We interrupt this sailing season...

...for special news!

Baby Thomas is due February 14, 2010! Now the size of a grape with a strong heartbeat (that we saw and heard!) of 173 beats per minute!

Mom is exhausted! And having weird appetite issues. Smells are intensified. And, already, nothing fits!

July 2nd - Fireworks

Our trip started out with fog...as many of them have this year...but we had some afternoon clearing and actually saw the sun and blue sky. Our hopes were high for fireworks as we anchored in Gilkey Harbor with three other schooners but the fog came back as the sun set and all we really saw was colored fog.

We woke to thick fog the next morning and we made our way to Stonington. The sun did it's work and we had good visibility by the time we were near North Haven. The plan was for a lobster bake so we had to get to Stonington before the lobster co-op closed at 4:00...or so I thought. We had called the co-op prior to leaving Rockland to be sure they were going to be open on the holiday, otherwise we would have brought lobsters with us from Rockland. It turns out that we received erroneous information and the co-op was closed...no lobsters. There were several other people there looking to buy lobsters too but we were all out of luck. Thank goodness for cell phones and a husband ashore. Brian and Izze procured lobsters in Rockland and drove them up to us. We postponed the lobster bake until the next day. There was lots of talk of thunderstorms on the radio but they all passed to the north. Fireworks that night were great and we were treated to several small private displays as many of the islands around us were occupied by campers throwing their own celebrations.

We saw the fireworks being set up on Two Bush Island as we sailed by Stonington. There were lots of boxes!

We went ashore the next morning for our lobster bake on Russ Island and the sun was delightful. Three people even went swimming! Everyone got a little too much sun despite repeated application of sunscreen.

The Rosa Rugosa (sea roses) on Russ Island are beautiful and very fragrant.

We got underway just after 3:00 pm and sailed for several hours. The wind was coming from the direction we needed to head for our return to Rockland and it made for a long day. We dropped anchor in Hurricane Sound at 8:30 and I hoped for either no wind or a favorable wind the next morning so we could get back on time.

It was a beautiful sunrise with glassy calm water the next morning.

Vikesh took advantage of the opportunity to put a line in the water. Hannah caught a mackerel at the dock and Mike caught a mackerel during the trip. We used them later for bait in our lobster trap. Unfortunately we lost our trap and will never know if we caught anything.

We had an extra guest on the way back to the dock. I suppose he was hoping for some brunch.

We pushed back to Rockland in a bit of a swell and were treated to a song and dance arranged by Terry and Hannah with almost all the guests participating.

Terry: "What's the matter, Hannah? Why so glum?"
Hannah: "My trip on the Evans is almost done."
Terry and Hannah: "Sob, sob, sob, sob, sob."

Then each guest, one by one, joined the line until everyone was singing, "Sob, sob, sob, sob, sob."

Jackie posed with the brunch she prepared. The cherry tomatoes were stuffed with lobster and avocado...YUM!

We arrived only 10 minutes "late"and everyone gathered their belongings and headed out. There's nothing better than seeing someone put an "IHE" sticker on their car before they even leave the parking lot!

Mark took the prize for best t-shirt!

Fifth Trip of the Season - June 23

We're off to celebrate Maine Lighthouse Week and not long after leaving the dock we sailed right by the Rockland Breakwater Lighthouse. Unfortunately, the fog shut in just outside the harbor and we didn't even see Owls Head Light. We did, however, see Tug Narragansett and her tow and we started the yawl boat to get out of her way as we had totally lost the wind. We rode the swells across West Penobscot Bay and settled into a little cove off Amesbury Point, North Haven. We heard Brown's Head Light but never did get to see it.

The fog came and went on our second morning and we had great visibility as we motored through the Fox Island Thorofare. It socked in on the other side though and we just barely got to see Goose Rocks Light. Mark Island Light led us into the Deer Isle Thorofare where we got some clearing again and someone ashore took our picture as we sailed by Stonington. That picture made it into the Bangor Daily News! Our lobster bake on Russ Island that afternoon was delightful.

Lobster Bake view from Russ Island.

Lunch dessert...it was served with fresh whipped cream!

