August 16 -- Buckle Harbor to Bucks Harbor

A great day for Lene because, except for two periods of less than half an hour each, during which I put up the Genoa and got a few tenths of a knot for the effort, we motored the whole way over essentially glassy seas.  (Lene loves being on the boat and all the experiences...excpt for the heeling!) We were first to pull out of Buckle via York Narrows, at 8 am, to try to catch the ebb tide. We completed the 15.3 miles before 1 pm, motoring slowly, much of the time against the tide. We crossed Jericho Bay and traversed most of the length of Eggemoggin Reach, a wide channel that runs WNW between the mainland and Deer Island. We crossed under the suspension bridge, connecting them, shortly before our arrival. You can see the south tower at the left.

Lene listened to a podcast and took a nap in the cockpit, so peaceful was the passage. In 2008 we came down from Blue Hill and beat up the Reach, racing with the schooner, Victory Chimes. For me this trip was rather boring but we can use some boring once in a while. The book said that the tides usually run to the west during the ebb, but apparently the exception is in Eggemoggin Reach, though theadverse  tide was not strong.

Bucks Harbor is in the shape of a doughnut or bagel of water. It is circular, off the north side of the Reach, with a big island in its center providing shelter to the moored boats behind it. Next is  a picture of the western side of the Harbor, with the island to the left

followed by the eastern side, where we moored (above the rower), with the island to the right and Eggemoggin Reach visible through the gap.







 

They have an outdoor shower, one of Lene’s favorite amenities. Such a shower would be Lene's favorite thing about a land based summer home; mine would be a wood burning fireplace. We used the shower in the afternoon, while it was still warm. In the Harbor it was tee shirts during the early afternoon for the first time in quite a while.

We came ashore for dinner up the hill at Buck’s Restaurant. I would call it a New York style restaurant with regard to its food, service and even décor, but at Maine prices. In 2008, we had checked it out while planning to dine aboard, but seeing blueberry crumble on the desert menu, Lene’s favorite, we ate there and enjoyed the place. Nowadays deserts are no longer on Lene’s personal menu, but we definitely enjoyed the food. Wifi signal in this harbor is not good.