We got lucky with the weather on the way from Shelburne, NS to Northeast Harbor, ME. While we had to motor until 21:30 because the wind we enjoyed a nice night sail. First under full sails and later in the night we had to reef but still maintained 6 knots or better, so the entire trip was 26 hours.
One thing that surprised me in Nova Scotia is the abundance of jellyfish. I am used to the notion of seeing them in NY harbor later in the season when the water warms up, and yet the water was anything but warm. Off Cape Sable we saw the lowest water temperature: 9.3C and yet the density of jellyfish was staggering. Basically, if one falls into the water if the cold doesn't kill you, the jellyfish will. (We did all the prudent things to ensure nobody falls into the water.)
With the wind and the seas so light we enjoyed a nice lunch. Pasta for kids a salad for adults. Life was good! Then to our genuine surprise, while playing down below the kids fell asleep. Now, it wasn't like they were seasick, and we let the sleep as late as they wanted in the morning. Yet both of them slept for almost 2 hours!
We intentionally made a detour and passed by Seal Island, a small island maybe 10 miles west of the westernmost part of Nova Scotia. We didn't expect to see seals, but maybe some wildlife. Nope, we found a hamlet with maybe 10-15 houses, all complete with a church. Very strange, because there are no signs of a marina and the cove where we were was well protected from the wind at that time, but in an easterly wind it will be wild and exposed to the forces of nature. We did see some guillemots and later on saw a couple of puffins.
Alex took a nap while Sasha was telling me about the cancer treatment research that he is working on, then I went down for a nap. Maybe 20 minutes before I woke up the crew saw whales! Not only did they see a humpback and another large whale, they saw an orca! If they will be in a position to write a school essay about what they saw over the summer, they should have plenty of material.
Having good cooks aboard improves crew morale quite a bit. Even before I got up from my nap I could hear something sizzling on the frying pan. Turns out, Sasha was inspired to do potato pancakes (драники). Wow, that's a nice treat!
We cleaned up dishes, got everything ready for the night, and then it was Sasha's turn to sleep. Alex and I were enjoying a splendid sunset.
While the water temperature rose to a much nicer 15C, and the wind definitely felt warmer than earlier in the day it was still cold.
I had a pair of pants under the foul weather bib, a long sleeve shirt, two layers of sweaters, then the coat, and a hat. A bit too much clothing for the end of July, but definitely worth the excellent sailing and the amazing starry night. The crescent of the moon slowly disappeared behind the horizon and left the darkness in which we could enjoy the milky way. The stronger wind helped since we could enjoy all that beauty without the humming of the motor.
For my 04:00 shift I was supposed to wake up Margot. I did my best to try to shake her awake, but that was not happening. On the bright side, that gave her plenty of energy for the long day that lay ahead.
As soon as we had any light we started to notice lobster traps. The radar was not very good at picking them up, and it required two sets of eyes to find a safe path in the early light. We snagged one on the keel, but it freed itself up. Luckily the motor was off, so the possibility of wrapping the line on the prop was nonexistent. In the brighter morning light it became easier and easier to see them, and when we were in a thicket of trap buoys the wind died. I was nervous about turning on the engine, but we were not making any progress, so we did. It wasn't until we were much closer to Mount Desert Island that we realized the "thicket" that we saw earlier was nothing. There were buoys everywhere, frequently just 20 feet apart, just wide enough for Salty Ginger to pass through them. Between navigation buoys, just everywhere.
Still 12 miles offshore we could see Mount Cadillac shrouded by fog. Radar and fog horn would be useful for ducking other vessels, but what about the lobster pots? As luck would have it, we saw rain, but no fog. Thank goodness for that!
We called the Bar Harbor small vessel reporting number and within 20 or 30 minutes of us tying up at the town pier in Northeast Harbor officer Hinckley came to check us into the country. He posed a bunch of questions in a stern voice, actively probing where the mothers of the two children were and whether those mothers knew that their children had just crossed the Gulf of Maine. Sasha had a letter, and while I didn't, the officer was content with our story that Margot and Peter flew into Canada with grandparents, but then Peter left with his mother, and he was looking at Margot and her dad. He allowed us to keep all the fresh food aboard as long as we eat it all, and then asked the kids what they saw along the way. When he heard about the whales he said "Isn't that cool! I never get to see them, only the harbor dolphins sometimes." A very pleasant change from official tone! We were checked in at 08:50, and could proceed with our breakfast of blueberry pancakes.
There is no way to anchor in Northeast Harbor, everything is covered with mooring balls and vessels. Since we have access to the clean marina showers, I decided to break with the tradition of washing myself aboard and went into a "normal" shower. I was stunned at the amount of water that it was pouring. I think I used less water for all the showers in the past month than during that one shower. Margot had the same reaction to showering. Life on land is different indeed.
The other shock was complete lack of trash separation. Not only did we separate plastic, cans, and paper from regular trash in Nova Scotia, they also collected organics. EVERYWHERE! In the tiniest parks, in every single place we were. Here recycling and trash go all together. Maybe one day we'll learn to make better use of trash.
And then the connectivity shock. T-Mobile provides a slow, but steady internet in Canada that's included in the plan. Now that we're in the US, T-Mobile does not provide internet through AT&T which is the only GSM provider here.
The rest of our day was consumed with the usual Acadia National Park things: eating lobster and hiking. We made it to Jordan Pond House for popovers and everyone was so tired that we crashed practically without a proper dinner.
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