Maine : Penobscot Bay to Mt Desert Island

2nd August - 10th September

We spent just over five weeks in Maine and visited many delightful towns and bays, far too many to go into great detail about so, to keep it simple, I’ll just be writing about some of our highlights.

Leaving Rockland and the lobster festival behind it was time to go out and explore the many islands and sheltered coves of Penobscot Bay and those further to the north. It was a foggy morning, a real pea souper, as  we sailed across the main channel towards the Fox Island thoroughfare.The silence of our gloomy surrounds was only being  broken by the rhythmical sounds of a fog horn, warning of a close-by navigation buoy, ledge or headland. Our AIS, automatic identification system, and radar were invaluable as it tracked both fast and slow moving vessels nearby, sometimes as little as  a few hundred feet away. The thump of their engines the only give-away of their existence as they passed close by us. It was quite unnerving for we novices of fog, but fog or no fog, life on the water in Maine just seems to go on as normal. 

 

As we made our way up the winding channel , the fog started to lift and the some of the rustic  homes and small villages which lined the shore came into view.

After spending one night in Carver Cove we moved on to Seal Bay, which is described in the guide book as having “unspoiled scenic beauty and secluded charm”. The book was right and Seal Bay turned out to be one of our favorite anchorages.The entrance was a bit of a dogleg around a few big boulders and ledges,  but once inside the surrounds were extremely pretty with pine trees all around and the odd seal basking on the rocks. A few other boats had obviously read the blurb in the book as well and we shared the bay with about ten like minded yachts. Being the only boat in the anchorage not sporting the star spangled banner from the stern is a dead giveaway that you’re not a local. The other giveaway is that we are a catamaran, a bit of a rarity in these waters.

  

Not long after anchoring a friendly chap rowed across to say hello and gave us a few tips on how to harvest some of the  succulent wild mussels that grew just below the low tide mark on the ledges behind us. He assured us that once we’d tasted them we’d be hooked and he invited us to join he and his friends at their next anchorage if we were heading that way. We spent a couple of nights in Seal Bay and then moved on travelling north towards Mt Desert Island.

Maine is the home of Hinckley Yachts and they are definitely the flavor of the month up here. Without fail just about every dark blue hulled yacht that you see comes from the Hinckley Stable and there sure are a lot of them.The elegant lines of these traditional sloops and ketches are very pleasing to the eye. Even the grunty tug-type powerboats  have a certain type of charm. And there is certainly no such thing as the tupperware sports fishing boats up here. In fact, there must be a magical line somewhere just south of the state border that prohibits them from coming to this part of the world, and it sure is  nice not to have  them  go roaring past you without any regard for their wake, as is the norm  down in the southern states.

           

The further north we sailed the more evident the huge tidal range became. Maine has huge tides of around 12ft plus, something that you really have to bear in mind when anchoring or going ashore. Luckily we have wheels on our dinghy so if the tide goes out while we’re off on a hike, then we just wheel it back down to the water and that sure beats trying to carry/drag it over rocks and through mud.

   

The town of Stonington on the eastern shore of Penobscot Bay is your classic lobster village. No  pleasure craft call this place home. Seeing  the multitudes of working lobster boats and quite a few lobster pounds (the local name for the co-ops), we decided that this would be a good place  to stop a while, have a spot of lunch and buy a few lobby’s. Little did we know that this was actually the best place in the whole area to buy them.

 

After getting directions from some thick accented Lobstermen as to which pound sold to the public,  we trotted off ready to part with a few more dollars. The lobsters were coming  straight off the boats and they were huge. Paying between $4-$7 per pound Liam picked out a couple of beauties. It’s amazing when you see just how many lobsters are in each crate and how many crates there are at the pound, you’d think that there can’t be any more lobsters left out there, but there are. The sea floor must literally be crawling with them. Apparently each lobsterman is allowed to have 800 lobster cages each. That’s a lot of lobsters! We left town with six lobsters, two of which were destined for our tummies that evening.