On Friday we had relatively good visibility and we sailed west over the top of North Haven. Mark Island Light

We started to see several of the other windjammers and at one point had six or seven in view. There wasn't a lot of wind but we did have about three hours of the most glorious sun. We had people down to shorts and t-shirts, the hammock was hung, and bubbles were being blown. It was amazing what the sun did...but it didn't last long as the fog swallowed us once again before we anchored in Bartlett Harbor, North Haven. Our newlyweds, Ken and Shirle, went for a row before dinner.

Ray and Jo from Florida were with us for two trips in a row and only saw the sun that Friday afternoon. Jo almost finished the hat she was knitting but didn't have the double point needles for the top. Here she gets some help balling a skein of Tutti Frutti yarn (very colorful!) that she plans to make into a shawl. That's Aiden, our apprentice, in the background.

Brunch included tuna salad, frittata, coffee cake, hot lobster dip and crackers, and fruit salad as we motored across the bay to the dock. The fog held on to the last minute and we never did get to see Owls Head Lighthouse.

Fourth Trip of the Season - June 19th

It's a Knitters Cruise and Beth from Unique One saved me a bunch of time by blogging about the trip already...complete with pictures. Click here http://yarndemon.typepad.com/ and scroll to "It Was A Dark And Stormy Night".

Third Trip of the Season - June 14

It's the Schooner Gam trip and we welcomed 13 guests for a wonderful time. We left Rockland and headed for Kent Cove, North Haven, where we rafted up with 7 other vessels.

M/V Rendezvous was in the harbor when we left.

The menu the first day included a breakfast of scrambled eggs, sausage, scones, and fruit. Lunch was Seafood Chowdah, toasted baguette, spinach salad, and ginger cookies. Dinner was Spinach Ricotta Lasagna, foccacia, tossed salad, and chocolate birthday cake for Travis who had just turned 13. We gave him a stuffed lobster and a message-in-a-bottle kit which he tossed in the water on Wednesday. We hope it drifts to far off lands and he hears from someone that finds it!

We were the last boat to tie up to the gam. This is what it looked like as we approached. WOW!

The previous evening's fog cleared away quickly and we enjoyed a lovely breakfast of blueberry pancakes, bacon, and fruit before getting underway.

Tuesday morning's menu board (created by yours truly!) complete with "Lobster Tonight!"
The fog is clearing!

Raising the foresail.

Goose Rocks Light...we call it the Spark Plug.

There wasn't a lot of wind so we alternated between drifting, sailing, and motoring across East Penobscot Bay. We purposely headed toward Outer Scrag Ledge and Little Sparrow because it seemed like a perfect day for seals to be basking in the sun. We saw an eagle, lots of seals, and porpoises. Our day was capped by a wonderful lobster bake on Hell's Half Acre and a beautiful sunset. What's even better is that we had a perfectly clear night full of brilliant stars!

Guest Carole has a friend with a house on Deer Isle. We sailed by it and she and 1st Mate John posed with it in the background. Yeah, it's far away...but it's there!

Julia found a perfect beach rock to sit on.

And we found a Lady Slipper!

Wednesday was our windy day. We covered 40.7 miles as we headed back west for our return to Rockland. We had lots of tacking and lots of guests at the wheel through out the day.

It wasn't Vivian's first time at the wheel. She sailed the Evans a few years ago and still has the touch!

Travis readies his message-in-a-bottle for its journey. (Yes, I missed the actual toss.)

We ended up in Clam Cove and enjoyed a dinner of baked ham, mashed potatoes, glazed carrots, bread, and peach cobbler with whipped cream.

There isn't always wind on the last morning of a trip but there was enough to tease us so we set sail and headed for the dock. Brunch included lobster-stuffed mushrooms, lobster salad, pasta salad, frittata, fruit salad, and coffee cake.

Good weather, good food, good company....good trip!

Oh, my...

...I've got some catching up to do!

Second Trip of the Season

The weather has been a challenge so I included this picture so we know that we did have some sun! John and 7-year-old Claire are enjoying the warmth and playing cards on deck. Much of the game playing later in the trip was done below!

We rafted up with 4 other schooners Monday night for the Cookbook Gam. Every guest (even Claire!) got a free copy of the new Windjammer Cooking cookbook and they were able to go aboard the other boats and get the captains and cooks to sign them. Of course, I was so busy eating dinner and signing books myself that I didn't get any pictures!

