July 14                                         Southwest Harbor, Maine

We awakened early to attend   the Flamingo Parade in downtown Southwest Harbor.  Flamingo displays were everywhere. Local residents told us the festival began years ago when Don Featherstone, the inventor of the pink flamingo lawn ornaments, acquired a home in Southwest Harbor.  He is well regarded by the local citizens and this festival was created as a means of benefitting local charities and celebrating small town involvement.

The original pink flamingoes were created in the 1950’s and were immediately adopted for cheap lawn ornaments by residents in Florida and other southern states.  The original molds were signed by Don Featherstone and had one flamingo with head raised and the other with head lowered. A pair sold recently for more than $20,000  (useful information for my estate sale friends). Southwest Harbor had many types of flamingoes displayed—plastic, painted ones on windows, Styrofoam ones, and motorized ones.  There were pink flamingo sunglasses and all sorts of headgear. 

The parade was a great display of local fire trucks, volunteers for many organizations, antique automobile clubs, and other business establishments.  Most people in the parade and in the crowd were wearing one or more pink articles of clothing.  Many children were riding the floats and throwing candy to the crowd.  Some floats celebrated the flamingo theme but all were focused on showing their support for local charities and organizations.  It was a beautiful show of America small town at its best.

The library was having a paperback sale and I left the parade to join the throngs perusing the boxes of books on display.  Within minutes, I had found some wonderful titles. The library is deceptively small from the exterior but when one enters, it is soon apparent a great deal of space exists beyond the original structure.    With a nautical theme throughout, the library appears to be well organized, spacious, and very inviting to readers of all ages

To benefit the local hospice, a party was held in a tent on the dock of our marina.  We bought tickets and were eager to participate in the event.  We had entertainment by a local band before a lobster, mussels, and corn dinner.  It was delicious.  Afterwards, we returned to the boat and watched from the bridge as the sun slowly set over the horizon. 

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July 12- 13                                  Southwest Harbor, Maine

Some large cracks had developed on the bow pulpit on either side of the anchor wench.  David contacted Ellis Boat Company and they again sent a workman.  Ellis Boat Company is located in Southwest Harbor and builds beautiful boats, mostly under 40’ in length.  Their production is slow due to the economy so they are now doing refitting for other boats.  We were pleased to find a source for trained, knowledgeable people to make some needed repairs.  David and Joe, the Ellis employee, soon determined a way to solve the problem and he immediately began to work.

We rented a car for a week to make it possible for us to visit an orthopedic specialist in Bar Harbor for David’s leg pain and give us an opportunity later to see the area, including the beautiful Acadia National Park.  Covering most of the island, Acadia is a biking, hiking, and camping destination for hundreds.  Most of the land was given for a park by John D. Rockefeller and others who once owned huge expanses of the property.  Miles of “carriage roads” with magnificent stone bridges were built by Rockefeller to facilitate travel through the park by carriages or horses.  Automobiles were not used at the time.  Today these roads are used by hikers, cyclists, and a few carriages.  In the winter they are a means for cross-country skiing.  We plan next week to take a tour through the park.

Maine lobstermen are having a difficult time due to plummeting wholesale prices because of Canadian imports.  The local newspapers are filled with stories detailing their plight.  We have several lobster boats in our marina and I stopped to converse with a little fellow who had just come in with his dad from a day running lobster pots.  He allowed me to take his picture.  He was quite happy for he had made $200 that day.  According to his dad, the State of Maine allows youngsters under a certain age to own ten traps.  That day his son had caught 69 lobsters—a very good catch.

Dinner was with Phil, Linda, Jan, Phil’s sister from San Antonio who was visiting them for a few days, and Sue and Darrell, boating friends of the Hardbergers.  Sue and Darrell are retired attorneys from Michigan who live most of the year on their 2005 Ocean Alexander.  Together we traveled the short distance to Quietside and Thurston’s Lobster Pound, a local favorite.  Dining on boiled lobster and corn, we had a marvelous evening getting to better know each other.

On Friday we left early for Bar Harbor and David’s eight o’clock appointment with the doctor.  It was too soon for traffic and we made it there in twenty minutes, giving us time to tour the quiet downtown streets.  Bar Harbor had a disastrous fire in the early twentieth century which destroyed many of its buildings and homes but significant examples of the quaint architectural style of the previous century remain.  The large Grand Hotel on Main Street is a wonderful reminder of the years when people came for extended stays and relaxed in rockers on the porch or played croquet on the lawns. Colorful hydrangeas, daisies, lilies, and peonies were in profusion in beds, window boxes, baskets, and pots.  Even one alley way was lined in pots, each filled with an array of flowers. Small shops dominate the downtown streets and there is no hint of a national chain establishment. The city park overlooks the beautiful harbor where the cruise ships and small boats dock and presents another scene of postcard quality.

