A short 2023 Summary

 The previous posts for 2022 showed the major 2 events of the season, although we went out for a few other short sails.  Unfortunately, we are just not sailing on Magus as much as we should, in my opinion. 

Because I was working part time in Portland, we kept the boat at Fore Points Marina for the winter of 2022/23.  The winter was not too bad, but it was winter in Maine.  A couple of good projects were completed before bringing Magus up to our mooring in Freeport in early May, so that was good.  The winter set-up:

In 2023, we took the grandkids out for a sail to the Goslings, and we had a great day in June sailing out to the Chebeague Inn with both our daughters, their husbands, and the grandkids.  Here is got one good photo of Sophi, Echo, and Hazel on the foredeck.  Jenny made a great reel in Facebook, here:

https://www.facebook.com/reel/828693625254800

We took a few other short sails.  With no destination to make, we could just sail around Casco Bay without the engine, sometimes just coasting along in light air.  I did a few other small projects on the mooring, but painting the deck is hard when there's a wind blowing.

And just like that, the season was over.  Magus went on the hard at Royal River Boatyard in early October.  Jenny and I left shortly afterward in our RV motorhome for a trip across the country, and then south along the west coast to stay in fairly warm weather, hopefully.  We'll be back in early May, and do what needs to be done to launch for the summer.  

Late summer cruise

Jenny and I wanted to take a summer cruise like this together, but too many conflicts got in the way.  Before the summer completely ended, I found part of a week to take a few days for a trip on Magus by myself. 

Halfway Rock to the south

I did a very quick provisioning on Sunday morning, August 28, and was able to get everything to Magus on the mooring in one dinghy trip.  Shortly after noon, I left with a southerly wind, heading east to Seguin Island, a distance of about 20 (nautical) miles. I was able to sail without the engine for maybe half of the trip.  I took a mooring, walked up to the lighthouse, and tried to read before falling asleep in the rolly harbor.

Seguin Island harbor

Magus sailing by Monhegan, from the Ferry

The next day, I left fairly early to continue going east, this time almost all of the day being motor-sailing except for a short time at lunch to enjoy the quiet without the engine, sailing at about 3.0 knots.  Around that time I was passing Monhegan Island, when one of the regular ferries crossed my path.  Later, I received a text and photo from a friend of mine, Scott Gleeson, who was the captain of that ferry; very unexpected, and an example of the surprisingly small community that is Maine. 

I arrived at the harbor on Matinicus at about 4:00 pm, and picked up a mooring. The harbor at Matinicus is essentially bare rock with no holding for anchoring, and it is reportedly foul with old cars and boats. The moorings for visiting boats are attached to cables that cross the harbor, with soda bottles attached for leaving the mooring fee payment.  The day’s distance was about 40 miles, average speed about 5 knots.  

Matinicus state ferry dock 

I took the dinghy into the beach near the state ferry dock before dinner, and walked south to a house that runs a bakery during the summer. The bakery displayed their goods under a shade tent in the yard that also had a freezer with popsicles.  I should have picked up more of the offerings, but only bought a chocolate popsicle for the walk back to the harbor.  I imagined I would buy some fresh items the next morning, but I found out too late that it did not open until 10 am, which was too late for my plans.

I learned from the Postmaster that the population of Matinicus is 60 people in the summer and 30 in the winter.  She was temporary in the position, and a search was ongoing for a full-time person starting in the fall.  I passed a nice looking school on the way to the Post Office, but the Postmaster said that the school was not opening this school year because of the lack of students.  I bought a book of stamps to do my small part to help keep the post office open.  She said they sell a lot of stamps by mail.  

The island does not have much in the way of public services; all the roads are gravel, of course.  There is a private “airport” runway and heliport, both also gravel.  This airport must be helpful for some people and for emergency medical transport, since the public ferry only makes one trip per week, stopping for enough time to unload, load the return passengers and freight, then head back to the mainland for the 2 hour and 15 minute trip.  The ferry schedule times vary, since the time needs to miss the low tide at the dock.  The transfer bridge structure is small and looks old, compared to the similar structures on other Maine Islands (like Peaks.)   It was also notable that there were almost no floats at the many piers.  The tide range is about 10 feet, the same as in most of Maine, where floats and ramps are common, even for many private waterfront properties.  The general practice on Matinicus was to bring dinghies and skiffs to a dock next to a ladder, and climb up or down with the painter for tying off from the pier.  It may well be that the surge and swells in the winter would cause damage to a float, and access is needed year-round, but for whatever reason, there was only one private float that I saw in the entire harbor.   There were plenty of fishing/ lobster boats on moorings, some with floats, but very few boats were tied to piers.  

