August cruise
Last week we took what’s likely our last long cruise of the season aboard Cupcake. It occurred to me as we were at anchor in lovely Quahog Bay (east of Snow Island, for those of you keeping score) that we have taken for granted how easily we can access these magnificent places. When Cupcake sells, we won’t be able to spend a week floating in paradise. So the trip was a little bittersweet.
Ellen hoisted me up the mast so I could replace the Wind Dex (turns out it’s not spelled “Windex” after all) that the osprey destroyed. I got the model with the bird spike on top. The idea behind the bird spike is it should deter the birds from sitting on the mast. I sharpened our spike and am hoping it gets the osprey right in the cloaca. Look that one up yourself.
We also realized that although we covered around 5,000 miles in 2018-2019, this year we haven’t got the interest in going much farther than 15 miles or so. Our wanderlust has waned. But the pleasure we get from parking for a week in a delightful anchorage will never.
On Friday we moved from Quahog Bay to Long Cove so Simon and our buddy Matthew could meet us for dinner. Moss rowed to pick them up at shore, and after dinner we took Simon back to the car. Matthew stayed with us for the sail home, which turned out to be a delightful run where we got to fly the asymmetrical for a while before the wind shifted and we were able to tack our way out of Harpswell Sound, sail through the twisty passage to Potts Harbor, and then sail a delightful beam reach past the Goslings, Lower Goose Island, Upper Goose Island, and finally Sister and Williams Islands to home.
Moss has really taken charge of her little boat Moon Cracker. She insisted on rowing everyone everywhere and is becoming a skilled oars-person.
Moon Cracker is painted Bikini Blue inside. Note the red line. Moss decided her boat was too valuable for her to trust the single pennant. Or pendant. I’m unclear which is correct. Each denotes a line on a ship hanging from the mast. In any event, Moon Cracker has an attentive captain.
Simon and I are about two hours of work away from finishing his little Dyer. No name for her yet but doesn’t she look fabulous in Kelly Green? We built new forward and mid thwarts from scrap mahogany I had lying around the shop. Moon Cracker is a lightweight because I built her using cedar (except for the teak transom) so she would be easier to carry up and down the beach. Simon’s boat is more of a heavyweight.
