Author Archives: Brad
Checking In
Late last night the northern reaches of Sandy passed over us here in “The Basin.” We saw gusts to 45 knots and pounding rain, but she passed us here without incident. As we laid in bed, listening to the wind howl in the rigging and the mast vibrate in the wind, we were very happy … Continue reading
Hurricane Party
On Saturday we moved Joint Venture to a tiny little bay called “The Basin.” (It’s a different “The Basin” from the one we explored by dinghy back on Vinalhaven.) After snaking our way through the hidden entrance, and avoiding some shallow spots, we arrived into a true “hurricane hole.” We are completely surrounded by tall … Continue reading
Sandy?
Even though we’re up north in Maine, we’ve still been monitoring tropical weather throughout this hurricane season. Earlier this fall, we detoured to Boston to allow Tropical Storm Leslie to clear out of the Northern Atlantic before we continued north to Maine. On Wednesday, one of the reasons we pulled into Boothbay Harbor was to … Continue reading
Closed for Business
After we left Rockland we spent one night in Tenants Harbor. From there we sailed out and around the island of Monhegan and south into Boothbay Harbor. The winds were so light in the morning that I was able to mend a loose flap on the genoa while we ghosted along. We had a fantastic … Continue reading
Leaves and Lights
After departing Warren Island we still had a lot of the Penobscot Bay that we wanted to see from the water. We’d seen a lot of the nearby towns, so now we wanted to sail through the channels and thoroughfares between the islands and explore some remote anchorages. Luckily the weather was nicer, so we … Continue reading
Searsport and Warren Island
On Saturday the 13th we spent a chilly day at the Penobscot Marine Museum in Searsport, Maine. The small town of Searsport has been home to over 500 sea captains, at one time reportedly being the port of over 10% of the U.S. sea captains, and in the 19th century supplied the most U.S. deep water … Continue reading
Castine, Maine
We awoke Sunday and we moved a little closer to the town of Castine after the strong winds abated. Sabrina went ashore and I got a chance to work on some things on the boat and catch the Cleveland Browns game on CBS (they lost.) Monday we went in early to take the walking tour … Continue reading
Fog-gedaboutit
Saturday we awoke to calm weather and I was surprised to hear that our weather zone had a “Small Craft Advisory” issued. Stranger still were the lobstermen conversing on the VHF, planning to head back to port, saying the lobsters could wait another day. In hindsight, we probably should have listened to NOAA and the … Continue reading
Strange Names…
Our last day on Mt. Desert Island was Wednesday, October 3rd. Sabrina did laundry while I washed the boat and filled our water tanks (in shorts and a t-shirt as I mentioned previously.) Upon departure we had big plans, but we only made it back to Little Cranberry Island. After two weeks of cramming as … Continue reading
Brrrrr…
A little backstory regarding Joint Venture…. back at the Annapolis Boat Show in 2008, Sabrina and I were shopping for a diesel heater, and we were shopping HARD! We had spent two winters living aboard JV- 2006 wasn’t so bad, 2007 was downright cold. In 2007 we had huge electric bills to run electric heaters … Continue reading