Well, I'm back in Nancy Lu's cockpit enjoying the scenery and working on this latest blog entry after a dinghy trip to the town of Southwest Harbor here on Mount Desert Island for lunch. While I was in town, I stopped in a little shop and learned about a beginner lesson in Zentangle (basically, a form of art involving doodling). We're going to be in this area for a couple of weeks waiting on a follow up appointment for Mark with the orthopedist in Bar Harbor, Mount Desert so I'm looking forward to taking a lesson some afternoon. We were in Bar Harbor just 4 days ago for his latest check up. We rode the Island Explorer bus from Bass Harbor (also on Mount Desert) where we were moored. The Island Explorer buses are free to all and have routes all over Mount Desert including Acadia National Park and most villages. It is made possible by huge donations to "Friends of Acadia" totaling 3 million since 2002 by L.L Bean. As of today (September 1) the Southwest Harbor route only runs every 3 hours instead every hour as when we caught it the other day...summer is officially over here!



OK...enough with the hints to the cliff-hanger from the last blog...now to pick up where I left off...

Mark and Claire were off in the dinghy at the White Islands on a rainy Sunday morning to do a little exploring. After being dropped off at Nancy Lu with Timmy, I was tidying things up,



washing golden retriever slobber off of my foul weather gear, hanging them out to dry, getting some warm socks on my feet, and getting ready to make lunch. From down in the cabin, I heard Claire call to me that she and Daddy needed help getting on the boat, Daddy hurt himself.

As they were riding around at low tide, Mark noticed a big log floating in the water--a hazard to boaters--so he decided to drag it up on shore. Claire waited in the dinghy while he was dragging the 75 lb. or so log above the high-tide water line. In his effort he slipped on the slimy boulders



the ones that create the picturesque shoreline in Maine. In the fall, the log jammed into his chin and he had a deep gash there, and his wrist was swollen and starting to bruise. Claire took charge out there, started the dinghy up, helped Mark into it, and drove it back to Nancy Lu. As soon as we got Mark on board, she jumped back into the dinghy, started it up, and rode over to the boat that we had just met on shore. They were from Maine, and we thought they might have some recommendations as to where to get some medical attention for Mark.



They gave Claire the phone # of the Harbormaster in Rockland (a town we had planned on visiting, but not for another week), and said that we could probably pick up a mooring there and take a taxi to the Penobscot Bay Medical Center. Rockland was a 2 hour trip from the White Islands where we were. Mark was pretty pale and shaky, but he was able to direct Claire in putting our course in the chart plotter while I called the # that the other boat at our anchorage had given us to the Rockland Harbormaster and arranged to pick up a mooring and got directions on how to enter the harbor and find the mooring field. I raised the anchor as usual with Mark using one hand to steer the boat, and we were on our way to Rockland. I heated up some soup for Mark while he sat with Claire in the cockpit letting the auto pilot steer the boat with Claire looking out and making adjustments to miss lobster pots. We kept ice on Mark's wrist and something on his chin to control the fairly minimal bleeding from his gash. We thought our trip to the ER was more to get stitches in his chin than for his wrist. We thought his wrist was probably a sprain. Well, we were wrong...but I'm getting ahead of myself in the story.

After we picked up a mooring, we called the Harbormaster and he called a taxi for us. We got right into the ER and got x-rays on both Mark's wrist and jaw and stitches in his chin. We found out that Mark's wrist was broken in 2 places with one of the breaks going into his joint. The ER doctor thought he might need surgery because of this.



She fixed him up with a splint and told him to see the orthopedist as soon as possible. We had the taxi driver run us through the McDonald's drive through on the way back to the harbor to pick up some burgers for Claire and us to eat on Nancy Lu.

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We were back on the boat by about 8:30pm with plenty of time for a couple of games of Rummikub. That's when my winning streak began...I'm sure it had nothing to do with Mark's condition ☺! Mark called for an appointment early the next morning, Monday morning, and got in right away. After ordering a CAT scan for Mark that afternoon (we hung out at the hospital and ate a good lunch in the cafeteria) the orthopedist determined that Mark probably didn't need surgery and he was fixed up with a cast and a follow up appointment to either get a new cast or surgery in a week.

Well, that fit perfectly with our plans--provided he wouldn't need surgery--because our original plans had us in Rockland that next Monday to get a rental car and pick up Claire's friend, Olivia, from the Bangor airport, for a 10 day visit on Nancy Lu. We decided to stay in Rockland a few days and then sail over to the Island of Islesboro on Friday for a "Seven Seas Cruising Association" get-together on Saturday, which was always on our itinerary. We planned to see "Odysseus", "Cormorant", and the Swedish couple we met in Port Clyde there. It turned out to be the perfect time to be in Rockland;



Maine's biggest Lobster Festival was due to open on Wednesday! They were setting up the rides and tents right at the harbor.



