Gloucester, MA return trip

Jonny took Archie for a quick walk on the rocky island of Isles of Shoals. He thought he might try one of the islands that prohibited dogs because it would be easier to land on them. But as he neared those alternative there were people about so he went to the only one that allowed dogs and clambered up the rocks so Archie could do his business.

We took off at 7:25 for Gloucester. It was a sunny day but the ocean was quite rough due to a strong north wind. I almost fell off the bench seat on the flybridge a couple of times because of the rocky seas.  So it was a big relief when we entered the large harbor in Gloucester and headed for our mooring there, the same mooring field we used on our way north earlier this season. Our plan was to spend the day with Scott and Mary Cole who had graciously offered to give us a tour of Cape Ann where they have lived for many years in Ipswich.  

They picked us up by 1:00 and we headed out to explore this beautiful, historic peninsula with its many small towns and villages.  Mary drove us by the famous blue lobster mural in Gloucester and the waterfront that we had walked along last time we were here.

She brought us to the amazing Hammond Castle Museum in Gloucester, a true castle built in the 1920’s by John Jay Hammond, Jr. who was an American inventor known for pioneering the development of the electronic remote control. We walked around the grounds which are just beautiful as is the exterior of the castle itself.

Mary drove us through Manchester by the Sea with its beautiful old homes and pretty little town center.  It was here that we stopped at the harbor and walked along the town docks.  The harbor was filled with small boats and we chatted with the harbormaster who described the improvements that the town is making to its harbor including extending the docks, installing power pedestals, etc. We will definitely add this to our stops in the future because it  is so attractive and protected and just a block from the town center with its array of restaurants and shops.

From there Mary drove us through Essex, another very attractive town, then through the larger town of Beverly. And when we arrived in Ipswich we stopped at the iconic Clam Box where we got an order of their delicious fried clams to share on the picnic table outside.

Ipswich is also where Mary and Scott have lived for many years. Scott told us that Ipswich has the greatest concentration of historic homes in the country, Throughout our day we saw so many colorful and very well maintained homes with plaques designating their age from the early 1600’s to the 1800’s.

We arrived at Scott and Mary’s lovely waterfront home by late afternoon.  The view of the Ipswich clam flats from their back yard was stunning and went on for miles.  Scott was rightly proud of the home that he designed and built. They are truly fortunate to live in such a beautiful part of the country. They, like us, spend half the year living on their boat but they do so in the winter and in the Bahamas. In the summer they are at their home in Ipswich and a place they have in New Hampshire as well.

That evening we all went for dinner back in Gloucester at a popular restaurant called Lobsta Land. We couldn’t believe how busy it was on a Tuesday but we didn’t have to wait long for our table. We had a very good dinner of fish chowder, Portuguese style clams and a Portuguese style haddock. There are a lot of Portuguese people in this area! Everything was first rate!

By the time they drove us back to the pier, it was 8:30. What a wonderful day we had with Scott and Mary and we so appreciated their sharing their lovely corner of the world with us!

We headed back to Zendo in the dark, fed Archie a late dinner and made an early night of it.  Next stop, Onset, MA.

Isles of Shoals, NH

We got an early start on Monday, September 2 and left our S. Portland anchorage by 8 a.m. for the six hour cruise to the Isles of Shoals. Leaving  Portland harbor officially ends our wonderful month’s voyage in Maine. 

As we cruised south we passed several lighthouses, the first being Portland Breakwater Light (also known as Bug Light).  We also passed Spring Point Ledge Light and Portland Head Light. These last two are shown in the photos below.

Next came Cape Elizabeth Light at the southern approach to Portland’s harbor.  About an hour north of our destination we passed the tallest lighthouse in New England, the Boone Island Light, way out in the distance.

We were traveling three to five miles off-shore with few other boats and many fewer lobster pots.  It was cool enough for Archie and me to be bundled up and cozy on the flybridge.

Cruising by Appledore Island we saw lots of lovely homes lining the shore.

It was a pretty long day and we finally arrived at the cluster of islands known as the Isles of Shoals by 2:50.  As we approached it we passed the White Island Light also known as the Isles of Shoals Light.

We grabbed one of the free moorings owned by the Portsmouth Yacht Club. It seemed like we were in an area with an open fetch so we quickly moved to a spot that was a bit more protected  (or so we thought). After a brief afternoon rest we dinghied in to the only island in this group of nine that allows you to walk your dog on it. We pulled up to the rocky seaweed strewn shoreline at low tide. Jonny dropped me off first so I wouldn’t get wet and he tied up the dinghy and carried Archie up to the shore. 

The whole area was basically a big rocky island which wasn’t the best for walking. There was no beach or wooded area to explore. We had to keep Archie on his leash so he wouldn’t go over to the adjacent island.  There were a couple of people trying to fly a kite next to a picturesque house. We didn’t spend much time there, just enough for him to do his business.

That evening we had a cozy dinner of meatloaf, mashed potatoes and summer squash. It turned out that we were in for a very rocky and rolly night so we just made the best of it watching a couple of episodes of Suits and going to bed fairly early.  Next stop - Gloucester, MA.

South Portland, ME

First thing in the morning on Saturday, August 31 Jonny walked into Portland and brought back some delicious baked goods from a nearby bakery. He got us blueberry and cranberry scones and a blueberry buckle. We have to eat as many of those Maine blueberries while we are still here!

Cathy was flying back to Charlotte that afternoon and would be leaving by noon so we planned to leave then as well.  Our original plan was to start making our way down the coast as we are officially on our way home now, especially as we leave Maine. But the weather was forecasted to be very windy and the seas promised to be very uncomfortable so we decided to just go across the harbor to S. Portland to get a mooring at the Centerboard Yacht Club. 

