We’re on the move again! We left Marblehead on Monday July 24 and plan to cruise in Maine for 2 to 3 weeks. Our first stop was the Isles of Shoals, about 8 miles off Portsmouth on the Maine / New Hampshire border. We’ve sailed here before but not for over 30 years, and didn’t really remember anything about it other than it being impossible to anchor on the solid granite bottom!

The anchorage has a reputation for being very busy, and hard to get a mooring. Luckily on a Monday night it was less so, and we were able to pick up an empty Portsmouth Yacht Club mooring with no trouble. Apparently if a member of PYC shows up later they can ask you to move. Not sure how that works out if someone comes in at dusk!

These islands were an important fishing hub two hundred years ago. They feel remote, but there was once a thriving community here. A tiny graveyard containing the graves of three little girls who died within a couple of weeks of each other reminds one of how hard life here must have been. Now there is a religious retreat and a marine laboratory. We were planning an early start the next day so didn’t launch the dinghy, but I inflated a paddle board and went ashore for a look around.

Next morning we left before sunrise to sail to Tenant’s Harbor, Maine. Our stop at the Isles of Shoals meant that this was a very do-able 90 mile trip, which we completed in exactly 12 hours. We anchored in Long Cove and settled in to enjoy a peaceful evening. We had a slow start the next morning and I was able to take my paddleboard out to explore one of the adjacent islands.

We set off late morning towards Muscle Ridge Channel. We’ve been through the channel many times but never stopped. As it was a calm day, we decided to make a lunch stop at High Island Harbor, between a few small islands beside the channel. We’ve often looked at it before and thought it would be a nice place to stop, but never have. This was a peaceful spot, and we were able to explore ashore one of the islands which is part of the Maine Islands Trail. The weather remained good and the anchorage was protected so we decided to stay overnight.