     

      

       

                                                                                                                                                                                                              The next few days were pretty overcast and cool, so we stayed put in a cozy anchorage that we found on Swan Island. Reading, doing chores, watching dvd’s and of course eating lobsters  filled in the time rather nicely. When the weather improved we moved over to Southwest Harbour at the bottom of  Mt Desert Island .The place read rather good and we needed a few supplies as well as a couple of things from the West Marine chandlery, so a night stop was in order. The town itself was pretty small but it had all the necessary stuff including a nice homely Inn where we enjoyed a light lunch on their terrace.The lobster theme had found its way into the most unlikely places here including an ice cream shop and the Chinese restaurant. I guess it’s tough luck if you don’t like lobster, but then who doesn’t.

 

Our next stop was Bar Harbor, and this would be the furthest easterly port that we would visit in Maine.The eight mile run up to Bar Harbour under screecher and sunny skies was just what we needed after a couple of overcast days.There’s nothing like sunshine and a good breeze to lift your spirits, mind you we had to be on our toes with all the lobster pots that were about. Most yachts in Maine have wire cages fitted around their propellers so as not to entangle themselves in the maze of pots. For us, sailing or even motoring in these waters was quite challenging at times and the shortcut that we took through Eastern Way was one of those times.

 

Just after anchoring in the harbor, we heard a  voice over the VHF radio, one that we’d not heard  since back in Thailand in 2008. It was the dulcet tones of Greg from the yacht Erin Brie. Now what are the odds of both boats being in this part of Maine at the same time?

Despite reading negative reports in a magazine article saying that Bar Harbour was a bit of a zoo, we found it just the opposite. It is a lovely town and a popular tourist stop being the base town for the Acadia National Park which is pretty much the reason most  people come to the island. Dominating the skyline are Mounts Cadillac, Dory and Champlain and with hundreds of paths, trails and inland lakes it’s no wonder that hiking, cycling, climbing and kayaking are the favored pastimes here. We spent four days here exploring the town and what was on offer.Taking one of  the several free bus routes around the island and the park saw us head up to Jordon Pond for lunch. The cafe here, actually it’s the only one in the park, had both indoor and outdoor seating, but for us it just had to be a table in the great outdoors on the grass by the lake. With such a stunning setting it seemed crazy that anyone would want to sit inside.

  

Town itself was charming with lots of interesting shops, plenty of homewares and  Christmas ones, some good restaurants and bars and lovely parks. The Hannaford’s supermarket was an easy stroll from the anchorage and we even lashed out and bought a digital TV box so at last we could watch American TV in the comfort of our own boat. That was just pure bliss! 

                                                                                    

           

                               

                                                                                                                                                                                   

Once again it was time to move on. There was a whole lot more to see on Mt Desert Island as well as the northern parts of Penobscot Bay…so many bays, so little time.

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MAINE : where it’s all about the Lobsters

2nd August –10th September.                                                                                

Heading north from Provincetown on Cape Cod we were pretty alert to the fact that we were about to sail through an area known as the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary, and  share the road with some of the world’s largest mammals. This area is the summer feeding grounds of  the North Atlantic Right Whale and the world’s most endangered species, the Humpback Whale. At this time of year there a lots of these magnificent creatures out there going about their business, so getting up close and personal, although it can be a little bit nerve wracking, is definitely not a problem. As we crossed the banks with a following breeze and our kite flying,  we could hear the haunting sound of their calls and saw about half a dozen of these big fellas, some just cruising along the surface and some breaching. And these guys are huge. We looked like a toy boat in a bathtub compared to them, one flick of their monstrous tails and it would have been hasta luego for us. It was a truly awesome sight. 

Leaving our friends the whales behind, it was time to get on with some serious sailing. At just over 140miles ‘till our next landfall we wanted to cover a lot of ground  before the wind swung around to the northeast  as was predicted. With flat seas and a steady wind just off our port quarter we slipped along nicely under a full main and kite until nightfall when we doused the kite and set the jib. We have a “no kite at night” policy on GWTW and it works  extremely well for this half of the crew. In the early hours of the morning the wind died completely and then clocked around to the northeast, bringing with it a heavy dose of fog as well as some very cold temperatures.

Visibility was down to about 100ft so on went our radar and out came our fog horn. Conditions stayed liked that ‘till 10am when slowly the fog started to lift and we caught our first glimpses of Maine. As we motored up Penobscot Bay we were welcomed by a few dolphins, some ever so cute seals, and for as far as the eye could see a carpet of colourful lobster pots. We watched with curiosity as  lobstermen busied themselves pulling in their traps and marvelled at the  numerous pine clad rocky outcrops, or ledges as they are called up here, that dotted the shoreline. After sailing 1500 miles from Fort Lauderdale, we had  finally arrived in magnificent Maine. 

