8/14  Our morning wake up call, as usual, was a lobster boat collecting traps. I flagged him down and asked if I could buy two lobsters from him. I passed a bucket over with a boat hook, he dropped two lobsters in and said “no charge.” I was astonished, and passed over a couple […]

In the morning we rowed to the dock and walked to the nearest gas station/general store where they served breakfast. We sat next to a father and son who were also sailors. The son was a music teacher in China. Very interesting to learn about how people maneuver the strict lack of free speech there, […]

We zigzagged our way past rocks and lobster pots to Jonesport. As we pulled into port we were greeted by a white-haired mustached man in a rowboat who implored us to join the local sailboat race in the morning, since their sailing club had only a few aging members. We asked if there was a […]

The waves were much more calm today as we sailed from Little Cranberry, along an increasingly more wild coast, to a snug little harbor south of Jonesport. We were doing 6 knots with the mainsail and spinnaker and Bryan was just pointing out some seals when we heard a clunk, and the boat slowed noticeably. […]

We did both get a few winks of sleep as the waves from the tropical depression Debbie tossed he sailboat to and fro on its mooring nearly the whole night.The morning seemed calmer and fog was starting to lift, so Bryan went upwind into port, deciding to sail halfway to Roque before we drop our […]

Due to rain from the approaching yet unpredictable remnants of hurricane Debbie, the after-festival lobster bake and picnic was moved inside and held in Florian’s barn. The barn was decorated with lights and canvas murals by legendary Maine artist Buckley Smith. Rows of chairs were set up theater style, and although warm greetings and conversation […]

We caught up on some repairs and Bryan worked on the leaks in the deck, only to find it still dripping when the rain started in the evening. After the last concert, we sold a couple “Sailing Dreams” board games in which Swans’s island is depicted with a treasure chest on it—the treasure being this very […]

To kick off the Sweet Chariot Music Festival, Bryan was requested to be the skipper to take a dozen shanty singers on our boat, Avocet, to serenade the schooners and other boats in the harbor. From the dock I could hear their voices wafting across the water. One of the sailing instructors took me out […]