Why do they call the run from the Southcoast of Massachusetts to Maine heading “Downeast,” when the actual heading is Northeast?
They call it “Down” rather than “North” because 90% of the time, the prevailing wind off of New England is blowing out of the southwest. And back in the days of sailing ships, that meant “Down Wind.”
I tell you this because we’re on our third trip to Maine. But actually we attempted and aborted the run two other times because we ran smack into a wicked northeasta as soon as we turned left out of the Cape Cod Canal.
As mentioned in my last report, we’ve had plenty of issues since departing Friday for Maine, particularly weather-related issues, but Sunday morning was actually decent, with a light breeze.
The problem was that all the marine forecasts called for 20+ knot winds and 4-6’ waves. It’s doable but hardly comfortable. The good news was that the wind was blowing Downeast!
I started logging into the NOAA buoys off the Maine coast and saw 19.6 knots. But these were all posted at 4:00 AM. The expiration of the Small Craft Warnings had been pulled forward from 4:00 PM to 11:00 AM, so that was promising.
Around 8:30, the 100’ Westport docked next to us departed.
At that point, I was ALL-IN, but I conferred with the crew since it could be an uncomfortable 90 minutes. Peter was fine, but Mrs. Horne was struggling with the idea of 4-6’ waves.
Peter found a NOAA website with wave periods and reported the wave period for Sunday was 7 seconds. Under five is considered chop, and over 10 is a long period.
I had already cleared another night with Terry, the Dockmaster at Wentworth-By-The-Sea, so I told Mrs. Horne, “If you’re uncomfortable, we can just come back here.”
She said, “Okay, let’s do it.”
Running Downeast to Kennebunkport
As we proceeded north, leaving Portsmouth to port, the problem wasn’t the waves; it was the damn lobster pots. Having already sucked one into a tunnel on Friday, I was particularly wary.
I love lobster as much as the next guy, but we ran into many sets that were 50’ apart – not good for a 63’ boat with an 18’ beam. And the sun hitting the waves made it even more difficult to spit at 25 MPH.
The waves were indeed 6’ers, but the 7-second period let me find a smooth ride at around 24 MPH.
It was smooth enough for Peter to take a video of Cape Neddick Light at cruising speed.
Shortly after rounding Cape Neddick, the waves were getting steeper, and we were “surfing” down a fresh one every few seconds.
Kennebunk River
We all had the same uneasy feeling as we approached Kennebunkport: “Where’s the entrance? It looks like we’re running up on the beach.”
It was my own damn fault, I didn’t do any research on the approach, and almost immediately, the hairs on the back of my neck stood up as I stared at this skinny spit of water at low tide.
For one thing, the south wind pushed us to the point of surfing between the stone jetties. Even more frightening, the river wasn’t wide enough to turn Amazing Grace around if I wanted to bail out.
Then, as we rounded the first turn, we encountered half a dozen lobster boats moored in the middle of the river!
I had the forward sonar on and was glad to see a consistent 10’ of water, but it felt like I could reach out and touch the shore.
I would generally treat small boats with courtesy, but screw that; I dropped to 3 MPH and used the horn to alert the little boys we were holding our course.
Then Peter said “It looks like two miles to Dimillos.”
I said, “Take plenty of pictures; we’re never coming here again.”
When we got to Dimilllos, we were waived in a slip that looked too short for Amazing Grace. It also featured a piling sticking out by the stern that I’d have to get inside of.
Of course once we got tied up and washed, all was good!
I researched marinas in Kennebunkport and intentionally selected Dimillos because it is located in the center of town.
As I said, I wasn’t prepared to see Kennebunkport at low tide.
It turns out the tidal range is well over ten feet.
The Boathouse
A crew member who will remain nameless had a sour stomach, so I looked around for some sort of rice dish and discovered that the Boathouse had Lobster Fried Rice.
It was just a short walk over the bridge to the other side of the river.
We scored three seats at the bar with a view across the river to Amazing Grace in the distance.
The Boathouse had a great selection of local craft brews and both classic and eclectic dishes.
Sesame egg, Napa cabbage
Bob’s hot sauce, celery sticks, blue cheese crema
Beer-battered haddock, house tartar sauce, coleslaw
After lunch, we wandered through the shops. The little village has a lot of shops that you won’t find anywhere else. One shop sold presidential bobbleheads.
The Trumps were naturally sold out, but I did find this.
Did I mention that Sunday had turned into a rather lovely day? No rain and moderate winds. I prefer accurate weather forecasts, but if I can’t have that, give a forecast that turns out wrong in a good way!
Execute Plan B
It occurred to me that we needed more than one day to explore this town. The crew agreed, and we contacted Dimillos to see if we could extend it another night.
We could. Then I had to reschedule Portland since I’d already paid the $470 dockage fee. We moved it to next week and started moving a few other reservations around.
With Plan B in play, all the action turned to preparing for the cocktail party at 4:00.
The Kennebunkport Cocktail Party
Mrs. Horne has friends with a place in Kennebunkport, and Peter has friends in Ogunquit, so why not throw a party?
We keep a good stock of charcuterie ingredients and other fun food on board, so we’re always ready for a party.
I saw Fishwife Sardines on Shark Tank and bought some at the Mattapoisett General Store.
Sardines aren’t for everyone, but I like them, and they were, indeed, the best I’ve ever tasted.
We started the festivities at 4:00.
Everyone enjoyed the conversation and watching the sites on the Kennebunkport River.
Tomorrow – Kennebunkport Maine