sunny weather into a packed Camden Harbour and found it difficult to find an anchoring spot. We now know that Camden is one of Maine's busiest towns and harbours - and one of the prettiest. Camden is homeport for many of the very beautiful traditional Windjammers that do two hourly and daily sailing trips out into the bay. Camden is at the foot of Mount Battie, and we were able to enjoy the spectacular view with Bruce & Maureen, looking down from the summit of the National Park out over Penobscot Bay. We enjoyed at least one beautiful sunny day here and even managed to hang the clothes washing out to dry on the boat 'live aboard' style - something we had not been able to do due to weather since we were in the Caribbean. The town was very busy with the tourist trade and quality art shops. There is a Renys Department store here - advertised as THE Maine Department store, and Maureen assured me that no trip to Maine is complete without a visit to Renys.
• We anchored in the late afternoon in BURNT COAT HARBOUR (great name) in SWANS ISLAND watching the lobster fleet return and unload. As we had a strong north wind, this long, narrow and well protected harbour was perfect for our overnight stay, and we did not venture ashore. Swans Island is a large, dry (no alcohol) island with 3 small villages - no modern tourism here, just a lobstermen's island, with very little ashore and a serious fishing and lobstering economy. We loved Swans Island so much that on another visit we anchored in MACKEREL COVE - picture perfect splendid isolation, Maine at its best.

• The fabulous MOUNT DESERT ISLAND is home to ACADIA NATIONAL PARK and we visited either by boat or by local (free) bus all the harbours. BASS HARBOUR, in the south-western corner of the island was the first harbour we visited. Being the least visited by yachts, as it is the southernmost of the islands harbours and the quietest, we really enjoyed the serenity and scenery. The inner harbour was home to a substantial lobster fleet and the prominent Thurstons Lobster Pound - where the queue for a table was out the door and up the street.

• Timing was important to catch the current up the narrow 6 mile SOMES SOUND on Mt Desert Island. This sound is called a fiord - but this definition is very misleading - especially after the northern European fiords we have been in - nevertheless we had a very picturesque arrival on a beautiful sunny, warm day. Throughout most of the Sounds length, steep hills of 600 and 800 foot heights plummet directly to the waters edge. As we arrived into the anchorage at the very head of the sound at Soamesville village we caught a lobster pot! James needed to cut it clear and then try to clear the rest of the line free from where it was caught under the keel and prop - a stressful hour. This was truly a beautiful anchoring spot, looking out over a background of mountains - at any time of the day of night it was an awe inspiring land and seascape. This anchorage became our base for our 10 day visit exploring the island and visiting the National Park. SOAMESVILLE VILLAGE was just perfect. A floating dock provided a safe and secure dingy landing and then we just had a short walk to the main road to catch the free local bus transport network around the whole of the island. The local library provided a Wi-Fi service that just about (if the wind was blowing in the right direction) reached us on the boat where we were anchored.

• BAR HARBOUR is the major town on MT DESERT ISLAND and the hub for all the major tourist activities - especially those associated with the ACADIA NATIONAL PARK. In the 19th century Bar Harbour became the summer home to many of the wealthiest American families - the Roosevelt's, Astor's, Vanderbilt's etc,etc, and still today has a grand feel. Each day we would catch the morning shuttle bus into Bar Harbour and venture out from there. The main harbour and village area of Bar Harbour were very enjoyable, and the closeby large intown supermarket made our food shopping not too much of a chore. The Loop Road became our favourite as it took us right into the heart of the National Park. We could use a hop-on/hop/off strategy to walk the various trails up into the Cadillac Mountain Ridge and then back to the sea. One day we stopped off at Sand Beach and walked the trail to Thunder Hole before getting back on the bus to stop off at Jordan Pond - what a lovely spot. Another day we caught the bus to NORTHEAST HARBOUR, and enjoyed our picnic lunch looking out over the harbour. Northeast Harbour had a quiet feel with only 1 main street, a small village and very picturesque harbour. Another very scenic ride was around Brown Mountain and back into the Bar Harbour Village Green. The free Island Explorer bus service is just fantastic. Unfortunately the weather turned on Labour Day - 2nd September - a day on which we had 2.5 inches of rain! and the lovely blue skies and sunshine turned to fog and on and off rainy days.
• The Common Loon has a patterned black and white appearance - and is very beautiful. The Loon has several famous eerie beautiful calls. The first time we hear the male call - it thought it was a lions roar!! Apparently their wail is the haunting call that loons give back and forth to figure out each other's location. It has been fascinating watching the Common Loons in the waters around the boat - they are powerful, agile divers that catch small fish in fast underwater chases.
• We have enjoying seeing many Atlantic harbour Seals in the waters of Maine - at any time of the day or night they pop their heads up from feeding on the fish and take a look around. The Males are up to 300pounds and are about 6 foot in length. These seals have grey or brown fir with dark and light spots - and each one looks different from the others.