The Recycling Center

The solid waste management practices on Matinicus have no doubt improved over the years, but it is still not easy.  The town government is promoting a recycling system with a drop-off area open for a few hours on three days of the week, staffed by volunteers.  No garbage/ food waste is allowed, reminding people they can just feed that type of waste to the seagulls.  The recycling area has a big pile of old lobster warp (rope) that will be recycled.  I also noticed many burn barrels in yards on my walk; using these is discouraged, but apparently not illegal.  I don’t know what happens with demolition debris, but I bet that not much of it leaves the island.  Old cars and trucks have been a problem, but now any vehicle coming to the island is charged a disposal deposit by the town.
 

Next to the recycling area on South Road there is a library with a couple of small buildings.  It is open 24 hours a day, honor system, and there is free wi-fi within a short distance from the buildings.  There is no store or restaurant, but I saw some signs for a gift shop that was likely someone’s porch.

With that background, I enjoyed my limited explorations of the island. The few cars that passed were not going too fast and the drivers waved.   Everything was very dry, since this part of Maine is in a serious drought condition.  There were lots of apple trees full of apples, though.  I didn’t see many people, and those I did seemed to be mostly visitors like myself.  Matinicus is definitely an unusual and remote location.  For a good pile of island photos, more artistically called a photo essay, see this LINK. 

I only spent one night, and left fairly early for Round Pond.  Once I was out in the open ocean in a good swell and chop, trying to sail to windward, the roller jib came unattached at the head of the sail and slowly dropped onto the deck.  It would have gone more overboard than it did except that I noticed it promptly, and stabilized the situation.  It took awhile to get it all on the deck and secured.  I imagined that my attaching knot had released, but it was actually the thimble fitting on the wire halyard of the furler that had failed and opened up.  I tried to get it fixed in Round Pond with no luck, so it will need to to be repaired after I get back to Freeport. 

 I hanked on a smaller jib for the rest of the day, but needed to motor-sail most of the time, with the course being so close on the wind.  Since I was motoring, I took a course through the rocks of Muscongus Bay; I would not have likely done this in the days before GPS and chartplotters, buy it was very easy and scenic with this equipment.  The day’s distance was about 30 miles.  

I arrived in Round Pond and picked up a mooring owned by Padebco Marine at about 4 pm, after they had closed, but their phone message said some of their moorings were available and I found one.  The fee was the highest of this trip at $40, still not that bad, but there were also no shower or other facilities included.  I had a lobster and clams at the Round Pond Lobster Coop dock for a good price.  They had a very limited menu with no salads or even cole slaw, so I made my own from vegetables from our garden in my provisions.  It rained overnight and the next morning, but it stopped before noon.

I had planned to spend another night there, but realized the distance to Freeport was going to be hard to do the following day.  Since the weather was nice, I left for a scenic motor-sail around Pemaquid Point, past Boothbay Harbor, to the east side of the Sheepscot River to Cape Harbor.  Here is a short video.  

Newagen Inn

By 3:30, I was on a mooring at Newagen Seaside Inn; total distance about 16 miles.  Newagen is a great place, and I greatly enjoyed their heated pool.  I was not planning to bother my friend who lives next to the resort since I had not given him any notice and needed to leave early the next morning, but he saw me in the harbor and called me.  Jay and his wife Cindy invited me over for drinks and appetizers while we watched the sunset from their deck for a very pleasant evening.  The last time I was here in 2020, Covid was in full swing, and we were not able to have nearly as nice of a social visit.  

The next day (Thursday) was forecast to have fairly strong winds from the west, so I got an early start, knowing it would be a bumpy ride.  I took a chance of taking the shortest route, even though I would cross the mouth of the Kennebec River, north of Seguin Island.  It was close to high tide, but there was still a current running out of the river, and combined with the west wind that had now picked up to 15 knots, there were very confused seas and a nasty chop that knocked Magus around quite a bit. Everything on the chart table ended up on the floor, and the deck was covered in spray.  After a half hour of bad conditions, I was still bashing into the wind and waves for another several hours. Here is a short video after the worst of it.  

Even Casco Bay was very bumpy until I approached Eagle Island and Broad Sound, where the conditions smoothed out considerably.  I made a grilled cheese sandwich with tomato for lunch; the autopilot is great.  

I was back on our mooring in Freeport at about 3 pm, very happy to be home.  Jenny picked me up soon thereafter and we went for a refreshing swim at Winslow Park just down the street from our house.  The next week, the weather changed, and now it feels like Fall.

Little Mark Island; almost home 

 

Spring 2022 launch

This was the first year ever that Magus was stored on the hard for the winter in Maine.  The Royal River Boatyard is very close to home, so I could easily check on the cover set-up on occasion, although it basically held up fine.  