                                                                        

                                                                                                                     

The sailing season up here is relatively short with the best time being  July to mid September. After then the weather starts to get really cold, the fog rolls in and basically this part of Maine just packs up and goes home for the winter. Having spent many hours poring over guide books and magazine articles on where to start, end and generally cruise whilst in Maine, we decided to make a bee-line north and concentrate most of our time in and around the northern area of Maine between Penobscot Bay and Mt Desert Island, as we could take in the sights of southern Maine on our trip back down. The Penobscot region is said to have some of the best cruising grounds in Maine and it certainly did not disappoint. Stretching  between  latitudes 43.59N and 44.59N, there are literally hundreds of quiet bays and small fishing villages where you can choose between chilling out on the boat or exploring ashore. We did our fair share of both.

Our first port of call was a charming  historic village named Camden. It is a picture postcard type town with friendly people, an interesting assortment of shops, restaurants and backdrop of pine clad hills. As our first introduction to Maine it was just perfect.

The shipping and shipbuilding industries made Camden prosperous before the civil war and then in the 1880’s the wealthy from Boston, New York and Washington discovered the area as the perfect place to escape the intense summer heat and began building their beautiful summer homes here. One hundred years later Camden was named one of ten best places to retire. Today this little town where the mountains meet the sea has adopted the slogan “Maine, the way life should be”, and it suits this whole area down to a tee. The weekends see lots of tourists flock in, but despite that we spent a couple of days here soaking up the feel of the place and we enjoyed meeting a few of the very friendly locals and partaking in the odd bowl of clam chowder at one of the waterfront taverns. Then it was  time to head down to Rockland, where the festival that we’d sailed all the way from Florida for was about to get underway. Before we arrived up here we pretty much thought of Maine as being full of nice towns, which it is, pine trees everywhere, which there are and lots of rugged shorelines. What we didn’t realise was just how big the lobster industry was. Annie had read months ago about the Rockland Lobster Festival on the internet and thought it could be fun. As it turns out it is THE biggest event on the festival calendar of Maine all year, and come hell or high water we weren’t about to miss it.

Maine Lobster Festival : Rockland, August 3-7

 

 

Pulling into the harbour at Rockland the scene was impressive, there were well  over one hundred yachts anchored in the bay, the most we’d seen for a long time. The Navy had brought up one of their destroyers from Norfolk for public tours during the festival, and a ferris wheel towered over the entertainment stage and the harbour-front park. The local radio station regularly announced what would be happening on shore during  the festival  so we had a good idea of what to expect. Even though the day was a bit overcast, we were all set to have a good time. Heading ashore around lunchtime, it didn’t take us long to find the big white lobster tent. Really, you just had to follow your nose, literally, as the  distinctive smell of cooking lobsters wafted through the air.

                      

There was quite a big lineup but the queue moved at a good pace and it wasn’t  before long before we sat down with  dozens of other happy lobster eaters eager to tuck into our first Maine lobster. It was a rather messy but tasty affair and after a while and three lobsters later, we definitely were in the swing, eating lobbies like a pro.

While we were wrestling with these big red crustations a film crew arrived on the scene. They were looking for a novel story for the Boston evening news.

Hearing our non American accents they came over to interview us and were most astounded as to where we were from, how we’d got to Maine and how on earth we knew to be in Rockland this particular weekend. Well as they say, the rest is history. Our brief interview  aired on the telly that night with Liam’s suggestion for next year’s festival a true show stealer. Click on this link below to see our 40 seconds of fame  but you have to watch the lobster news clip all the way to the end : http://www.necn.com/08/04/11/Rockland-Lobster-Festival-kicks-off/landing_newengland.html?blockID=546078&feedID=4206&

our 40seconds of fame

Feeling as full as a goog we took a stroll through the rest of the festival grounds. It was a mixture of fair grounds, craft stalls, exhibitions and eating stands. A fun filled atmosphere where lobsters were the dominant theme, there were lobster xmas ornaments, lobster tea-towels, lobster jewellery, lobster soft toys, lobster patterned dog collars and so the list went on. The state of Maine is for sure lobster-centric.

