July 26-28 -- Lay Days in Booothbay and a Night in Linekin Bay, 5 Miles and One in Hog Island, 12 Miles

We did everything we had planned on the lay day in Boothbay except for the movies which were not to our taste. We lunched at Kalers. I recalled a very memorable meal last time. I don’t remember what we ate, except how good it was. This time the food was fine but that extra spark was just not there. The lay day became a day and a half due to complications in stopping the leaking drain of the galley sinks. Grover’s Hardware had the plumbers putty but applying it required disassembly of the existing sink drains during which I broke both of them, one at a time.

Another call to our friend Dean. I would hate to impose upon him except I know how much he likes to help people. Fortunately, Grovers had the units, I got their last two, and Mike there was exceptionally helpful in disassembling the broken parts from those still needed.

I had a large vise grips and my father’s old pipe wrench, stored in a Zip lock bag to deter rust. (How many cruising boaters carry a pipe wrench do you suppose?)  but the unit in question really required a wrench capable of handling a nut that was 2 1/2 inches across. I worked at the job in the evening, during the night when I woke up because of it and the next day until two pm. A competent plumber with the right tools and parts could have probably done the job in less than an hour. Me -- ten!  But it is done and apparently not leaking.

But by two pm our plans to go the Hog Island had to be changed – too far for the amount of time remaining. So we motored, in fog again!, the less than five miles. to Luke’s Boatyard on the eastern side of Linekin Bay, a new spot for us. The northwestern side of Linekin is only approximately a one mile walk back to Boothbay Harbor. I had always been intrigued by the name of the place. My boat’s mate’s name is Lene, the second syllable of her offical nane: Ilene. But one of my terms of endearment for her is Lenikins. The bay is vast with lots of deep water.

We took a mooring at Luke's Boat Yard for only $25 for a well spaced mooring. In the morning when I dinked in to pay, Mr. Luke requested only $20! How often are the prices charged LESS than advertised. His is a working shipyard and offers no amenities such as showers and launch service, but the price can’t be beat.

The sail from Linekin Bay to Hog island started in bright sunlight. At last the end of the fog! But no, once out, the fog returned, though fortunately never less than two tenths of a mile. But is spoils the pleasure, requiring concentration and depriving the traveler of the vistas.

Wind was from the south and we tacked south to the Atlantic. The wind was a beam reach heading east, but lightened to almost nothing as we went along. There were five foot ocean rollers coming in which bounced us and our sails around so much that when we got to two knots we furled the genoa and motored under main alone. The little arrow atop the mast spun around to every direction as the waves rocked the wind out of the sails. The only tricky part of the navigation was at the northern end of Hog Island where it got very narrow with lots of rocks that emerged when the tide ebbed. Only the white slab of rock at the top of the high pile about 2/3rds of the way to the right was visible when we came in near high tide.

Hog Island is a nature sanctuary operated by the Audubon Society.

The Society welcomes visitors who appreciate nature and provides a few mooring at the north end of the island. Today the office was closed, well actually the facilities were not locked, but no one was on the island except us. Here is a view into a narrow inlet cut into the island from the boat during a non fog interval,

followed by a view of the boat, telephoto through the fog (which returned), from the other end of the inlet.

There are trails around and through the island and we walked, for an hour. We met no one except this guy in a tree.

And we met Anita,

who sails a Pearson '26, solo, out of the Centerboard Yacht Club in South Portland. They can handle a boat with our draft and provide launch service across the bay to DeMillo’s Marina on the city side of Portland Harbor.

We invited Anita to breakfast the next morning.