• Our visit to VINALHAVEN -a true offshore working fishing island gave us a short insight into this hardworking and isolated community. Vinalhaven's only access is via the mainland car ferry, and we saw a slow paced self-sufficient unspoilt community. The small harbour was completely full of lobster boats and not at all suitable for yachts - so we anchored for the night off in a nearby bay just out of the ferry channel. On a bright morning we enjoyed the isolated beauty of the100 feet wide 'The Reach' channel and then a great sail out into PENOBSCOT BAY.

• Owls Head Lighthouse marks the entrance into the mainland town of ROCKLAND. Rockland was a great stop for us, and had just the right mix of tourist, local, practical and culture. We had a mix of wet and windy weather here. After so much sailing, Rockland was perfect for the long walk out to the mega stores - Wal-Mart, Home Depot and Radio Shack for the few odds and ends we were looking for. The Harbour Walk is a public footpath hugging Rockland's historical waterfront and the view out into Penobscot Bay and the various locally based Schooners and Windjammers gilding past is a wonderful typical Maine sight. The Farnsworth Art Museum (more about that later) holds an extensive American Art collection.
• MAPLE JUICE COVE (what a great name) - up the St Georges River was a beat into strong southwest winds and light rain - but it was well worth it. The anchorage was very quite - no other cruising boats here. It was overcast and cloudy for our arrival day and then the fog rolled in on day two and we experienced an amazing evening lightning storm - far off thankfully. We went ashore to visit Olson House part of the Farnborough Museum - what a truly lovely spot, no wonder this area inspired the Wyeth family of artists. Wandering around the hillside we visited the family graves and saw some local artists trying to capture the view over the cove.
• We motored just a mile or so over to PORT CLYDE in the fog from Maple Juice Cove - for breakfast at the Port Clyde General Store. The eggs and bacon and strong hot coffee in a real bygone era atmosphere really set us up for the rest of a foggy day at anchor just off the busy lobster port. Port Clyde is home to the Monhegan Island passenger ferry, and we would have taken the ferryboat day trip out to do a bit of hiking around the island - but in thick fog there was literally nothing to see!

