Day 76, September 1 -- Portland to The Isles of Shoals -- 49 NM

We put Yael on an 8:50 Greyhound bus to New York, stopped at a nearby supermarket, taxi'd back to Hamilton Marine for more stuff, filled our water jugs, hoisted the dink, put in a reef and were underway by 10:10 a.m. Portland's pretty light, seen from the Observatory yesterday, to starboard:

The distance was 49 miles and we got there in seven hours and five minutes, meaning average speed was almost seven knots with some hours at eight and a peak of 8.3. I'm rather glad that Yael was not with us because she would not have enjoyed the passage; Lene didn't! But we still have a long way to the Harlem Yacht Club and this will have been our longest passage between our entry to Maine and the Club. Many days at this season will be presenting strong winds in our faces, so one has to make one's "westing" when the opportunities present.
Apparent wind was sixty degrees off our starboard bow at 20 to 25 knots with higher gusts.  It was cold but clear and sunny. We started with first reefed main and small jib. But the reefing line, which was frayed and is a candidate for replacement next season, parted. So I put in the second reef. It did not slow us much. (In the calm of next morning I restored all systems. It turns out that the reefing line did not part; rather, though I pride myself on my knots, the bowline I tied toward the aft end of the boom shook loose!). Also, the Velcro closure at the aft end of the second-from-bottom batten pocket came out again. If this happens a third time I will sew it closed.
We were heeled at 25 to 35 degrees and the pressure on the rudder was intense. Autopilot could not handle it so it was hand steering. The rail was buried and a bit of one crest entered the cockpit. We furled the small jib which cut our speed to 3.5 knots (under just the second-reefed main)  so we put most of the jib back out again but did not trim it as tight as before, which corrected the problem. For the last five miles we motorsailed with just the main and were very tired at the end of the day.
We were pleasantly surprised to find that we were the only boat in the large unnamed cove created by a breakwater built between Smuttynose Island to the north (these pictures taken next morning when it was calm, and do not show the white surf crashing on the nearby rocks)

and Cedar Island to the south. (Another island in this group is called Appledore. I wonder where Harry Potter's names come from.)

Gosport Harbor (between Cedar and Star Islands). with its free moorings, is where we have stayed every prior time we have been in The Isles of Shoals. It has great protection against the prevailing southwesterlies. But it's totally open to the northwesterlies of today with their big waves rolling in. This picture show the top of the large dowager hotel on Star Island, over the top of Cedar.

The anchor set in 18 feet with 70 feet of snubbed chain out. ILENE is, as some restaurants call their dishes, "salt encrusted," providing a good reason for a dock tomorrow night, where she can get a bath and the electricity can provide heat through our air conditioner/heat exchanger because it has been cold.

Franks for dinner-- too tired to cook. Not a quiet night with some rolling, but not bad.