Advice for Cruisers From Cruisers
One the most picturesque and secluded bays for peace and quiet for the best Maine has to offer.
On the quiet, west side of Mount Desert Island, active Southwest Harbor is one of Maine’s top destinations for cruisers under sail and power. If you believe in the Goldilocks principle — Southwest Harbor is one of those great Maine harbor-and-town combos that’s “just right”.
Bar Harbor offers a host of services, including a well-staffed hospital emergency room, a well-organized harbor with municipal moorings and a friendly harbormaster, and even some wifi wafting out from the resorts complementing strong cellular service.
Northeast Harbor is a well-protected, attractive harbor on Mount Desert Island and provides the full range of amenities needed by visiting yachters. It is the furthest east port in Maine to do so. It also offers extensive shore-side activities, including easy access to Acadia National Park.
The head of Winter Harbor has three separate coves, which represent the range of boating in Maine.
Somes Sound is the only fjord on the eastern Atlantic seaboard. At the head of the fjord lies graceful Somes Harbor, where the shoreline levels.
In a bight, about 6½ miles in from the Isles of Shoals, lies Fort Point, New Castle, New Hampshire and the entrance to Portsmouth Harbor at the mouth of the Piscataqua River. This river, with swift currents and a tidal range of 9-11 feet, forms a border between New Hampshire and Maine.
Roque Island Archipelago has enjoyed a well-deserved and well-earned mythical status. Located at the mouth of the Bay of Fundy, just around the corner from our country’s northern border with Canada, this collection of barrier islands is far beyond the cruiser’s comfort zone of marinas, mooring balls, dinghy docks, and access to support services.
North Haven is a quintessential Maine island with a mix of friendly island residents and well-heeled summer folk. It has rugged lobster boats, well-kept yachts of all shapes and sizes, charming village streets, and all manner of summer “cottages.”
Six miles up the west side of the Sheepscot River, Robinhood Cove (also known as Riggs Cove) is a well-protected harbor with a full-service marina. It’s quieter, prettier, and more secluded than nearby Boothbay.
This is the biggest little city in the Penobscot Bay area. It has services galore for visiting yachts and a lively arts community. This, along with several fine restaurants and wide array of provisioning options, makes it the ideal place for getting things done and enjoying yourself simultaneously.
Uninhabited Cross Island, along with Scotch, Outer Double Head Shot, Inner Double Head Shot, Mink, and Old Man Islands that surround it, is a National Wildlife Refuge (one of five Maine Coastal Islands National Wildlife Refuges) encompassing approximately 1700 acres. A few acres around the abandoned Coast Guard boathouse and house were given to the Hurricane Island Outward Bound School. It makes a great stop while Down East to go hiking and soak in the views or just relax in a place where you’ll likely be the only boat.
Pulpit is one of Maine’s classic “must-see” harbors. It’s a safe anchorage in nearly all conditions, has beautiful surroundings, and offers mesmerizing views of the Camden Hills at sunset. And it’s centrally located on the coastal route up and down Penobscot Bay.
The small, tenacious community of Frenchboro is a long standing and constantly evolving tribute to the working people who settled and call home the remote outer perimeter of the three thousand islands along the Maine coastline. From cockpit level your eyes appreciate the small prim well-cared-for houses of the village that line the road. The […]
Smith Cove is a gem of a destination with abundant room, great holding, and excellent protection (and a decent cellular signal).
One of Maine’s most scenic estuaries, the Damariscotta River is also a place of peaceful beauty, especially on a day with fog or stormy conditions on the ocean just outside.
Bucks Harbor is a well protected harbor at the western end of the Eggmoggin Reach that is well protected on all sides.
Often passed by, this tight, well-protected, and largely undeveloped anchorage offers boats passing east or west a convenient stopping-off point on the east side of Casco Bay without having to head farther up the New Meadows River.
Long Cove at the northern tip of Orr’s Island is a marvelously secluded and quiet cove – used by locals as a hurricane hole.
The calm waters in the Ovens Mouth basin provide a peaceful anchorage away from fog and tourists and a body of water conducive to paddle boarding, kayaking, or dinghy sailing.
Anchoring in the Cranberries offers one of the most majestic sights in Maine – a view of sunsets over the Acadia National Park mountains from your own boat.
York Harbor is a small but well-protected harbor about halfway between Cape Elizabeth and Cape Ann.
McGlathery is a 140-acre conservation island in the southeastern quadrant of the stunning Merchant Row archipelago. It is an easy and convenient place to spend one or more nights enjoying this spectacular area.
Falmouth Foreside represents an attractive and reasonably priced alternative for cruisers visiting the Portland area seeking a quieter anchorage with many of the city’s amenities.