September 3rd, 2019
SEGUIN LIGHTHOUSE
I am sat in Bath Brewery logged onto wifi to upload this blog having had a lovely day which started with a glassy morning as we motored to Seguin Island. It is a famous lighthouse and is only accessible during good weather. We just couldn't resist an unplanned stop and it didn't disappoint. Although it's still a working lighthouse the place is run by a charity with a great little museum and a volunteer takes you up to the light for some amazing views. These Lighthouses were often manned by a family and there was some lovely pictures of life on the island. They were replenished once a year with major supply from building materials to hundreds of tons of coal to run the steam fog horn. It was much more industrious than I thought with a light railway to get the coal to the top of the island. They even had a blacksmiths shop and of course a well-protected veggie garden. They hunted seal, fished and shot birds to keep food on the table.
September 3rd, 2019
THE BASIN
Top of our hurricane routine is make sure that on Friday we are tucked away in a hurricane hole and as you can see The Basin looks to be a good one. There are a couple of others but I think this one gets my vote.
September 3rd, 2019
HURRICANE DORIAN
This mornings cuppa in Love Cove was lovely as the sun came up to reveal a glassy surface full of reflected trees. A couple of Osprey squawked in a tree top and a Cormorant shook its wings out for the days hunt. Peaceful as it was there is a sense of foreboding in the air as our hearts go out to the lovely people of Abacos Islands battered by hurricane Dorian. Having spent a wonderful month there earlier in the year it brings a deeper sense of empathy. She is now a category five hurricane and coming our way so its with some seriousness that we follow her predicted path. It would seem that she will probably pass to our south but these monsters have a mind of their own and are often not to be predicted. A small shift in her path will liven things up for us so we have been mentally going through our hurricane routine.
September 3rd, 2019
LOVE COVE
This is Love Cove and its one of the nicest places we have been. The house in the background is owned by Eliot Winslow who was a resident harbour pilot and tug tycoon. He likes to see yachts in his cove and has very generously laid some free moorings for passing cruisers.
September 3rd, 2019
FISH
I mentioned in a previous post about great mounds of fish surging up in a heap as they are hunted from below. I missed the crucial moment but this picture captures the beginning of the heave for safety.
September 3rd, 2019
TOWNSEND GUT SWING BRIDGE
The gut calves Southport Island from the mainland and is connected by a rather lovely old swing bridge which has been run 24 hours a day seven days a week by the Lewis family for over half a century. The family have logged over 136 years of service and they are held in great store. When Ruth Lewis died they had to hold the bridge open for an hour to allow the parade of boats that came out to show their respect.
September 3rd, 2019
TOWNSEND GUT
Thanks to the introduction by a jaunty and welcoming OCC burgee we met Lars and Susanne on SEA WIND and they said we must go through the Townsend Gut. In his 1858 book A SUMMER CRUISE IN THE COAST OF NEW ENGLAND Robert Carter described Townsend Gut as follows;
We ...... had a delightful sail through a most singular strait, narrow like a river of moderate size, and bordered on both sides by meadows green to the waters edge, with occasional groves ringing the banks. We should have had no suspicion that this was a not a river had it not been for seaweed growing on its rocky shores.
Couldn't have put it better myself and as you can see from this drone shot it was stunning.
September 3rd, 2019
LOBSTER
All good things must come to an end and so we have decided its time to start mooching back southward. After the most amazing month cruising these parts its time to move on. NE Maine has gifted us stunning anchorages, lots of nice people and an abundance of nature. Not least some very tasty lobster.
We could probably stretch it out another ten days but these broad-brush decisions are intuitive as much as anything. We will look back at this as a pivotal moment for we are turning back. This is the point that we have listened to the seasons and chosen to start our winter migration south.
Sunrise and sunset are drawing closer together, leaves are starting to turn and thermals have been shaken out. It just feels right and its early enough that we can take our time as we explore the bits of Maine that we leapfrogged during our push up here.
In preparation for this next chapter we anchored in Rockland as its big enough to be a logistical hub. A big food shop was ticked off, laundry thrown in the machine and post cards were written.
As with everywhere we have been in Maine lobster has been prevalent in windows, on caps, flags and even in this carpark. We were particularly taken with his grin.