We drove slowly through some of the waterfront area which contains some of the remaining “summer cottages” built in the late nineteenth century by wealthy families.  Most are outstanding examples of New England architecture of the period with wide porches, gabled roofs, and shingled exteriors.  Some have been converted to bed and breakfasts or professional offices but their grand origins are still evident. Many had more than thirty rooms with a ballroom for lavish entertaining. Never approximating the palatial styles of the Newport “cottages,” the homes in Bar Harbor are nevertheless significant examples of the lifestyle of the rich and famous of the era.

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July 7-11                      Southwest Harbor, Maine

After brunch on the aft deck, we walked the dock to the parking lot to say farewell to Blake and Amanda.  The weather was perfect for their flight from Bar Harbor to Boston and then on to DFW.  I returned to the boat and began laundry and cleaning.  At 2:30 I stopped, had a light lunch and retired to the sofa with my book.  David had strict instructions to leave me there undisturbed. I was officially on vacation!

The lobster boats came into the dock after five o’clock and our dockmaster secured four lobsters for us.  These were even more beautiful than the ones we had bought in Beverly.  Each one was a minimum of two pounds with both claws intact.  Price was less than $20.00.

We boiled the lobsters and put them in the refrigerator to cool while we borrowed the marina courtesy car for a short trip into Southwest Harbor to the grocery store.  Sawyer’s Market is small and definitely upscale.  The wine section takes up half their space and they have an even larger space across the street dedicated to wine and cheeses.  Pates, mustards from France, New York deli items, and prime angus beef were available in abundance.  More ordinary items such as regular crackers and cereals were limited.  We bought fresh corn and returned to the boat for another New England lobster dinner.  Fantastic!  We could only eat one lobster each so we saved the others for a lobster salad the next day.

The cool weather, sunshine, and beautiful scenery tends to make one quite content to just sit and enjoy the ambiance.  We had to make ourselves set small goals in order to assure we were at least semi-productive.  David was delighted when Phil invited him on a dinghy cruise of the harbor.  In the next cove, they saw the 140' sailing yacht of Charles Butts, the HEB heir from Texas.

Dinner on Sunday was at a small Italian restaurant with the Hardbergers.  We enjoyed hearing Phil’s story of how he ran for and won the mayoral race in San Antonio eight years ago.  Although he won the initial race by a small margin, he handily won re-election several years later. He was too modest to tell us ( but others had done so) that he was one of the best mayors in recent San Antonio history and had contributed significantly to making the city financially sound and a major tourist destination.

We were delighted on Monday to have a man come to repair the icemaker and install the new water pump.  Within a few hours, he had both of them working and was able to complete a few other small chores for us.  Having not been used for some time, the water in the tank was stagnant and when pumped through the lines smelled like 100 rotten eggs.  Following advice we read on the internet, we spent hours flushing, filling, and re-flushing the 330 water tank until finally we deemed its output to be acceptable.

We have an interesting neighbor in the marina who is a celebrity in the boating world.  Bruce Kessler is a retired television director who has circumnavigated the globe and made numerous voyages on the West and East Coasts of the United States.  His boat, The Spirit of Zopelote, is a 64’ Northern Marine trawler with a British Racing Green hull.  It was recently portrayed on the cover of Passageways Magazine which contained a long article about Kessler and his adventures.

Southwest Harbor celebrates Flamingo Festival this weekend with many events to benefit local charities.  Almost every home and business is festooned with pink plastic flamingoes. An icon of the tropics, the flamingo seems to be out of place in Maine but a local told me that lobsters were too commonplace for display.  We plan to attend the charity lobster bake on Saturday which will be held here in the marina.  

July 6                              Southwest Harbor, Maine

We waved good-bye to Blake and Amanda and promised to see them in five hours at Southwest Harbor.  We could not believe our good fortune as the weather was perfect.  We quickly exited Rockland Harbor and began again to dodge the lobster pots.  The scenery was spectacular as we cruised around the islands with their thick forests of tall trees and granite cliffs against the blue silhouettes of mountains in the distance.  We went through Western Way, a small passage between the ocean and Southwest Harbor.  Careful to avoid areas with submerged rocks, we had no difficulty and were delighted to realize our marina lay just ahead

Dysart’s Great Harbor Marina is a small facility but was highly recommended by our friends, Phil and Linda Hardberger.  We made reservations here in April to assure dockage.  The Hardberger’s boat, Aimless was tied up nearby and within a few moments after arrival, Phil was on board and soon was joined by Linda.  It was great to visit again with them and to introduce them to the kids.  We made plans to have dinner together on Sunday.

