trishlaplaca Originally posted September 2, 2022
Jeff and I had heard that the Penobscot Bay is the perfect place to explore with lots of magical coves to tuck into, and boy oh boy, our first solo voyages were truly a delight . For our first overnight passage, new friends Brendan and Debbie of Summertime invited us to join them in nearby Fort Point Cove, a short jaunt about 7 nautical miles away. We got underway in the late afternoon. We felt bold, adventurous and totally excited. Oyster will always cruise very slowly at a comfortable 6.5-7 knots, so we knew we wouldn’t be going anywhere fast. The stable heaviness of Oyster’s hull makes her cruise through the water with barely a ripple. It handles the wakes of other boats passing by so sweetly that we just roll gently from side to side in response. Ah, we are loving our new baby.
We settled in after anchoring out for the very first time. Our first try was successful – with Jeff managing the anchor and me responding to his guidance as I controlled the gears and throttle. It felt as natural as if we’d done it forever – a good sign for sure. Soon after, though, Jeff realized we may have anchored too close to the land. With the tide going out, we could be taking a chance of ending up in shallow water. So we picked up once again and headed out a little farther to set ourselves up.
Nothing could have prepared us for the utter beauty we witnessed that afternoon: a gorgeous schooner named the Victory Chi caught us by surprise and came round the bend to join us there; seals popped playfully out of the water and splashed down joyfully to catch fish. But it was the full rainbows at both sunset and sunrise that crowned us as if they were blessing this new adventure of ours that got us. Jeff and I felt totally awed and grateful.
The next day we left early to cruise to the islands of North Haven and Vinal Haven to moor at tiny Perry Cove, a recommendation by our sailing friend Dorothy. What we hadn’t realized was that the islands were located almost at the end of Penobscot Bay – essentially where it meets the ocean! The comfortable, sunlit sail was approximately 30 miles away, a big feat for us as we dodged lobster pots and stronger winds as we rounded the bend toward the Fox Islands sound to get to Perry Cove. Once there, we saw how tiny it was but thankfully there were only a handful of boats already moored there. We were going to anchor, but an older gentleman in his dinghy motored quickly over to us and let us know that the faded red buoys indicated guest moorings. But how do you hook up to a mooring ball? we asked ourselves (and didn’t dare ask him out of embarrassment.) So we winged it. I set the hook out to grab the rope attached to the ball while Jeff maneuvered the boat. The end of the shorter, heavy rope had a loop, and I was able to slip it onto the cleat at the bow. That was it – not much fuss and we weren’t going anywhere. Amazing! We then settled in, only to watch boat after boat enter the cove to moor, most of which were large sailboats. Jeff and I were so very glad to have arrived early – heck, we were intimidated by just the few initial boats there. There was no way would we have entered to try to find a place among so many boats!
We enjoyed a perfect cruise the next morning to return to the Bucksport Marina and were promptly invited for a fantastic lamb dinner at our new friends’ Captain Bill and Tina’s home. After much laughter and zaniness, we got under way once again the next morning to anchor out for the night in Smith’s Cove off of Castine peninsula, a favorite of Paul Revere’s and now home to the Maine Maritime Academy. Despite being Labor Day weekend, it was very quiet there and we were lucky to have gotten a choice spot to enjoy the peaceful nook and surrounding nature. A bald eagle flew directly above us to its aerie, seals played tranquilly in the protection of the cove, and the water lapped at our sides. Nice.
This new life of ours on Oyster feels exactly right for us. She’s already a surprisingly comfortable floating home, and as I’ve mentioned, handles herself strongly and yet gently as she rolls us through and over waves, too. With every new experience we feel more and more confident that we can do this as we acquire new skills every day. So exciting.
Please keep joining us on this crazy adventure of ours and comment whenever the urge strikes!