Our first order of business was to get a pump-out and fill our water tanks. Then we made the quick trip across the harbor and tied up to a mooring at Centerboard Yacht Club where we have stayed in the past. This yacht club has no docks. All the boats are on moorings. It’s in a nice area and within walking distance to a Hanniford’s Market which is a good grocery. The yacht club also has a free washer and dryer which is a very nice benefit.

That afternoon we took a walk through the surrounding neighborhoods which are very pleasant.

And later on we had the leftover pasta for dinner and watched an entertaining movie called Logan Lucky, sort of a hillbilly takeoff on Ocean’s 11.

The next day the seas were still kicked up and we decided to stay put for one more night so as not to put ourselves through a miserable rocky cruise.  We did some boat chores, Jonny walked to the grocery store and I took advantage of the free laundry.  Sitting in the colorful Adirondack chairs on the lawn of the yacht club was quite pleasant. We met a couple who were members there and lived on their sailboat half the year. It turned out that the husband was also from a town next to where Jonny grew up though it wasn’t quite the close association he had had with our dockmate in Portland.

That evening Jonny made cod on the grill and we had corn on the cob and a salad for dinner. We watched another movie, this time The Fall Guy with Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt, though it was not as entertaining as the previous night’s film. 

It turned out that Cathy’s flight which should have left at 2 p.m on Saturday was delayed multiple times but was still supposed to leave later that night. Then they told her it was cancelled and she would have to stay overnight and catch a flight the next morning.  American Airlines was anything but helpful offering no food vouchers and no assistance with finding a hotel. As we contemplated having her come back to stay with us which by then was almost 11 p.m. she finally found a nearby hotel where she could stay.  Her flight was supposed to leave early Sunday morning but it was delayed again. Finally the flight left on Sunday afternoon and as it neared Charlotte it was diverted to Greensboro, SC due to thunderstorms. There they sat on the runway for a couple of hours. She finally arrived home in Charlotte 29 hours later! Traveling is often fun but can be extremely stressful at times like this (to say the least)! We were all glad to have had such a good time together which helped to ease her frustration just a bit. 

Portland, ME

Jonny took Archie for a walk on Cliff Island on Wednesday morning, August 28.  He walked by the harbor and the cute little schoolhouse.  When they returned, we left for Portland at 10:50. 

We had decided to stay at DeMillo’s Marina for a few days while our friend Cathy Tisdale came to visit. We have been staying at so many anchorages and moorings that it was a real treat to be at a marina.  We arrived in the Portland harbor after a short one and a half hour cruise.

We were surrounded by some amazing ships.

The first thing I did was two loads of laundry while Jonny took care of some needed boat chores.  Cathy arrived later in the afternoon and it didn’t take long for us to celebrate her arrival with a cocktail. We all went to Luke’s Lobster for lobster rolls so Cathy could get her first lobster fix of the season.  We sat outside on the deck next to a pile of lobster crates.

That evening, like the political junkies that we are, we watched the interview with Kamala Harris and Tim Walz.

The next morning Jonny made us delicious blueberry pancakes and bacon for breakfast. We had a small world story when Jonny discovered that the boat that was docked next to us was owned by a fellow from New London, Jonny’s home town.  He was the same age as us and knew many of the people that Jonny grew up with.  In fact, he had been at Jonny’s childhood home, though neither of them clearly remembered each other.  Not only that but he also was at UConn when we were there. He and his wife live in Marblehead, MA and they invited us to stay at their dock on our way back. 

From there we began our exploration of Portland and headed over to the Portland Art Museum.  This is an excellent museum which we had visited previously. This time we spent a couple of hours enjoying the various exhibits especially those from local artists and an amazing exhibit of baskets by  Jeremy Frey, a seventh generation Passamaquoddy basket maker. His work is extensive, highly detailed and just beautiful.

By the time we finished visiting the museum we were hungry for lunch and we stopped at David’s Restaurant which did not disappoint. 

Cathy had been encouraged by her neighbor to stop by the Standard Baking Company for bread which we did. We also found another bakery where we bought a blueberry pie to take home for dessert. 

That evening I made a new recipe, sort of a modified TikTok pasta recipe in that this one included shrimp and spinach in addition to the pasta, feta, and cherry tomatoes. It turned out well and we enjoyed the blueberry pie for dessert. 

On Friday, Cathy and I took Archie for a walk to Walgreens so I could pick up a prescription. We had been talking about exploring one of the nearby islands either on our boat or by ferry. The ferry was so convenient and inexpensive that we decided on that option.  Once we returned to Zendo the four of us (including Archie) walked to the ferry and and took the short 15 minute ride to Peaks Island. 

This is a very pretty island with attractive homes, a few restaurants and shops and lots of wooded areas.  The first stop we made was to a quirky little museum full of umbrella covers, of all things! We didn’t stay long.  

We walked around half of the island and particularly enjoyed walking along the coastal road that had very pretty homes and gorgeous water views.  We met an interesting man from Washington, D.C. who vacations on Peaks Island every summer and who shared with us his perspective on the island and island living in general.

We stopped for lunch at a waterfront restaurant next to the ferry dock and sat outside on their dock which was very pleasant. 

By mid-afternoon we took the ferry back to Portland and rested a bit before going out to our next meal! Can you tell what our priorities are?

That evening  was Cathy’s last chance to get the fried clam dinner that was on her list of must haves.  Portland has a plethora of excellent restaurants and as we looked for reservations we found that some of the best ones were fully booked. This was not surprising because one of the big cruise ships was in town.  We chose Boone’s Fish House and Oyster Room, another waterfront restaurant, which has been open since 1898 and was close to our marina.  We enjoyed another good dinner of local seafood.

The next day Cathy would be flying out and we planned to continue our cruise. It has been another great visit in Portland and we enjoyed sharing it with Cathy.