Rockland Maine-Portsmouth, NH

Rockland Maine-Portsmouth, NH

This leg required the longest segment fully exposed in the Atlantic of this cruise. There were 5 foot seas abeam all night, but with stabilizers deployed on the ship and slowing down we slept well. It calmed down cruising up the Piscatauga (say that three times fast) today there are Small Craft Advisories with winds to 30 knots, so not a C-Dory day. This river runs at the national record of up to 13 MPH (the max for the Mississippi is 3-4 MPH at New Orleans).

Once on the River conditions calmed down. There is still some fog, but not as bad as in Rockland, Maine.

Every breakfast menu includes a variation on two Eggs Benedict, today with jumbo lump Blue Crab, yesterday with Lobster. We can share that plate 1 with one serving each. There are fresh local seafood options at every meal, including breakfast. The meals and service (gratuities all included) are outstanding…I guess they should be for the price….

Shore excursions included a self guided tour of the Navy experimental Albacore submarine, the historic downtown shopping district, and a historic collection of restored 1795 homes and businesses called ‘Strawbery Banke’ near the river (all free with your ACL lanyard ID). By evening it was again C-Dory calm on the river and SCA ended.

The more we see of these ports, the more doable it seems on your own C-Dory. We’re still scared of sailing out the mouth of the St Lawrence and hitting the Atlantic Ocean’s waves across fetch all the way from England, and rounding Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, and the 30 foot tides in the Bay of Fundy. That loop is 2,400 miles long. I need to do more research on that to confirm it’s not trailer boat territory.

If you get a notice that I’ve planted a new footprint, realize it can take 24 hours to get the pics and (esp) video uploaded to complete it…the ship wifi bandwidth constricts after dinner.Read more