PEOPLE
On our Wednesday night weekly SSB radio chat we try to keep in contact with some of our Aussie mates - ROGER & SASHA ON EDNBAL - in the San Blas Islands and now in Panama and JIM & CAROLA ON KOZA. It was lovely to meet up with Jim & Carola in person again in Newport, Rhode Island back in early June before we each set off our various northern journeys. There is also a daily SSB net - called the Magellan Net, which our Aussie mates CATHERINE & PETER FROM THE SOUTHERN CROSS host every Thursday - so if I remember each week I try to participate to have a quick chat and update with them - hopefully we will meet up again in person sometime later this year- further south.
We managed to briefly catch up the ROB & SARA ON SERAFINA whilst in Camden Harbour in mid August -we had not seen then since 2011 in Israel. It was great to see them again.
During our visit to Maine we have been able to spend some quality time with MAUREEN & BRUCE. They have been very generous towards us by allowing us use of their private mooring in Southport and the use of a vehicle on several occasions has been very handy indeed. We have enjoyed many meals and various outings together and they came to Camden to stay onboard for a night to attend an OCC dinner. We have enjoyed their hospitality, company and friendship enormously.
During the OCC Rally we met some international members - one being an Aussie/Nord ERIK from Brisbane- who knew my sailing friend from home in Australia LISA BEECHAM - it's a small world! I have sailed as crew for Lisa whilst twilight racing on the Broadwater on the Gold Coast.
Whilst we were in Acadia National Park another British yacht came into the anchorage and stayed for a few days. We were therefore able to meet FIONA & IAN FROM RUFFIAN. They came over for afternoon tea one afternoon for a chat in the lovely late afternoon sunshine. We have similar sailing plans for heading south - so you never know where and when we might meet up again.
We first met MORIA AND DICK FROM EQUINOX in Newport in early June - they were on their way home to Maine after sailing in Europe and the UK for the past 6 years. As we were heading up that way we agreed to stay in touch. We met up again at the Seven Seas Association Sailing event, and they were also OCC Rally participants (more about these events later). We visited them in their homeport of Rockland and enjoyed a great evening wandering around the various local Art galleries and dinner out. Due to our sailing in similar waters - now both in East Coast USA and in Britain, Ireland and Europe we have loads to chat about, and have enjoyed their company.
JACKSON & RICO are good friends from all those sea miles ago in Turkey! Rico was a weather Guru for our Atlantic crossing and we last met and sailed together in the US and Spanish Virgin Islands last year. In late September they were passing through Maine and we were able to coordinate with their 2 night stopover at Bruce & Maureen's home to catch up again and enjoy spending some time together. Surprise, surprise our time together flew by over a few 'Dark and Stormies' and loads of chatting.
FOOD
We are not good at fishing off the back of the boat - but do enjoy fresh seafood. Whilst we were in the group of small islands around Isleboro Island in the Penobscot Bay we took the dingy over to the shore at the head of a bay to do a bit of 'mud larking' - looking for FRESH MUSSELS for dinner. The remains of good size mussels were everywhere - it was obvious the birds have a regular feast here. After an hour or so we managed to forage just enough mussels for at least a starter for dinner - and lovely they were too. We just got back to the boat before a late afternoon thunderstorm and a bit of rain passed over. We went musseling again whilst anchored in Soamesville on Mt Desert Island and collected enough for a very tasty Thai steamed mussel dinner onboard.

Maine and LOBSTER go together like two peas in a pod - and yes fresh lobster is available everywhere and the brightly coloured trap markers are ready and waiting to join you onboard too! Each lobsterman has his own individually painted floating trap markers to indentify his trap amongst the 1000's that are laid together in wide fields - we have seen spots, strips, ring of different colours - you name it we have seen it - in every colour imaginable. We enjoyed our first 'proper' sit down lobster feast while attending the OCC Rally dinner at the Camden Yacht Club. This dinner was also topped off with a baked Blueberry pie and ice-cream! Lobster is always eaten with a hot dipping herb butter and fresh corn on the cob - it's messy, but mouth-wateringly enjoyable. During our weeks in Maine we have eaten our share of Lobster - Lobster Rolls, Seafood Chowder and a wonderful and memorable last lobster meal freshly home cooked and shared with good friends Bruce & Maureen and Rico and Jackson.
We enjoyed our favourable Friday Night meal - Fish'n'Chips and cold cider in one of the local brew pub in Rockland in the company of Moria and Dick. Fish & Chips on a Friday has been our tradition for many of our sailing years, and we have searched out and found various locations and variations on this theme - always on a Friday.

FOG
The tiny port of NEW HARBOUR on the Permaquid Neck is a special spot - and every more memorable in Fog! The Pilot book says to follow the charts and buoys precisely - great if you can see them! It was getting late and foggy when we arrived in New Harbour on the 31st July - and thankfully there was a free mooring just on the port side inlet - a safe home for the night as the fog really set-in. It is very erry to see the lights, and hear noise for the nearby homes through the fog and hear the fog horn and bell in the harbour throughout the night. The thick fog stayed with us until about 11am- when we could safely get off for a little exploring in the dingy around this beautiful and quaint Harbour.

