08/08-08/09/2014
10 August 2014 | Somes Harbor-Stonington, ME
8/8/14
Before Steadfast pulled out of the harbor, Jim helped me realign my steering wheel. My wheel folds up when not in use, to give more room in the cockpit. But when I fold it up and keep the rudder straight (headed fore and aft), the folded steering wheel is not straight up and down. Jim had the same problem and knew how to fix it. Ten minutes later, off went Steadfast and off we went to take a bus to Jordan Pond, where everyone told us we needed to have the popovers at the Jordan Pond House. On the bus, we ran into Peter and Barbara, from a boat named Lauri Clair. We met them at the SSCA GAM in Ilesboro last week. They joined us for lunch at Jordan Pond and yes, we had popovers with our lobster stew. The popovers, with butter and jam, were fantastic. We said our goodbyes on the bus and went back to River Rat for dinner and a quiet evening. All’s good.
8/9/14
Good bye Mt. Desert. Today we’re heading slightly south of west to Stonington, ME. It’s a working town filled with lobster boats. Surprisingly, the wind has shifted and for the first time this trip, is blowing out of the northwest, so today’s a sailing day. I’m not as worried about the lobster pots when I’m sailing, because if I snag one I won’t have to worry about wrapping the toggle line around the prop. So off we go and we sail all day until we arrive in Stonington Harbor at about 0300. In the distance I spy a dark hulled sailboat being towed into the harbor by a lobster boat. Turns out that it’s Peter and Barbara on Lauri Clair, who we’ve gotten to know pretty well since we met them at the SSCA GAM. We connect on the radio. He’s called a diver to clear his propeller shaft and I suggest that he cancel that and tell him I’ll dive and clear it. The water’s not as cold as it was the last time I did this, but still, it’s colder than I’d prefer. I feel like Lloyd Bridges, diving with my knife, as I saw through the tightly wrapped toggle line, but after about 10 minutes, it’s cleared. After we return to River Rat I see Peter has got something hanging on his anchor as he’s trying to haul it up, so I head back to help him with that. It’s an old line tied off to something on the bottom. He’s having a bad day. Peter invites us over for dinner and we accept. He’s a great cook, so we enjoy our night out aboard Lauri Clair and together we watch the sun set and the Super Moon rise. Not a bad way to end the day!