Blake and Amanda had experienced the chaos of Bar Harbor on their trip and were pleased to join us in the relative serenity of Southwest Harbor.  This was their last evening before departing for home.  We opted to dine onboard.  I made a pot of pasta with sausage, capers, and mushrooms in a spicy tomato sauce and a large tossed salad.  Blake and Amanda earlier had walked to the nearby kitchen of a small local bakery operation and returned with freshly made rosemary focaccia and a magnificent Maine blueberry pie.  We had a wonderful dinner on the aft deck looking out at the beautiful view and enjoying the cool, fresh air. The pie was an incredible creation of thickly packed blueberries in a sweetened flaky crust.  The blueberries were tiny and delicious.  We ate the entire pie. 

We loved having a week with Blake and Amanda on the boat and sharing with them some of the experiences we have in cruising.  They are delightful guests, always cooperative, pleasant, and helpful.  Both are generous and are constantly showering us with gifts.  They have great taste and we are always happy recipients of their largess.  We regret that future trips with them will probably be distant as the impending birth of their first child will preclude such travel for awhile.

July 5                            Rockland, Maine

Our voyage from Portland to Rockland was long—eight hours.  We were glad Amanda was not subjected to such a long cruise but we missed Blake’s assistance at the helm.  The sun was bright and the water was calm when we began the trip.  Weather predictions were indicative of no problems.  Several miles out of Portland Harbor, we began to weave through the lobster pots that were omnipresent.  Finally, we determined it was futile and maintained our course despite them.

Our cruise was marked with several changes in weather as we went from sunny, haze, fog, showers, and back to sunshine.  Wind was minimal and the water remained calm.  Trident Marina in Rockland is a new facility and we had easy dockage.  Blake and Amanda were there to greet us and help us secure the boat.  They had spent the day touring small towns enroute and shopping for items on the list we had given them. 

Having the advantage of a car meant I could visit the Farnsworth Art Museum in the limited time available before it closed.   The FAM is located in downtown Rockland in several beautifully renovated historical buildings.  Noted for its outstanding collection of artists who lived and/or worked in Maine, The FAM includes works by the Wyeth family, N.C., Andrew, and Jamie, as well as Alec Katz, Frederic Church, and to my delight, Will Barnett (we own several of his signed lithographs). The Wyeths’ paintings are showcased in a beautiful white wooden church topped with a magnificent steeple which towers over everything else in the downtown area.  The interior of the church has been converted into lovely galleries but the significant architectural features of the building, its tall narrow windows and impressive double staircase, have been maintained.

The summer exhibition at the FAM was paintings by Frank W. Benson, an early American Impressionist.  His works are highly reminiscent of Claude Monet in subject, style, and palette.  On display were numerous pictures of lovely women, beautiful children, and views of water and expanses of flowers.  Benson’s paintings demonstrated more intensive color and considerably more texture than Monet but both have a pleasing aesthetic quality that appeals to most viewers.  Unfamiliar with Benson’s work, I immediately became captivated by his skill. 

After a brief visit to the grocery store, we returned to the boat for a light dinner on board.  We attempted to teach Blake and Amanda how to play dominos but our efforts were not very successful.  Unfortunately, though we had spent years playing 42 with our good friends, Jack and Jan Redding, we had not played for more than twenty years and we had forgotten the rules.  We promised the kids we would try again when we return to Fort Worth.

July 3-4             Portland, Maine 

Morning brought an unwelcome discovery.  Our ladder had disappeared.  The brackets and screws had been dislodged and the entire ladder assembly was gone.  This was an expensive loss and a very inconvenient one.  Our electrical hookups were on the port side and now we would have to dock with access on the starboard side and the connections would have a limited reach. One more challenge!

While David did “ladder research” on the internet, Blake again took control of the helm and followed the course without incident to Portland Harbor.  We were delighted to see the magnificent Portland Head Lighthouse, sitting majestically above the cliff as we entered the beautiful harbor.  Our dockage was at DeMillo’s Marina located on Long Wharf in downtown Portland.  It was an easy walk from the boat to the hub of the dock and tourist area.

Downtown Portland is a myriad of charming and touristy shops in carefully restored and maintained older buildings.  The sidewalks are brick and some of the streets near the dock are cobblestoned.  Amanda and Blake are shoppers and they had no difficulty finding ways to deplete their wallets.

