"Castine" your fate to the wind

 "Castine" your fate to the wind

20 August 2020

(note from Mike … anyone who is willing to write a blog is welcome on this boat … a person who is willing to write two blogs in a row is going to get royal treatment !)

 

Today, we set out from 700 acre Island Harbor headed for Castine, ME. This was at my request.  A few years ago, I read a book called "The Fort" written by Bernard Cornwell.  It is about a 1789 attempt by Massachusetts to prevent the British from finishing construction of a fort to control the town and river of Majabigwaduce, then the name of Castine.  At the time, Maine was an eastern province of Massachusetts.  Involved in this expedition was Paul Revere, in command of the artillery as well as the sloop "Providence" (known well to us Rhode Islanders).  The sloop was lost in this expedition as well as Paul Revere's military career. Obviously, the expedition was a disaster.

Having read this book and knowing that we weren't far away led me to request a visit to the remains of the fort, which came with a bit of a price. The first price was light and fickle winds as we tacked our way slowly up the eastern side of Islesboro Island.  Frequent “headers” and “lifts” (changes in wind direction / intensity) kept us tacking frequently and gave Mike a bit of a workout though the light winds moderated the effort required.  Patience finally brought us to the northern tip of Islesboro and we eased sheets and ... nothing.  The wind died away completely (it was coming from the NW) and after a few minutes of watching the sails hang limply, we looked at each other and said, "turn on the engine". Half an hour of motoring brought us to Holbrook Harbor off Ram Island.  This anchorage is a fair ways south of Castine, but the waters of the Bagaduce River, (formerly the Majabigwaduce river) are scoured by currents and don't have good holding.

 

After a lunch (and a nap by some of the crew), we piled into the dinghy and headed into Castine, which has the campus of the Maine Maritime Academy. Castine is a picturesque Maine town, built on the side of a hill.  A stiff walk uphill brought us to the fort (called George for number III).  The fort was something of a disappointment as all that remains are earthen dikes for walls, but the outlines formed by these "walls" is unmistakably a fort. Still, it was cool to walk a place where history was made and described in the book by Bernard Cornwell.  We walked the walls and then headed back downhill towards the harbor, stopping at a tiny general store where Mike replenished our beer supply, which was running dangerously low. Then it was time to dinghy back to Cotinga and we had to pay the second price for our trip to Castine.  While ashore, a southerly wind had filled in and created a bit of a chop. Truth be told, Gloria paid most of the price, getting dowsed with cold sea water when we hit a particularly nasty bit of chop.  Making matters worse, we had to take a longer route back as the 10-foot tide had exposed a sand bar that we crossed easily on our way 2 hours earlier. Nevertheless, we arrived back on Cotinga where Mike began preparing a risotto of his own creation (delicious, btw) and we got to watch a subtle yet beautiful sunset.  

 

By the time we finished dinner, Boater's Midnight had arrived and I am nodding, even as I write this. I will end this entry here, before my eyes close for the night.

 

Rod

 

44 22.148 N, 68 48.065 W

Front end of a cool Cadillac in Castine

Fine wheel on a cool Cadillac, Castine

Sunset in Holbrook Harbor, Castine

Sunset in Holbrook Harbor, Castine