A quick note to say that instead of traveling further west to Casco Bay and Portland, we have decided to take advantage of a weather window. Tomorrow the winds will moderate a bit and will blow from the north, northeast and finally east. The waves will stay about two-feet high and will be from the northeast. Together these are favorable for jumping off after filling our tanks in Boothbay Harbor tomorrow morning. This will be about 150 miles across the Gulf of Maine to the

These names create powerful images for Maine cruisers. Rather than going out the Bay by following the shipping channel, we decided to hug the shore and weave between the shoals, rocks and buoys. That helped shelter us from the strong and building northwest winds. It also meant that we could see the local "color" such as Port Clyde and Harbor Island Harbor on our way to rounding Pemaquid Point. First, here's a video of going south in the Muscle Ridge Channel. Notice how sm

Along the top of Vinalhaven lies North Haven. There is a keyhole of an indent along that shore called Pulpit Harbor. This seems like a fitting last overnight, our last "anchorage, or mooring, for the Bay before we went further west to Muscongus Bay, Pemaquid Point, the Damariscotta River and Christmas Cove. Entering Pulpit Harbor requires a repect for the rock itself. It is a sanctuary for birds, especially for eagles. At least, eagles have been spotted there. The wind wa

Between Belfast and Pulpit Harbor lies a lovely island called Islesboro. Andiamo explored the island by entering Gilkey Harbor that separates the island into 700-Acre Island and Islesboro. Tucked into a corner of this opening is Dark Harbor, really one of the centers of social activity on Islesboro. Source: Tricia Ladd The Dark Harbor 20 is a Sparkman and Stephens design from the 1930s. It is almost of mythic standing. Certainly, she is beautiful. You can find these at an

Andiamo is the first to admit she didn't make this up. It's the name of a 6-man, oh, no, a 6-woman (or maybe a mixed set) rowing canoe with a coxswain. We are in Belfast at the dock, fueled and charged and watered up, ready for our last leg of this trip. That has us going to North Haven tonight to Puloit Harbor. Then Muscongus Bay, then Casco Bay, and finally to Portland. There we make ready for our jump to Cape Cod. There's a Farmer's Market here as well. A street corne

We have spent the night in an unnamed harbor we will call Barred Island Harbor. Brio has been here before. But that was a few years ago. And this spot has been described in some older cruising guides written in the 1990s and before. Those give this spot 5 stars of beauty and maybe 2 stars of protection. Don't go here in a storm. This is not a hurricane hole! Barred Island "Harbor", or Is This Just an Enclave? You can see the label Barred Island. The name covers the anc

Sailors alike know Blue Hill Bay as a paradise for exploration and delightful views, whether with or without winds. Andiamo crossed the Bar at Bass Harbor Head and headed north up Blue Hill Bay to the top, northwestern corner of the Bay. There lies a jewel of an enclosure, Blue Hill Harbor. Inside the Harbor lies many classic boats as well as those of a modern design. Here's the view as we came into the Harbor: And the view from the mooring we grabbed at the head of the

Andiamo used her speed to great advantage on Wednesday, September 9. She left Head Harbor and went out into the Atlantic and went northwest down the coast to Acadia and Northeast Harbor where we went to the market for food. Then we went around the corner, planning on getting fuel in the harbor. But that dock is now closed for the season!! Yikes! So we went around to Southwest Harbor and filled our fuel tanks and water tank. Our goal was to get our "housekeeping" done bef

We left Roque during the morning of September 8th and motored out into Chandler Bay. That's the body of water that separates the island called Great Wass from Roque Island. We went out into the Atlantic and then headed north, back into Eastern Bay. This is sort of the "backyard" for Jonesport, which lies to the north. In here are fish pens, oyster rafts, strong currents, and lobster pots. It is also the place where we find such beautiful features as Mistake Harbor, Moose