Along with EATING MY FIRST LOBSTER of our 2013 East Coast sailing trip (what better place than the Maine Lobster Festival), visiting the tents at the lobster festival,



watching them steam a 100 pound batch of the 20,000 pounds of Maine lobsters provided by Linda Bean's lobster processing plant located in Rockland (in the world's biggest lobster cooker) that would be cooked through out the duration of the festival,



and seeing the 2013 Sea Goddess crowned, we did a little window shopping



(well, I actually bought a great maxi dress that was on sale that I just couldn't resist, it was so cute!), went to some art galleries and one night we saw a documentary that I had heard about at a great old movie theater that normally showed old 30s and 40s films. The ladies that worked there dressed and wore their hair in 40s styles. The documentary was 20 Feet From Stardom. It was really good--about background vocalists! We recommend it! We also did laundry to get ready for Olivia's visit. This was a task that on Nancy Lu is never an easy one, but with Mark's broken wrist I was really worried about getting this done.



Now, Claire and I are doing most of the dinghy starting and driving and helping Mark on and off so I started the dinghy up, helped Mark in and drove us there. Claire stayed behind to babysit Timmy.



Well, we had heard about a great laundromat where if you could dinghy to a marina dock across the harbor, you would be within walking distance. I almost shed some tears and gave up on the whole mission, after walking up to the boat yard to find the owners and gaining permission to use their dinghy dock because we found out that the walk to the laundromat from the dock was up a steep hill and not that short PLUS we were told that we had to be back to the dinghy dock before the marina locked the gates in 2 hours...There was NO way with as many loads as we had and Mark unable to carry the lions share as he normally does, especially long distances! Well, as we were back standing down by our dinghy, and I was about to break down, the owner came down and asked if we would like a lift to the laundromat AND she gave us the combination to the lock to get back through the gate after we were done!!! I'm glad Mark decided that we should ask permission to dock our dinghy there instead of just taking advantage of the marina's convenient location. Sometimes, doing the right thing pays off. We had to presume on the owner of the laundromat's kindness, as well. We noticed him there showing a new employee around while I was finishing up our laundry; we asked him if he would give us a ride back to the marina as he was leaving. He not only did that, but he drove us all the way down to the dock and helped bring the bags down to the dinghy! Whew, mission accomplished thanks to the kindness of strangers!! We have a lot of paying it forward to do!!!

On Friday, we sailed to the Island community of Isleboro for the "Seven Seas Cruising Association" get-together (called a gam). Mark directed me in laying in our course to the chart plotter.



Needless to say, I am taking on a lot more sailing responsibilities! I'm handling the sails, checking the oil every time before we start the engine, changing water filters on our watermaker (not my favorite job), starting and driving the dinghy along with other things that I'll write about in the upcoming blog entitled "MAINE 2013 AFTER MARK'S INJURY WITH GUESTS (AMI 8/5/13 TO 8/30/13)" It makes for some nights where my head hits the pillow and I am DOG TIRED! And I'm basing that on how much Timmy sleeps...REALLY TIRED!



Anyway, I made spaghetti Saturday and we were off to the lunch potluck held at a 7 Seas Cruising Assoc. member's Maine cottage.




We enjoyed the walk to and from the dinghy dock to the cottage where we saw all the cruisers that we were expecting to see, and met some new ones. We also met some cruisers that we had heard talking on VHF in the Bahamas in the past. We heard an interesting talk about island communities in Maine (specifically Penobscot Bay--where we have been since Rockland). This is where the lobster business is the most prevalent....lobster pots EVERYWHERE




On Sunday morning, it was time to go back to Rockland in order to get there before lunch at the Lobster Festival!

We wanted to visit the lobster festival again since Sunday was the final day and admission was free. This meant a lobster plate including coleslaw and all-you-can-eat corn on the cob was only $12.50! I was the only one that partook of lobster last time, but this time we all feasted!



Of course, Mark had to have me help him get to that yummy meat.




Sunday was also the day for the "Great Lobster Crate Race"--VERY EXCITING!!! 50 crates float just under the water between two docks right at the town docks, and contestants run back and forth on the tops of as many crates as they can tread until they fall or wear out.



Usually, little boys win because of their light weight. The record is 6,000 crates. This year's winner conquered 1,250! A few "Lobster Goddesses" tried their skills, but they didn't get very far--10 or 15 crates.

We met up with the nice owner of the marina where we docked our dinghy to do laundry, a fellow spectator. 100s of people line the harbor to watch and listen to the commentary!



Another reason for attending the Lobster Festival again was so that Claire could get her FIRST Ferris wheel ride under her belt! I was honored to share the experience with her!

As we came into the harbor earlier that day, we noticed that our friends from "Merlin", Sheryl and Wes were anchored there so we anchored close to them. This time we didn't pick up a mooring in order to avoid the expensive even though the nice harbormaster didn't charge us for any of our nights spent at mooring last time because of our circumstances with Mark's injury--another KINDNESS shown to us!



Anyway, we had Wes and Sheryl over that night for a rematch of Rummikub!!

The upcoming blog will fill you in on the whirlwind preparations for Olivia's, visit to Nancy Lu and all the fun and excitement we had while she was her, our whirlwind trip back to Texas to get Claire in school, and the special treat of a whirlwind 2 night visit by my parents and 3 nieces to Nancy Lu!

There are more pictures in the photo gallery at the top right of the blog. You can leave us a comment by clicking on the word "comments" just below and to the right of this sentence.