Being on the hard, it was possible to paint the hull topsides, which was needed.  I may add more details, but we did the best effort since we bought the boat in 2008.  Meaning, the old paint finishes were removed to the gel coat, with epoxy filling as needed, and then given a good two-part polyethylene primer and surface finish; Interlux Perfection.  New bottom paint, zincs, all that.

The launch happened before the end of June, in time to take the boat to DiMillo's in Portland for Echo and her friends to stay on the boat for a few days over the July 4 holiday.  

 

2021 Summer in Maine

Things were busy this summer with projects on the house, so we did not get out sailing or cruising much.  It was also the year of repair attempts on the RIB dinghy, obtaining a replacement hard dinghy that seems too small, and almost fixing the old RIB dinghy.  See previous posts for background on the dinghy drama; it's had some serious history.

Here are some other highlights.

In July, we went for a day sail with Sophi and her family to the Goslings.  It was a cool enough day that we did not swim, but had a good meal before coming back to Freeport.  

There were a couple of sails around the islands, and we did a very few projects; new batteries were the one big thing.  Jenny's sister and nephew and girlfriend stayed on the boat in Portland and Peaks Island, so that took some coordination and shuttling.  

The season was almost over when Albert took our friends Mary Lavendier from Peaks Island, and Fred Goguen, an ex-Peaks Islander, out for a very quick visit to Sequin Island, motoring each way.  It was a successful trip to honor our friend and Mary's partner Henry Myers who died several years ago.  A little sad, but mostly great memories and stories.  

This year, we brought the boat to Royal River Boatyard in Yarmouth to be stored on the hard for the winter.  [The past two winters she stayed in the water at Strouts Point Wharf in Freeport.]  The plan is do a big painting project in the Spring, 2022.

Late Summer 2020

For several good reasons, including the Covid disaster, Jenny and the dogs were not able to join Albert on an “almost Fall” cruise of the nearby Maine coast for 4 days in early September.  It was probably just as well, as it turned out.

It didn't take a lot to provision Magus at the mooring in Freeport Harbor.  After a noon start, the first night was spent on a (free/ contribution) mooring at Seguin Island. Even got a little non-motorized sailing time later in the day on the way there.  

 

Seguin is a great spot, fairly remote and wild, for being so close. The non-profit organization Friends of Seguin Island does a great job to keep things maintained and updated.    

    

   

The next morning, I did projects and waited for the tide to start upstream on the Kennebec River before dropping the mooring. As soon as I did, I discovered that there was no steering--- none.  Fortunately, conditions were calm (with a swell, of course), so I hopped in the dinghy and rowed over to the nearest mooring with a long line, and got re-secured.  I was really hoping I would not have to use the emergency tiller to limp back to Freeport, but that was always an option.  I will spare the details, but one of the 49 year old hydraulic hoses for the autopilot steering pump had failed. With some ingenuity, I was able to seal off the failed hose, and restore the steering system, getting covered in hydraulic fluid as part of the process that took several hours. No autopilot for the reminder of the trip, however.  [Back in Freeport, two new hoses were installed, so all the steering hoses have been replaced since 2016, when both rudder steering cylinders were also rebuilt.]   

By the time I could drop the mooring the second time, it was after noon and I was late for the advantageous current in the Kennebec River, but it was not fully against me, either. Which is good, because it can run 4 knots at mid-tide. I arrived at the city float in Bath at 4:30 or so.  Sophi, Travis, and their kids came down for dinner on the boat, and that was a nice visit. They also lent me their car the next morning, so I could buy new hydraulic hoses for the steering system, to be installed later.  A great project ongoing in Bath is Maine's First Ship, but the museum and shop were closed while I was there. 

                                                  

The next part of the trip was something I have wanted to do since I first learned about it over 30 years ago: the Sasanoa River, an inside passage between the Kennebec River near Bath to the Sheepscot River. From there it is easy to continue on to Boothbay Harbor through Townsend Gut separating Southport Island from the mainland, but I just went south on the Sheepscot.  From the Cruising Guide to the Maine Coast by Curtis Rindlaub et al (an excellent reference and good reading), this part of the Maine coast “is the land of the geographical cul-de-sac. Long, narrow bays and salty fingers cut between chains of ledges and mountains running north and south. Rivers great and small run down to the ocean in a complex pattern of coves, estuaries, marshes, and back channels and swirl around large island offshore.” The inside passage is “one of the great adventures of the Maine coast.  Like marriage, it is not to be entered into lightly, but advisedly.. and soberly. The current in two of the stretches, Upper and Lower Hell Gates, can be awesome for those of us not accustomed to running whitewater rivers in deep-keeled boats.”  I checked the tidal current predictions in some detail, but things are never completely as predicted.  In Upper Hell Gate, I should have had a favorable current, but it was against me at 3 or 4 knots for a short stretch.  At Lower Hell Gate, it had changed to be favorable earlier than predicted, so all was good.  

