Our Summer Cruise 2019

 

Sunday, July 21

It's National Ice Cream Day Folks!!

The third Sunday in July is officially National Ice Cream Day in the USA so enjoy some - we plan to! It will help to get through the day which is meant to be the hottest of the year, just like yesterday.

Today's Forecast

Bright sun, blue skies as we headed up Main Street for the First Church of Belfast for their annual "Kirkin' of the Tartans" or "The Blessing of the Tartans."

Start of Belfast Main Street - Many Original Storefronts Remain

In 1746, in the wake of the Battle of Culloden, the last of the Scottish rebellions, and in effort to suppress the Scottish clans, the British Parliament passed the Acts of Proscription which effectively banned the the wearing of traditional Highland garb in Scotland. Only Officers and Soldiers in His Majesty's Forces military forces were still permitted to wear such clothing.

At the same time, countless Scots were forced into the British Army to fight in a number of wars in Europe and the Americas. Tradition holds that during this time, the women of the Highland clans whose men were fighting far from Scotland would bring a small piece of their clan's tartan to their kirk (or church) to have it blessed secretly by the priest and to pray for the clan members' protection.

In 1941, this practice was brought to the US by a Scottish-born pastor, Perter Marshall, who was Chaplain to the US Senate, to promote solidarity among the American-born and native-born Scots who were once again involved in a European war.

Since that time, the tradition has evolved into a colorful festive occasion for celebrating Scottish heritage and the faith traditions of Celtic and Scottish people.

The ceremony began with the pipes and drum playing "Scotland the Brave."

 

"Scotland the Brave" - (or Scott's Porridge Oats song)

Those with Scottish ancestry were asked to stand and identify their clan name. Not surprisingly, there were a significant number of clans represented. Judy stood and proclaimed her clan, McGlashie. The minister blessed the clans represented and those that were not able to attend. A medley of Celtic hymns was played by harpist Amy Kercsmear and Nicos Appollonio on fiddle.

The Kirkin' also recognized the outcome of the Battle of Flodden of 1513, the largest battle between the Scots and English and the deadliest. In the battle, Scottish King James IV, an archbishop, two bishops, the majority of Scottish nobles and somewhere between 10,000 and 17,000 soldiers were killed with English losses of less than 2000. The Scottish still remember the Battle of Flodden today with the haunting ballad and pipe tune “The Flowers of the Forest”. Written 300 years after Flodden, the lyrics are written to commemorate the fallen Scots. Today, the lament is still played all over the world as a sign of mourning. A lone piper played the Lament today.

“I’ve heard the lilting, at the yowe-milking,
Lassies a-lilting before dawn o’ day;
But now they are moaning on ilka green loaning;
The Flowers of the Forest are a’ wede away”.

Dool and wae for the order sent oor lads tae the Border!
The English for ance, by guile wan the day,
The Flooers o’ the Forest, that fought aye the foremost,
The pride o’ oor land lie cauld in the clay.

I’ve heard the lilting, at the yowe-milking,
Lassies a-lilting before dawn o’ day;
But now they are moaning on ilka green loaning;
The Flowers of the Forest are a’ wede away”

— Extract from “The Flowers of the Forest”, Jean Elliot, 1756

The music was next on our agenda for the day and a sample can be seen and heard below.

 

Seamus Connolly, Gabriel Donahue, and Marian Makins

Seamus Connolly, the fiddler in the group has won ten All-Ireland Solo Fiddle championships, more than any other individual.

Ryan's Volunteers

Ryan's Volunteers is led by champion piper, Torrin Ryan, winner of five All-Ireland piping medals the quartet favors the dance music of Ireland.

The heat finally broke in the late afternoon with a storm that blew through the area in just a few minutes. We had been watching the weather radar and the storm kept varying in size and intensity as it moved towards us. At one point, it looked as if it was it would miss us but we decided to head back the short walk to the boat. About 200 yards from the boat, all we could see was a wall of water that obliterated everything so we ducked into the marina office just as it hit with 40 mph winds and horizontal rain.

Well Into The Storm Now

Within 30 minutes, the sun was back out and it had cooled slightly but it was HUMID. The stages and sound equipment had survived the onslaught and the concerts were back on track with just a short delay. Our last show of the day was the John Byrne Band, a high energy group from Philadelphia.

John Byrne Band

 

Our day in Belfast was capped by dinner at Delvino's Grill and Pasta House on Main Street before celebrating National Ice Cream Day at the Wild Cow.

Monday, July 22

Belfast to Warren Island - 12 nm

The good weather continued at leas for now as we got ready for to unhook electricity to the boat. We did enjoy the benefit of the power and a dock with the hot weather of the past three days as we could run some air conditioning - a first of our three summers in Maine. As we were getting ready for the long trip, another tug-like boat pulled up alongside. We had seen it at a long distance yesterday and it appeared to be an older Nordic 32 with wooden doors like Carrie Rose.