We do not enjoy being in unknown waters in Foggy conditions - and during our time here in Maine we have tried to keep to our rule of not venturing out in the Fog - but sometimes is just happens! Fog is not always forecast and can be very localised - so we have just had to deal with it. In some cases we have dropped all our sails and headed back 'blind' following our track on the chart plotter. We have become very good at navigating via the Radar and the Chart Plotter - both clearly visible from our steering position in the cockpit - believe me it's not fun doing the lobster slalom with zero visibility. We have used all the gas in our fog horn and have now purchased a hand-pump variety to do the job when needed. The various bells on the unseen channel markers make such an eerie tone.

It has always been our practice to put our AIS (Automatic Identification System) on when engulfed in Fog - we know the fisherman only have radar - but some yachts and all the commercial craft have this equipment. On one occasion whilst motoring in thick the fog around midday south of Mt Dessert Island we were passing through a rather tricky and tight bar - the marker of a yacht overlaid on our chart plotter. We monitored its progress and knew it was coming in the opposite direction and we would safely pass it. Next minute we got a call from this yacht on the VHF requesting we keep a good lookout and that they would pass us port-to-port - in the foggy gloom we never saw them - never heard their engine - and only saw their wake..... and they were less than .5 of a mile off when passing us!

SAILING
There is a saying amongst cruising sailors - are we sailing in paradise or just doing boat maintenance in exotic locations ! so it true for us too - repairs and maintance are always required. We decided before venturing away from our 'homeport' area we would do some maintenance and have a Dry-out day! - yes we can do that with our lifting keel and make the most of the 10ft spring tidal range. We had discussed our drying out plans with Bruce and with his local knowledge he advised us on using Murrays Public Landing in East Boothbay. The day before our exercise we drove over to check the area out - and yes all looked good. On D-Day, we left the mooring at first light - 5.30am and passed through the Southport Island 1st bridge opening at 6am and motored up to East Boothbay to Murray's public landing - to be there just after high-water to get alongside the landing dock to tie-up and get ready with the keel up to dry out. All went really well and La Aventura sat on her bottom and twin rudders enough for us to be ankle deep in water so we could take a good look at the bottom. We gave her a good scrape down, hull wipe and James could clear up, grease and change the prop anodes. We had some interested by passers who were very sceptical about our actions. Job done and when we were floating again we motored off at about 3pm.
We had been having a few problems in starting our No.1 engine and James diagnosed that we had a problem with that engines glow plugs. So we made the most of the facilities at the Boothbay Region boatyard at our 'homeport' with the mechanic coming on-board, doing the professional diagnostics - and confirming our problem. Job done and all within 1 hour - the parts were ordering for next day delivery and James could install these pesky little parts and get us up and running again with confidence.

A few days after the glow plug problems were solved James noticed that our No 2 engine was smoking from the exhaust. One of our fellow sailors recommended Front Street Shipyard, up at the head of Penobscot Bay in Belfast as a good place for a mechanic to take a look. After making contact with them we set sail up the Bay - yes we had a northerly and we wanted to go north - so a lovely tacking sail on a clear, clean day in lovely warm sunshine. We pulled alongside the Shipyard dock about 2pm and within an hour their chief mechanic was onboard and he and James were troubleshooting. As there were further things to look at the next morning - and now we only had one engine, the Shipyard allowed us to stay alongside for the night at no charge - excellent! Bright and early the next morning the mechanic and James worked on the port engine - some sort of cylinder timing problem, and I was offered the yards courtesy van to self-drive to the local supermarket to do the weekly food shop. By the time I had returned all was OK on-board (as they say 'firing again on all cylinders') and we were off again - their total charge was for 3 hours labour - a very good deal indeed.
We experienced mainly light southwesterlies under 10 knots throughout August , as we were making our way up along the coast - and have enjoyed some lovely sailing in beautiful surroundings. Our lightweight coloured genoa has been hoisted quite a lot to make the most of the light winds. We have really enjoyed being out sailing in-company with a few of the lovely traditional windjammer that ply their tourist trade around these waters. Sailing back south has all together been another story - why is it that we had stronger southerly winds when we needed to get south? We have found ourselves waiting for lighter winds and wishing for northerlies - yes we did finally find these conditions but have had to do our fair share of motoring and motorsailing to make our way south in September.
The anchoring conditions - i.e. the seabed have been excellent and we have been 'at anchor' 100% of the time. Bringing up the chain with so much thick, gooey, smelly mud just got too much for James - so he put together a pump with a hose so we could now wash off the anchor chain and anchor with sea water - no more thick smelly mud to handwash and brush off.

