7/30/14
We left Pulpit Harbor at about 0900, skirted the western side and then southern tip of Northhaven, went into the Fox Island Thoroughfare and after 3 ½ hours we picked up a mooring in Perry Creek, which is part of Vinalhaven Island. Let me digress and tell you about moorings here in Maine. In areas where there are no harbormasters, the accepted practice is that if privately owned mooring balls are not being used, boats can just pick them up and use them for short stays; say a day or two. No contact is made with the owner of the mooring and no fee is charged. In this little creek, 3 of the Corinthian cruisers’ boats are rafted up, so a reunion dinner was planned. In the afternoon, Debi and I took Hanna on a long dinghy ride across Seal Cove and into a beautiful narrow waterway filled with small rock islands and boulders. It was high tide, so the waterway was navigable. We’re told that since the tides swings here average 10’, at low tide the area we were traversing was a mud flat. After about half and hour of weaving around the islands and rocks, we went under a tiny bridge and out into another waterway called Winter Harbor. We were worried about the ebbing tide, so we turned around and made our way back to River Rat. Throughout the first part of the trip, Hanna was terrified, and made moves to jump from the dinghy into the water, which she apparently thought was a hard surface. But, as time passed, she calmed down. Back on board, Debi cooked some brownies to bring to dinner on our rafted neighbors. Meantime, I washed the grime off of River Rat’s hull. Dinner with Mike, Pat, Martin, Jennifer, Jim and Suzanne was wonderful. Our dinghy ride home (about 100’) was uneventful and sleep came easy. Each day brings new adventures, and greater appreciation for the beautiful mid-coast of Maine.
7/31/14
It’s foggy in Perry Creek, but not so foggy that we can’t venture out, so at 0900 we drop our mooring, say goodbye to our Corinthian friends and head into Fox Island Thoroughfare. Our destination today is Rockland, on the west side of Penobscot Bay. But once we make our way into the bay, the fog has settled in so thick that we can’t see the marks. Fortunately, our radar and AIS help us to note when other vessels are nearby. Since we’re motoring, Debi is blasting the horn every 2 minutes to signal other vessels that we’re in the area. There are several tugs and ferries on reciprocal routes, so we’ve got to keep a sharp lookout. After 3 hours we’re inside the breakwater at Rockland Harbor, or so our chart plotter tells us. We can’t see a thing, but religiously follow the electronic chart display. Boats appear as apparitions and then fade away. We grab someone’s mooring buoy and hook up until the fog clears. Surprise, we’re in the middle of a mooring field in a huge harbor, filled with pleasure and working boats, ferries, tugs and small ships. We eventually pick up a city mooring and check in once we dinghy to shore. Then, we’ve got to hike to the Laundromat, and I walk another mile or so to get a printer cartridge. Debi’s made reservations for dinner at Café Miranda, which is a great local place. Not surprisingly, we ordered lobster risotto and followed that with a lobster, tomato and roasted red pepper pizza. Scrumptious. Tonight is really calm, so the dinghy ride back to River Rat is peaceful. Hanna welcomes us home and we all settle in for the night.