We were getting ready to leave so did not get chance to talk with the owners for long - it was a Regency 30, 1987 vintage produced in Taiwan using the molds from the 30 Sundowner (this company went bankrupt in 1984). The owner found the boat in Toronto and it needed much work but is now in great condition.

Within an hour, we and Carrie Rose were the only two boats on the moorings at Warren Island - one of our favorite anchorages.

Clouds Developing Over the Ferry Docked At Isleboro Island

Isleboro island, with many harbors and coves, was home to the largest commercial shipping fleet in the bay during the 19th century. Following the Civil War, however, Islesboro developed as a Gilded Age resort community in the late 1800s, and many large summer homes were built by the wealthy. Their large yachts cruised and raced throughout the Gulf of Maine. The town remains an upper-class enclave and summer colony - maybe why it has an hourly ferry service to the mainland.

If you have read read any of the Stone Barrington series of books by Stuart Woods, you may recognize the island, the town of Dark Harbor and the Tarratine Club of Dark Harbor founded in the 1890s.

Schooner "Mercantile" Behind STB

 

Dean Chatting to Mercantile

The thoroughfare between Isleboro and the island to the west is a popular route for boats and we saw a a wide variety throughout the day from the working lobster boats to schooners to mega yachts. "Scout II" a 130' yacht came through late in the day.

Scout II

Tuesday, July 23

Woke this morning to a drizzly sky with the forecast for more of the same until later in the day. Very light wind here and just little swells coming in from across the channel. "Mercantile" stayed around quite late and we could smell bacon and sausages being cooked for breakfast.

With breakfast cooked and eaten, they hoisted sails and very slowly ghosted away around the corner towards Gilkey Harbor.

"Mercantile" Leaving Slowly

Late last night, I went to turn lights off in the Salon and the usual "click" did not happen; the lights stayed on and had to be turned off at the breaker panel. Figuring it can't be to hard to troubleshoot, I took the switch apart and an almost microscopic piece of plastic had broken.

An Expensive Piece of Plastic!

This little piece interrupts power when the knob is rotated. No big deal - looked up the manufacturer and they are Swedish with only two companies in the US selling the product but no spares. The horrifying part was the cost of a new switch $106, plus shipping!

Warren Island has a resident pair of ospreys and they were quite vocal this year feeding on the mackerel shoals in the bay.

Ospreys Hunting

By early afternoon , the sky had brightened up a little so Dean and I ventured out on the Island that is the one boat access only State Park in Maine. You either have to arrive in your own boat or kayak or find someone to ferry you across to enjoy one of the seven campsites maintained on the island. The State maintains five (?) moorings for larger boats and a small dinghy dock. Since it has been relatively dry, bugs were not too bad on the Island but a clear sign of the late summer was the lack of ripe raspberries on the bushes. We were here last year, almost to the day, and had no trouble picking a quart in less than an hour.

We hiked around the perimeter trail; only a couple of miles long, but close to the attractive shoreline.

 

The Island is very interesting geologically with glacier worn granite, sandstone, quartz, slate, igneous, and sedimentary rock all within a few hundred yards.

 

Only Thirty yards From the Photograph Above

Sunset at Warren Island

Wednesday, July 24

Warren Island to Camden - 8 nm

Just a short run today in very good weather to take a mooring at Camden Harbor on the western side of Penobscot Bay. In the past, we have been lucky enough to get a harbor float (like a floating dock about 35' long and 4' wide that holds two boats) that is tucked well in the deep harbor and has excellent protection. Fortunately, good weather is predicted for a couple of days as the mooring field is very exposed and we have seen 2 foot+ waves out there is the past.

Camden Harbor

This weekend is the 2019 Camden Classics Cup followed by Camden Classics Week of special events around the town.

 

The Camden Classics Cup is a 4 year old regatta with 74 yachts registered for 2019. These vessels are typically classic wooden yachts or modern yachts in new class, Spirit of Tradition. This year, schooner and youth classes were added to broaden the scope of the Cup racing.

The Cup launches the season of classic boat races in northern Maine with additional races from Castine to Rockland, Rockland to Brooklin, and finally the Eggemoggin Reach Race in early August. Although we were here on Wednesday, many of the fleet of classic boats had already arrived with some of the larger boats rafted up three deep on the Lyman Morse dock - not much plastic tied up here today.

Settled on our mooring, we dinghied into the excellent Lyman Morse facilities for long hot showers, laundry, and catching up with Internet that actually works.

 

Gleaming Varnish Abounds Today

 

Anna - A True Classic Cruiser

 

 

A Trio of Fine Classic Yachts Getting Last-Minute Preparations

 

Carrie R in the Mooring Field

 

Ride Into the Harbor

Thursday, July 25

All Varnished But the Teak Decks - Bet the Owner Hires This Out!

