Monday, July 23, 2012

Pointy end still North

We left Newport, after exploring another great New England city, and spending time with family. It was wonderful to see them all again.
Because we needed to stage for the Cape Cod Canal tides, we stopped on the West side of the canal, and anchored for the night. We left at first light (first light is at 05:30 up here) and made our way through the canal. What a ride! The tide runs at  five to six knots, and they only give you two and one half hours to go through. There is a speed limit of 10 MPH in the canal, but going with the tide, I don't know how we could go that slow without taking September Song out of gear. At a little over idle, we were making eleven to twelve knots through the canal, and we made it in 45 minutes.
After our quick trip through the Canal, and a beautiful trip up Cape Cod Bay, we moored in the harbor at Scituate, MA. We got in early enough to catch the launch, and do a little exploring. It's another neat little New England town, with lots of charm, and great lobster rolls. (haven't had my fill of lobster yet!) We had planned on spending the next day in town, but thunder storms rolled through, (they need the rain, so we can't complain) so we spent a relaxing day on the boat.
The next morning was cool, calm, and clear for our trip to Portsmouth, where we hooked up with our good friends Phred and Candy from the Keys. First stop, Phred and Candy's favorite Lobster pound. What a fun place, with delicious seafood! Steamers, mussels, and lobster. I had two. (so many lobsters, and so little time!) After all that Seafood, it was time for them to show us their favorite ice cream place. We know why these places are their favorites. Our second day, Phred and Candy came into town, we did some exploring, had dinner with them, (a break from seafood. We had pizza) and said our goodbyes, and promised to let them know when we will be headed South. We were going to spend one more day there, but the winds were going to pick up on Sunday, and we had a six hour trip out on the Atlantic to Portland, so we left Saturday morning to a clear, calm day. (We like calm!)
We are at a marina here in Portland for a week, and we have wheels. (thanks Henri) Stephanie lived here for many years, so there is going to be a lot of exploring and reminiscing. OH, and maybe a lobster or few. Already had my first here last night.

September Song (we're in Maine) out
Bob


On our way to Portsmouth, we had six foot rollers. Not a bad day, but just a little rolly.

Beautiful sailing ships up here.

A visitor, taking a rest on our bow. "You can rest little one, but don't poop on our deck"
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Sunrise in our anchorage as we left for the Cape Cod Canal.

A picture of our plotter, as we made our way through the Cape Cod Canal. Notice the 11.8 knots. We be flyin'!

A bridge over the Cape Cod Canal in the morning haze.

Lots of beautiful homes in the hills along the canal.
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Our ride into Scituate, MA.

The view from our mooring. Notice the tide line on the pilings. There are nine to ten foot tides here.

Another beautiful morning here in New England. It's so great to see kids learning to, and loving sailing at a young age. What great fun they are having! They start at around six years old, and as they progress in age and ability, they move up to larger sailboats. What a great program for kids!

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Another calm day on the Atlantic.

Keep up the good work Mr. Lobster man.

Another beautiful lighthouse in New England.
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Phred and Candy took us to their favorite seafood place in Seabrook, NH

And man was it good! Mr. piggy on the right had two.

Had to try their steamed clams and mussels!

We did some damage!
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The lighthouse as we entered Portsmouth Harbor.

The Portsmouth Naval Shipyard has been around for a long time. Oddly enough, it's actually in Maine, Kittery, Maine.

A sub in the shipyard being worked on.

Phred and Candy, arriving where we are docked. Great to see you guys!
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This lady was standing on the street corner, calling for peace. Her dress is a UN flag.

All that exploring in Porsmouth made us real thirsty!

A night off from Seafood. We found this great Pizza Pub. It was great to see you guys! See you on the way South.
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A ship, passing our dock. Not so unusual, but they have two ninety degree turns in a narrow river. one tug pushing the bow, and another pulling the stern as hard as it can to make the turns. Man, those guys are good.

The streets of Portsmouth, with all the sidewalk cafes.
 

An unusual cemetery. The doors in the wall on the street are family crypts. The street is paved right up to the doors.
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