Known to Brio from a few years ago, the Town Liar is a featured lobster boat in Jonesport Harbor. The captain is iconic, complete with the "Bert 'n' I" dialect. Of course, we were charmed when we first met the fellow on the town dock. Here's our brief encounter today. The Town Liar, Transom View Look carefully at the artwork of the boat. You will see a well-endowed mermaid featured. Is she real? Was she actually caught in a lobster trap? Did our lobsterman only boast o

Fabled Roque sits at the east end of Moosabec Reach. Jonesport is on the northern side of the Reach. It is clear that this part of the Maine coast is not as wealthy as what we saw to the west of Schoodic Point and Acadia. Here, the houses are smaller and less well-appointed. The structures are simpler. In its austerity, though, east of Schoodic is as beautiful as anywhere in the world. And Roque is not the period, but rather the exclamation point of the coast. Roque is

What was initially planned to be a quick jump from Winter Harbor across East Penobscot Bay to Merchants Row between Isle au Haut and Deer Isle, turned out to be a lunch stop on Merchant Island and then an afternoon trip across to the Acadia Peninsula and Southwest Harbor for fuel and water. Then we went up Somes Sound, that famous fjord, to Abel's Lobster Pound at the top of Somes. This is a blessing of having a motor boat where a whim can be transformed into a plan that's

We decided to stay on Vinalhaven and go into Winter Harbor. It is reputed to be one of the prettiest harbors in Penobscot Bay if you are looking for a remote and wild area. Andiamo agrees! We left Matinicus this morning. It was foggy. Visibility was about a half mile. We crept north, passing the rocks and ledges of Matinicus. You can see that we passed a buoy with two black balls on its top on our way. Our Snail Trail from Matinicus to Vinalhaven's Carver Harbor As we a

The closest land to the island called Matinicus is another island, Vinalhaven. Vinalhaven lies almost due north, but it is not how we got here yesterday. We are about halfway from Portland to Roque Island. (Great Waas and Roque are just above "164" and "66" on the chart.) We have intentionally skipped over some beautiful anchorages and we intend to visit those places on our way back west after reaching Great Waas and Roque. The Boat Image Is on Matinicus The cape that stick

So much is written about the coast of Maine that one may overlook Maine's rivers. Yet Maine's rivers are exquisite and fascinating. This post is a story of some of the rivers of Maine. We leave the Kennebec, travel down the Sasanoa, meet the Sheepscot and cross over to the Townsend Gut and finally reach Boothbay Harbor. Chart of the Upper Sasanoa River from the Kennebec at Bath Iron Works At the lower right corner of the chart you can see a bit of the Kennebec River. And

After fueling Monday night at the marina, we went off for dinner. The next morning we spent a good hour washing Andiamo down. Here she is, all squeaky clean. No salt. We casted off and meandered through the myriad of islands heading southeast to our "prize", Jewell Island. View Astern View to the Bow We ate lunch on the flybridge. What a treat! Off we went after lunch to the eastern end of Casco Bay, up the New Meadows River to The Basin, a quiet corner of the world where

Andiamo is ready to a three week trip along the coast of Maine. Chris is fortunate to have Jeff Shaw join him for the trip. Here is a video of Andiamo picking Jeff up at the end of the South Beach dock at the Wing's Neck Trust. And we're off! As we leave the Canal and enter Cape Cod Bay, we have a head wind and a favorable tide. This makes for a very choppy ride. Here's a chart of our crossing. The wind remains on our nose for the next couple of hours. It finally dies and

Andiamo has joined the fleet! She is new, having been built this spring in Finland and brought by freighter from Finland to Wilmington, Delaware. East Coast Yacht Sales picked her up in Wilmington and spent a month finishing her. She was ready to be picked up in mid-July from Annapolis. Mike Porter, the ECYS broker, and Matt Leduc, the Latitude Yacht broker, joined Chris for a three day trip to Pocasset, Massachusetts. Here she is at her new mooring in the Millpond in Poc