We broke up the gam around 9:00 pm because of a forecasted wind shift and we moved from Carver's Cove over to Kent Cove in anticipation of the easterly coming in. The forecast was for rain and fog but we actually saw some stars that night (and some got to see a beautiful almost-full moon before going to bed).

Our next morning wasn't as damp as the forecast had indicated so we squeezed in a lunch-time lobster bake. We did get a few showers but all-in-all it wasn't bad. I had offered to take people back to the schooner if they wanted to eat there under the tarp but everyone was perfectly happy to stay on Calderwood Island. Claire and John scoured the island for a scavenger hunt list of treasures and then there was a rock skipping competition. John won with a skipper that made so many skips it was impossible to count. Linda found sea urchins and learned what they are.

I made a special treat of roasted veggies...tomatoes, onions, zucchini, summer squash, and mushrooms...that everyone seemed to like. I'm loving our new fire pans as we use about half the amount of wood we have used in the past. We had several lobsters left over and John and I had a picking contest (which I won by a knuckle). We brought back a saucepan FULL of lobster meat!

That afternoon, we motored to the village of North Haven for shore trips and everyone went ashore...for about five minutes. Unfortunately North Haven hasn't quite rolled out the sidewalks for the season yet and there really wasn't anything available other than a tarred road for a walk. We ate dinner below and had a rousing game of Apples to Apples in the main cabin before people turned in for reading and sleeping. Claire's fairy friend Beverly left her a note about how much she was enjoying the boat trip. Cindy finished reading a N. E. Bode book to Claire.

We had wind the next day...from the East...so we set sail and headed for Owls Head. We enjoyed a pleasant run through the Fox Island Thorofare but it was lumpy coming across the bay. We had more than one person that was green in the gills so Bob steered a course so we could get straight across as quickly as we could to find the relative calm behind Monroe Island shortly after noon. Those that were ready for lunch gathered in the galley for a hot soup, rolls, salad, and cookies crafted by Jackie. Jackie incorporated all five of the recipes from the Evans chapter of the cookbook into the menu this trip!

John did his best to keep everyone entertained.

Everyone went ashore for a walk to the Owls Head Lighthouse before dinner and Brian was able to come for an afternoon visit. We grabbed the last bag of flour from the Owls Head General Store so Jackie could make coffee cake for brunch the next day. We had an anniversary celebration after dinner for John and Lu (25 years!). Jackie made a banana chocolate caramel cake (complete with candles!) that we served with champagne!

On the last morning, we raised the main and the staysail before heading back to the dock. There wasn't a lot of wind but we made use of what little there was. Everyone worked hard raising sails and the guys, Mark, Jedi John, Little John, and Dru, worked on cranking the anchor. Jedi John helped bring the anchor to the rail with Lu and Mark looking on.

This was the spread that Jackie put out for brunch for 11 people! There is two different types of melon, muffin frittatas, pasta salad, lobster salad, rolls, veggies and dip, spaghetti and home-made meatballs, coffee cake, fruit salad, and meatloaf with poached eggs. Um, yeah...there was a lot left over!

We sanded and painted the mid-ship cabins after everyone left. I did some touch-up around the sinks and on some bulkheads in the main cabin. I oiled the decks and Mark scrubbed the Charlie Noble to a nice shine. Mark also learned how to take the wood stove apart and get all the ashes out so it is efficient for Jackie. Jackie and I both did hours of shopping for staples, supplies, and groceries. And we welcomed our next group last night after preparing all the cabins and putting the finishing touches of flowers in the bud vases. My fingers are crossed for a comfortable breeze and some sun! Schooner Gam tonight!

June 2nd...4-nights

Brian already gave a run-down of where we were for our first three nights, so here are some pictures and info about the end of our trip.


We always encourage guests to gather trash as they explore our lobster bake islands. Joe (from CA) was gone for a while and when we saw him returning to the beach, he was burdened with multiple lobster buoys that he added to the already-present collection. I had never anchored at this beach on McGlathery Island nor had a lobster bake there because there are always so many yachts already there. Early June was the perfect time to check it out and I can see now why it is so popular. Unfortunately, in a few weeks we won't be able to get anywhere near it.