That made the passage down the Sheepscot River fairly fast, and I arrived at Cape Harbor on the southern end of Southport Island on the east side of the river at 3:30 or so. I picked up a mooring from the Newagen Resort, which had a nice heated pool, among other amenities.  The bar even had live music that night, but I did not feel compelled to check it out.  I was able to visit with my friend Jay Pinkham (following the recommended distancing guidelines), and enjoyed his wife's muffins the next morning.  Jay is the retired harbormaster from Freeport, so I worked with him during the 13 years I was the Town Engineer in Freeport.

The next day had light winds from the west, so it was a motoring experience that went fairly quickly.  I passed Sequin to the south, making a sort of circumnavigation of the island, and I was back home on the Freeport mooring by 3:00 pm.  It was a short four days.

Early Summer 2020

Yes, Covid Summer. We didn’t go anywhere far, but we brought the boat into the Freeport town dock a few times to get M’Ocean, our German Shepard dog, somewhat comfortable on the boat.  Once we realized we could do things with reasonable precautions, in late July we decided to take a mini-vacation to Peaks Island for a few days, with the dogs. We tied up to the dock at Jones Landing, took long walks, went swimming, and ran into old friends.  Only a few photos, though.

 

 

In August, we were happy to loan Magus to daughter Sophi and her husband and their two kids and their dog for a few days of Casco Bay cruising.  I should note that Sophi and Travis are accomplished cruisers, but they were feeling a bit rusty. [In 2012, before kids, they sailed from Portland to Prince Edward Island on their Downeaster 32 that they no longer own.]  So, I don’t want to mention that after anchoring the third night, they were backing down on the anchor chain, and caught the dinghy painter, wrapping it enough to pull the inflatable under the hull and stalling the engine.  They had the wherewithal and initiative to spend over an hour diving in the cold water and unwrapping the line before giving me a call to confess.  Then they made a good start on patching the leaks and continued on their cruise.  Those things happen, and the one time I did it, the wrap was not so bad.  Jenny and I were completely happy that they could enjoy Magus and show their young kids a taste of the cruising life. They all had a great time, I understand, as documented on their many Facebook posts.

 

Since Magus didn’t come out of the water last winter, some attention to the bottom was needed. About the time I was thinking that, the timing was good on August 27 to dry the boat out against the bulkhead at the Freeport Town Wharf.  Meaning, a high tide early in the morning, low around noon, and high tide in the evening. After tying up to the bulkhead and the tide was receding, I realized that the boat was leaning away from the wharf.  I called my friend Carter, who came to the rescue with some empty bait barrels to fill with water and weight the wharf side of the boat, and a ratchet strap to pull Magus against the wharf to be extra safe.  There was a relatively relaxing wait for the tide to go down, then a frantic effort to get some work done before the tide came back up. Jenny helped a lot, and we got all of the most important things done: the bottom cleaned, bottom paint applied to the top 6-12” of the bottom below the boot stripe, the propeller cleaned and painted, and the zinc anode replaced on the propeller shaft.  Then, a relaxing wait for the tide to come back up, and Magus is ready for another year. When the tide was down, things were so busy we never got a photo, but this one shows the cleaned propeller and bottom.

The rest of 2019

 We went for some daysails over the summer, but mostly we did things around Bliss Woods Farm.  We took some Air BNB guests out for short sails, also.  We really enjoyed the visit by Ray and Alicia Alba and their two children.  Check out their activities on a great website, Albaadventures.com.    Here is an almost tragic ending to a drone video attempt they made.  Look for the seal.

https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=426612117950303&extid=PgY7vtRSqRxb7Z3N

 In October, Echo and Chris came up from Baltimore for a visit and to go to a wedding on Peaks Island.   Albert sailed them to Peaks, where they stayed on the boat at Jones Landing Marina-- thanks, Robin!  We actually were able to sail part of the way there:

Magus spent the winter in the water at Strout’s Point Marina, here in Freeport.  It was a fairly mild winter, so there was no drama.  The boat was winterized on the mooring, and then moved to the dock on December 1.  For no good reason, I never took any photos of the few times that it snowed, when I would go down and remove some of the heavy stuff.  The marina had a photo that I copied, though.  All of a sudden, the winter was over!  Magus went back on the mooring on April 1, 2020.

Photo from Strouts Wharf Company