                                                                                                                                  

After a brief walk, we indulged in delicious frozen yogurt before hurrying back to the dock area for a trolley ride to see the city.  We had a great guide who was eager to share her knowledge and love for Portland.  We saw the historical area with its many nineteenth century and early twentieth century homes, the early settlement area, and the lighthouse that had greeted us as we turned into the harbor.  It is now a museum.  The views there were beautiful with the blue water sparkling in the sunlight below the granite cliffs.

I awakened early and departed on my bicycle for the Portland Art Museum located only about a mile away.  The museum is housed in a spectacular building designed by I. M. Pei and that is reason enough to visit there.  However, the collection is outstanding with magnificent paintings and sculptures by American artists from the eighteenth century to the present.  Several galleries displayed Impressionist paintings from major French artists.  The galleries are painted in a variety of muted yellows, oranges, purples, greens, and blues which is very pleasing and enhances the viewing experience

After visiting the museum, I rode my bike down the hill to the main street and Becky’s Diner, a popular local eatery recently featured on the popular television show Drive-Ins, Diners, and Dives.  David, Amanda, and Blake were waiting there for me and we enjoyed a delicious meal.  Although advertised as home cooking, the food was definitely not ordinary and presentation was outstanding.  David had walked the quarter of a mile to the restaurant and insisted on walking back.  He was tired and in some pain but the effort proved to us that he was improving.

The lovely weather ended several hours before the fireworks display was scheduled.  A strong storm with winds, lightening, and thunder interrupted the plans for a festive Fourth of July.  We were docked safely and had scrapped our plans to take the dinghy out to watch the fireworks.  We were glad we had done so when we saw the boats returning with drenched passengers.  We watched the televised fireworks display in New York and remembered how wonderful it was when we had been there last year.

Amanda had been fighting motion sickness since we had left Salem.  She experienced no difficulty in port but was immediately immobilized when we began to cruise.  She never complained but it was obvious she was experiencing considerable difficulty.  Blake wisely decided she had endured enough and rented a car to take them on land for the remainder of the trip.  They would join us in Rockland and Southwest Harbor.

July 2       Portsmouth, New Hampshire                                               

The weather was sunny and the water was calm but we had to get fuel before continuing our journey.  We headed across the harbor to Beverly Point Marina in Beverly, Massachusetts. During our lengthy fueling process, David conversed with the friendly attendant and learned we could buy freshly caught lobsters at a store nearby.  We all agreed that was a great dinner solution and Blake and Amanda were dispatched for eight lobsters.  They soon returned with two large containers filled with eight one and half pound lobsters.  Total cost was $40.00.

Following the advice of the attendant, I boiled a large pot of salted water and tossed two of them at a time into the water for eight minutes.  The claws were secured with rubber bands so they could not fight me.  After cooking, I put them in the refrigerator to cool.

With minimal direction from David, Blake soon took over the piloting and in little time was demonstrating remarkable skill at staying on course and keeping careful watch for obstacles and other vessels.  David had time to rest and Amanda joined him on the sofa, looking wan from motion sickness.  Our cruise to Portsmouth was delightful with our only concern being the many lobster pots that surrounded us.  Fortunately, our boat has cutters to keep the pots from winding around our props but we have been warned they don’t always prevent problems.

Portsmouth harbor is a busy place with many commercial vessels.  Tugs and barges vied with numerous power and sailboats.  Marinas are few but we had chosen one that was easily accessible to downtown.  Unfortunately, we arrived at high tide and the current was strong.  The dock master advised us to dock with the bow facing south with the current but change in two hours to bow facing north to take advantage of the ebb current.

Blake, Amanda, and I left the boat and explored the charming downtown area.  It was an active place with lovely shops and carefully maintained older buildings.  We caught a bus and went to a grocery store to replenish our stores and to buy corn and potatoes for our New England lobster dinner.  When we returned to the boat, the strong current had subsided and we turned the boat without incident.  In an offhand remark, the dock master noted that a ladder similar to our small one had been lost recently by the strong current rocking the dock.  Determining that our ladder was securely mounted by special brackets, we chose to ignore his advice.

Dinner on the aft deck was a memorable event as we dined on perfectly cooked lobsters, corn, and boiled new potatoes.  All of us agreed it was the best lobster we had ever tasted. Dessert was ‘smores made with graham crackers, Nutella, and marshmallow cream. Satiated with good food and memories of a lovely day, we retired for a peaceful night.