Our Maine sailing style has been the 'lobster slalom '- weaving our way through the various coloured fishing markers. This can been very challenging and stressful at times - especially in light winds and strong tidal currents - we were constantly hearing of numerous incidents with yachts who had these fishing lines caught around their props causing serious mechanical and manoeuvring difficulties.
EVENTS
On the 1st weekend of August we attended a GAM - our first ever! A GAM is a traditional sailor's get-together - named a GAM from the old Schooner get-together days. The GAM was open to all members of the Seven Seas Sailing Association -SSSA and Ocean Cruising Club - OCC - both well established clubs with many members here in the USA. As we arrived in the pre-arranged rendezvous Gilkey's Harbour in Isleboro in time for the 4pm Friday afternoon dingy raft-up - it was a lovely sight to see over 40 participant yachts and a few motorboats all at anchor - ready for the weekend event. There was a short, sharp rain shower as we were anchoring which made all the dingys flee home - so no getting involved in the GAM this afternoon or evening for us. Our big rain cover did the job and kept the whole cockpit and main aft window covered from the rain. As it was a pot-luck picnic luncheon on Saturday I was kept busy cooking dinner and our dish-to-share (Teriyaki Pork tenderloin on Asian rice and grilled apples). Saturday morning was cloudy, with showery rain - not a great weather outlook for the lunchtime GAM. The rain showers finally passed through and we dingyed over to the organisers shore side summer cottage for a lovely afternoon amongst the other sailors. It was good to see some familiar faces i.e. Bruce & Maureen and Moria and Dick to help break the ice. We were one of only 3 'foreign' yachts. 1 Canadian, 1 Swede - Unicorn (whom we recognised from Trinidad) and we were the only British yacht. Sunday was a lovely warm sunny day. Most of the GAM boat upped anchor and went their separate ways today. We enjoyed our cooked Sunday breakfast in the sunshine at the cockpit table - then we visited Moria and Dick - Equinox for morning coffee and a chat.