We tested a new method of building our fire...see the square tub on the bottom with the round tub on top. Bob drilled some holes in the bottom of the square pot so the fire would get air from below and then he made a support piece so the lobster pot sits firmly above the fire. It worked perfectly! When we are done we simply pick up the fire pan and off we go leaving absolutely no trace. Now we just need a smaller version of the same thing so I can build the hot dogs and hamburger fire in a pan as well.

The fog rolled in as we were ashore and made for some spectacular scenery.

(My apologies for the quality of this photo.) Bob pulled out his guitar and started a lively sing-a-long. Jackie got in on the action with some great chops and even some dancing! None of us are headed for American Idol but it was the perfect way to end the day.



The fog was pretty thick the next morning and there was no wind so we weren't in a hurry to rush off the hook. We took advantage of the lack of wind and bent the topsail. That's 1st Mate John on the starboard side and guest Joe on the port side starting the process. Joe did just about everything during his trip from climbing aloft (yes, they're both in harnesses!) to steering to tacking and dealing with the heads. He was up for it all and was probably amongst the most involved guests we've ever had.

Jackie's food was outstanding and everyone commented on how quickly she has mastered the wood stove. There were claims that her corn bread was "the best I've ever had". Mark is a great constant presence both on deck and in the galley. I think we're on our way to a fun season...but I'm afraid I won't be losing any weight this year!

We anchored at Lasell Island on our last night and we were treated to multiple bald eagle sightings; both adults and immatures. At one point a mature eagle landed on the rocks near the beach and posed for photos before flying away. Throughout the trip we also saw lots of gulls, cormorants, osprey, and eiders, as well as dozens of seals both in the water and soaking up the sun on rocky outcroppings.

I learned to play poker that last night and have to report that I'm not very good. Wayne (from NH) ended up funding both Hazel (originally from England now living in ME) and me with the plastic coins and gold nuggets (Rolos) were were playing with.

Anne (from VT) was knitting helmet liners for her local National Guard and completed three while on board. Bob (from MA) and Wayne (celebrating his 70th birthday!) both took lots of pictures. Sharon (from TX) did her best to stay warm. Bonnie (from CA) easily chose the best Christmas present for her husband Joe and, I think, reached her goal of reading an entire book while on board. Hazel, an illustrator, sketched throughout the trip but also became Jackie's sous chef and was very involved in chopping and dicing in the galley. Helen (from ME) bumped her head hard on the boom but survived to share stories and philosophies learned from her unique life.

I know our guests took some great photos that they've vowed to share so I'll post more if they come in soon. I need to get better at snapping shots for a better representation of the trip from a guest perspective. We'll see how I do for the next trip.

Finally...more sailing, less painting!

Since I (Brian) will be ashore most of this summer, we are going to try and update you during our cruises with information about where Captain Brenda and the Evans are. We left the dock on Wednesday with beautiful blue skies and light breezes, eventually anchoring off Hell's Half-Acre, which is in Merchant Row, the area of many islands that passes just south of Stonington (Deer Isle). Thursday was another outstanding day for weather. They enjoyed sailing in Jericho Bay before eventually dropping anchor off McGlathery Island for a lobster bake. The reviews are coming in quickly. Our new cook Jackie has already mastered the art of cooking on our woodstove. Breads baked to perfection, and each course of every meal has been outstanding. We're back at the dock Saturday morning, and boarding guests for our next cruise Sunday afternoon. 

For those who enjoy finding these locations on a chart, try http://www.oceangrafix.com/o.g/Charts/Atlantic/NOAA-Nautical-Chart-Penobscot-Bay-Carvers-Harbor-and-Approaches.html

then click on "click image to view chart" near the bottom of the page. 

http://www.oceangrafix.com/o.g/Charts/Atlantic/NOAA-Nautical-Chart-Approaches-to-Blue-Hill-Bay.html                                       

The first link shows Rockland and the surrounding Penobscot Bay. The second link gives you the chart covering much of the area further east, including Merchant Row.

Our first over-night trip of the season...

...departs this morning! Guests came from as far away as Texas and we're all ready for a great trip. I'll be back on Saturday with photos and a description of where we went. The forecast looks pretty good although the temperatures in the 60s are a little cooler than the 90s our Texan left behind!