Wednesday, July 11, 2007

Rockland Harbor at Dock


We awoke to a dense fog in the morning at Tenants Harbor. The Mehaffeys had reserved a car for pickup at Rockland so we started out at 10:00 in the fog bound for Rockland. Our passage north would be through the Muscle Ridge Channel which is strewn with ledges and other hazards but with a modern chartplotter and radar, it's really no challenge anymore. However, it's another story concerning the hazards presented by the lobster pots! With the fog, you couldn't see much more than a boat length so we stationed a crew member on the bow to navigate through the lobster buoy maze. With the current running 1.5 kts, some of the buoys were submerged and you had to be especially alert to see them beneath the water. We passed several boats that emerged out of the fog that we first saw on radar, it's an eerie sight to see what appears to be a ghost ship passing by just discernible at a distance. We listened to the bells, groaners and fog horns of all the nuns, cans and lighthouses along the way although we saw very few of them.

Coming into Rockland Harbor, the fog still held sway all the way into port. We had made reservations for a dock at Journey's End Marina ($1.60/ft, love those Maine prices) and they were out to meet us. It was on the end right next to the Coast Guard Station for Rockland. I'm sure Matthew would have enjoyed the view of the Coast Guard cutters going out into the fog on duty. We later had a great dinner at Peter Ott's which I highly recommend. The fog then came in even more. We will be here at least one more day to prepare the boat for the next two weeks of cruising before Philip and his family come for a visit.
Follow our progress at Maine Cruise.

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