The weather forecasters have an easy job today, light wind and sun all day again. In to Camden again to check out some more boats that have arrived and some of the classics that live here year-round.

"Cuilaun" - 55 Foot British Ketch, a Favorite to Win Its Class

 

A Perfectly Kept 37' Lord Nelson Tug

After a wander around Camden, we stopped in to the Library to get some more Internet and check out the newspapers before lunch at the Harbor View restaurant with, surprisingly, a great view over the Harbor and a continual parade of boats going in and out.

Part of the Library Gardens

Heading back tot the boat later in the afternoon, we noticed an interesting boat near the shore of the mooring field so headed over to check it out.

 

125 Foot "Atlantide" - The Committee Boat for Friday's and Saturday's Races

"Atlantide" has a wonderful history; starting with her design by Alfred Mylne, designer of the Royal Yacht Britannia for yachtsman Sir William Burton. Built in Dartmouth, England in 1930 she cruised until WWII when she saw service rescuing English and French soldiers stranded during the Battle of Dunkirk. Always well maintained, "Atlantide" was completely restored with no expense spared having museum quality Lalique crystal, a one of a kind Bugatti tender (complete with a 2hp Bugatti engine built by Ettore Bugatti himself), and complete electrical and mechanical systems refurbishment/replacement. The current owners cruise extensively along the East Coast as far as Montreal and Greenland.

Not be outdone, another classic motor yacht, "Marie," (140 feet) arrived later in the evening to anchor by Curtis Island at the mouth of Camden Harbor. Built for silent film actress Constance Bennett, the yacht spent her first decade cruising the east coast of the States until 1941 when she was commissioned by the US Navy for service during WW II as a submarine echo finder. Skip ahead a few decades, and in 1995 a new owner rescued the vessel from a scrap yard in Miami and decided to completely refit the yacht while keeping as much of her history and original features intact and also re-christened her to once again sail under the "Acania" name. After a recent refit and change of ownership, the vessel now operates under the name "Marie" and is finished in a traditional navy blue hull color. 

 

Motor Yacht "Marie"

Friday, July 26

Camden to Pulpit Harbor - 9 nm

The great Maine summer continues for another day with temps in the high seventies predicted as we make the short trip out past Harbor Light to one of our favorite anchorages on the north shore of North Haven Island.

Camden Harbor Light

It's an easy ride across the Bay and round the only hazard, Pulpit Rock, that guards the entrance to the Harbor. At high tide, much of Rock is below water and a number of boats have gone aground going the wrong side at high. If you look carefully, you can see the osprey nest on top of the rock.

Pulpit Rock at Close to Low Tide - Note the Osprey (Fish hawk) Nest on Top

We were fortunate to be able to "borrow" a mooring from some friends we met at Northeast Harbor when we first arrived in Maine in 2016. Tom and Gigi have a solid mooring in the Harbor that was willed to them by a friend.

Had a lazy afternoon and then snacks and drinks with Dean and Charlotte on Carrie Rose.

Potential for a Good Sunset a Bit Later?

 

Camden Hills Wreathed In Fog at At Full Sunset

Saturday, July 27

 

Making the Most of a Spectacular Sunrise - Something I try to Avoid!

Having to heed the call of nature, I timed it perfectly to get out of bed as the sun was rising at about 6:00 am. Many photos of the rising sun were taken but this one stood out. The sunrise foretold how the day would turn out: sunny, warm, and a good breeze in the Harbor. North Haven is very small as I have mentioned previously when we were on the south of the Island, and the only real store is fairly close to Pulpit Harbor. All of us needed a few things so we dinghied to shore where they have a good dock to tie to and walked a mile or so to the store. People on the Island always give walkers plenty of room and give a wave to you like you're their best friend. The first time we saw this it seemed quite strange but it became a challenge to get our wave in first!

The big race of the Camden Classic Cup was scheduled to begin at noon and we planned to leave our dinghy on the mooring (to reserve it) and take STB out with Dean and Charlotte to view the race from the water. The course was not defined until just a short time before the start but they announce it over the radio in a code form that meant nothing to us. Still, we figured we should be able to get a view of part of the race nearby so headed out to find the boats. We only had to go a couple of miles and the leading boats came into view and we got to watch a parade of yachts flying their spinnakers on the downwind leg and then turning to their upwind leg as they tacked south. As usual I took way too many photos but here are a few of them, or six or seven!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Turned out to be a great afternoon of racing and we were able to get quite close to the action, covering 15 miles following the boats before heading back to the calmer waters of Pulpit Harbor where we entertained Dean and Charlotte on STB for the last time this season. Tomorrow they head back to Herrick Bay and Carrie Rose will be hauled out; Dean and Charlotte will be heading home early as Charlotte has surgery scheduled in early August.

The Last Supper