Christmas Cove, Maine

Saturday, September 20, 2008

043-50.820 N
069-33.360 W

Ahoy from Christmas Cove, Maine!

As detail-oriented readers of these logs, you'll note that once again we're not where we claimed that we would be. Yesterday, when we headed out of Rockland, we discovered that it was an absolutely delightful day to be on the water as it had warmed up significantly since the previous night's near freeze, and we decided that we should take advantage of the wonderful weather and head further south. It was definitely one of those stellar days, with crisp blue skies and the water sparkling like diamonds. Even though they set a record for the lowest high temperature, it was still delightful as we wound our way through island after island. Due to a big high pressure system sitting directly overhead, we only had enough wind to dimple the surface of the water, but that also made standing at the wheel enjoyable.

I will definately say that I'm a big fan of GPS and chartplotters as it's amazing how many underwater obstructions exist through these waters. I can't imagine how they managed in the old days without the aid of buoys and detailed charts. Then again, I suspect that there's lots of wreckage on the bottom and that the ship builders were kept very busy.

We had planned on going to Tenant's Harbor, which was only 18 miles away, but instead opted to head 35 miles to Christmas Cove, which where a good friend of mine has a family house and we've visited many times. On our way there we went past the well known Pemaquid lighthouse and carefully worked our way though The Thread of Life, which is a very narrow, long passage between islands. Probably the biggest obstacle of the trip was the lobster buoys. As we got closer to Christmas Cove, they got thicker and thicker to the point that there were places that it was hard to squeeze BlueJacket between them. I'd be exaggerating if I said that you could walk between them, but not by much. What's even more ridiculous is that they even have lobster pots in the middle of the mooring field! Last night we had a buoy tapping against the hull for hours. Lovely!

There's no place to anchor in Christmas Cove due to the depth and the entire harbor being taken up by mooring balls. So we picked up a rental ball (we were the only transient on a dozen balls) and went in to pay. I was astounded when they told me that it was $40. This is off season in Christmas Cove and the going rate is $25 elsewhere. I could have paid less in Boothbay Harbor (which is just around the corner) where there are lots more things to do and lots of places to eat. While Christmas Cove is a lovely place, I won't rush back here with the boat again.

Today (we think that) we're headed to Portland, Maine, which is about 35 miles away.

-- Geoff & Sue

P.S. Happy birthday Mom!
Log ID: 1290