Next time, we will have to hike Acadia Park (when no one has a broken arm) and play a civilized game of croquet before sunset cocktails at the 1883 Claremont Hotel, with its perfect vantage toward Somes Sound. We preferred staying on the “quieter side” of Mount Desert Isle.
#PORTLAND TO BAR HARBOR MAINE FREE#
We did not take advantage of the Island Explorer, the free bus system of Acadia National Park, sponsored by LL Bean, that would have transported us to Bar Harbor. Strolling the quiet island streets toward Clark’s Point, where the US Coast Guard is stationed, and Beal’s Lobster Pound was a great leg stretcher. Our crew browsed the shops of Southwest Harbor – favorites included Moody Mermaid and Sawyer’s Market. Jane and the Dysart’s crew were super-helpful and friendly, suggesting walking paths, outings and places to dine. Showers, WiFi, and Grumpy’s restaurant for a bountiful homemade breakfast were all in sailors’ reach. In the fine company of Hinckley and Morris Yachts, made right here, we enjoyed Dysart’s peaceful but well-equipped marina. Our ultimate destination was Dysart’s Great Bay Marine in picturesque Southwest Harbor where we would dock for the next two nights. After a harbor tour, we poked our bow into Somes Sound for a view of North America’s only fjard (like a fjord). Passing Bass Harbor Headlight to our port we circled past Cranberry Islands, Big and Little, and Bear Island Light, with a scenic detour into Northeast Harbor. This is true Maine, best seen by boat - ideally, aboard a brand new 48-foot Maine-made Sabre (and even better if it belongs to friends). As we traveled farther Down East, the seals and porpoises became more plentiful, the pink and silver sparkling shores more splendid.
Merchant Row is famous for its 40-plus islands, loaded with grand pines and sloping granite boulders that meet the brilliant blue sea. It was a beautiful passage out Casco Bay by Halfway Rock and Seguin Island, with a lunch anchorage in magnificent Merchants Harbor, off Merchant Island south of Stonington and Deer Isle. We set out on our 98-nautical-mile journey to Mount Desert Island and Southwest Harbor. Our wounded one, whom we dubbed One Wing, insisted that we stick to our itinerary and head Down East in the morning.Īfter a nice dockside dinner at DiMillo’s Marina and a night’s rest in the gracious staterooms, we awoke to squawking seagulls and a perfectly calm sea and sun. Two hours and X-rays later, we were all back on board sipping drinks, one broken humerus in a sling. But our first order of business had to be getting medical attention for our stoic friend’s quickly swelling shoulder. Friends of ours had purchased a beautiful new 48-foot Sabre and invited us along as crew for the maiden voyage - we’re locals who know our native Maine waters. I have to give her credit, she spilled not a single beer out of the overloaded cart into Portland Harbor, nor did she shed a single tear. No, not into another boat, but of our friend, tumbling down the ramp at low tide. Our Maine boat adventure began before we even left the dock - with a crash.
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