We were participants in the Maine summer OCC Rally in mid August- again another 1st for us. We have recently become OCC members - and were warmly welcomed. The week-long Rally commenced on Sunday afternoon with a pot-luck hors d'oeuvers and BYO drinks and then a lobster dinner on the front lawn of the Camden Yacht Club - what a beautiful setting and we had glorious summer weather. 116 members and guests attended this opening party - some driving for many miles and some make epic sailing journeys to be there. We had a lovely evening meeting and chatting with other members - swapping stories well into the evening. Bruce & Maureen were our guests for this event, and it was lovely to have them stay on-board for the Sunday evening too. On Monday the 4 day 'cruise-in-company' commenced. Between 25 and 30 boats participated - we were amongst a small foreign group of 6 British yachts - the one other Aussie/Nord was Eric Hellstrom from Brisbane. We had a good sail to Kent Cove in the Fox Island Thorofare. In the late afternoon 3 groups of yachts rafted up and at 5 PM everyone arrived in their dingys to enjoy potluck drinks and snacks and move between various cockpits. Again a spent a lovely evening chatting amongst some very interesting sailors. On Tuesday morning the group went ashore to Turner Farm on North Haven Island where we had a tour of this organic farm - all very interesting. Apparently this Farm has in the past few years been purchased by a very wealthy prominent Maine resident who has now built a summer house (mansion) on the land and has invested large sums to bring the original Farm back to life. The Farm Shop had some lovely veg and cheese produce. After lunch we informally set off again. We had a great 20 mile sail to Holbrook Island. Suzie, the OCC Commodores wife took on the role of official photographer as they zoomed past the yachts in the motor launch - she took the blog photo of us with our coloured genoa up. We were in a beautiful and quiet anchorage for the evening amongst about 25 OCC yachts - the bay was a lovely sight. On Wednesday morning a hike ashore to explore Holbrook Island was planned -well it turned out to be just a walk and chat in really beautiful surroundings. Wednesday lunchtime we motored around to anchor off the mainland town of Castine. We took the dinghy into the historical town for a wander around for a few hours and then to sit in car park overlooking the harbour for a town musical event at 5pm. The jazz band was excellent musicians and the evening was very enjoyable before heading back to the boat for dinner. Before the off on Thursday morning we went back into Castine to top-up with some fruit and veg from the weekly Farmers Market - a lovely little market and chance to see more of this enjoyable town again. We were last to leave and therefore last to arrive - but did have an enjoyable tacking sail down Penobscot Bay and around into Eggemoggin Reach - a broad inside passage that runs southwest between the mainland and the Deer Isles. We bravely sailed under the bridge (loads of room) and anchored with all the other British yachts and 4 of the US OCC yachts. Due to strong south-west winds the original anchoring arrangements for tonight were changed for the larger yachts. The rest of the group were anchored or rafted to the 2 mooring buoys available in Bow Cat Bay inner anchorage -now VERY open to the weather. We were very pleased to be anchored with the protection of the causeway. Our final get-together was a 5pm potluck supper and BBQ at the home of OCC member Phil & Linda Glaser. As we all landed our dingys at their private dock and walked along the beach to their home - wow what a view! We enjoyed the Rally very much and hopefully we will come across some of our fellow participants again somewhere, sometime on the water again in the future.

At the beginning of September in Rockland - we really lucked out to be there for 'First Friday' - which means the Farnsworth Art Gallery and Museum has an extended opening until 8pm and entry is free, and all the other local art galleries on Main Street have an open house evening with wine, cheese and snacks. We had met up with Moria and Dick, and had a very enjoyable time together. The Farnsworth Museum is the showcase for Maine art and the main exhibition on at the moment 'Every picture tells a story' was excellent. The Whyte Gallery has some of the original illustrations and paintings from this famous artistic family with the illustrations from Robert L. Stevenson etc. Our visit to a few of the local galleries was all very social - as many of the locals had also come out for the evening.

We had a great day out on a warm and sunny mid September day at the Common Ground Fair with Bruce & Maureen, their friends Doug and Sarah and the sailors off the Canadian yacht Cristada. This annual fair is run by the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association and is a BIG thing for all the State-wide farmers. It was a very organic affair with a large array of food stalls and arts and crafts. The working dogs exhibition with the sheep and goats was excellent to watch. It was a long day with a 4 hour drive to get to there, but well worth it. We watched a forestry tree cutting demo on arrival and wandered most of the day looking at all the various farm animals and various exhibitions.

At the end of September on a chilly day we -all 6 of us (Maureen & Bruce ,Jackson & Rico and James & I) went to the fair! - The Annual Cumberland Fair - THE Maine family fair. We had a great day watching various steer pulling events, harness racing, and all the farm animals and enjoying the fun of the fair atmosphere. The large cup of hot chowder for lunch was just right and later the hot chocolate really hit the spot against the chilly wind as we sat watching the Children's Rodeo.

Saying goodbye to good friends after enjoying each others company is always tough - we will hopefully met up again on water or land with Maureen & Bruce and Rico and Jackson in the not too distant future. We had our last Maine lobster meal together - home cooked at Maureen and Bruce's home - just perfect.