 

Later that evening dressed for cold and damp weather, we returned to listen to a concert put on by the Jimmy Buffet Revival Band. All the parrot heads, that’s what they call the J B fans who dress up in Hawaiian shirts etc, were there dressed up to the nines in their Jimmy Buffet attire. As the show went on some of the crowd took to the dance floor and even those seated, like us, bopped along to all the familiar tunes.

              

After a while the rain came tumbling down but the band played on and  the crowd stayed, we were all having way too much of a good time.B y the time we got back to GWTW we were pretty well soaked through, but boy had we had a great time, and yes I'd sail all the way back up there to do it all again. The following morning we headed back into the festival again but this time it was to join in the fun at the “all you can eat pancake breakfast”.

Wow, what a great way it was to start the day. Piping hot blueberry pancakes, maple syrup, fresh juice and coffee.These folk sure know how to feed the patrons, no wonder the festival draws such a crowd each year. Inspired by our first taste of lobster we decided to give cooking them ourselves a go. So off we trotted to the lobster store and bought a couple of big ones. There are two types of lobsters up here, hard shell and soft shell or shedders as they are called. The soft ones are sweeter but the hards have alot more meat, just have harder shells to crack. With some good instructions from the lady in the shop on how long to steam them we tried our hand at it for dinner.. the results were mouthwatering. Liam did a great job cooking them up, and from that moment on we were hooked and would be helping support the lobster industry in Maine for as long as we stayed.

                 

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Cruising Info : Formalities: While in Maine call CBP in on  # 207 532 2131 each time you change anchorages, NB the AT&T network is patchy in some parts of Maine. Supermarkets: Camden : French & Brown grocery on cnr of Main & Elm St. Rockland: Shaw’s supermarket is about 30mins walk out of town on Camden Street. Fuel: The Landings marina $3.89 per gal if buying over 100g (very good price) Lobsters : from any lobster pound, prices vary for hard or soft shelled lobbies.

 

 

 

Provincetown, Cape Cod

30th July-1st August

As we left Newport just before 8am the fog that had been hanging around each morning was just starting to lift. There was not a breath of wind so for the next 12 miles we had the iron sails pushing us along. Our plan was to head up towards the Cape Cod Canal  roughly 42 miles further north, find a good bay for the night and transit the canal the following day. The canal, which is about 10 miles long,  is a shortcut from Buzzards Bay at the north end of Long Island Sound through to the southern end of the New England area, and this means that you don’t have to go back out into the Atlantic Ocean and sail 80 miles out and around Cape Cod. About an hour out of Newport the breeze started to build and as an added bonus  it was from the right direction. We had a terrific sail for the rest of the day, arriving at the canal entrance at 3pm. Being earlier than we had planned we decided to push on through and try to make Provincetown before dark.Timing the tide to run with you is a big factor in any  canal transit and this one was no different. The tide rushes through here at about 6 knots and although, at the start of our transit we did have it against us, by the time we’d gone only a few miles the tide had turned to run north and we started to rocket along.

Gliding past the pine tree clad banks of the canal  we were suddenly enveloped in cool air. It was as if someone had opened the fridge door and left it open. At last we were leaving the oppressive  heat of the southern states and the change of temperature was most welcome. Nestled behind the trees along  the canal shores were huge RV parks where happy campers sat in their deck chairs and waved as we went past. A walkway on the waters edge saw cyclists , rollerbladers and dog walkers enjoying  what was left of this lovely summers afternoon.

  

  

Reaching the end of the canal the Cape Cod shoreline disappeared into the distance on our right while the state of Massachusetts stretched off  to our left. We still had about 20 miles to run across the bay to Provincetown and with the light starting to fade we were glad that we made it in just as the sun was setting  at 8pm.The bay was very crowded with the prime spots close to town being taken up by a mooring field, but we found a place  over towards the sandy beach and  dropped the anchor in 57ft. Having gotten very used to the shallow water depths all along the east coast from Florida the depth here was a bit of a shock and took our minds back to our days in Turkey, where anchoring in  60ft plus was pretty much norm. After the long days’ sail we decided to have a relaxing evening on board and  leave going ashore ‘till the following day.

The morning light brought with it a bright sunny day, perfect for a look around town.  Provincetown or P-town as the locals call it, is a haven for the Gay community with many holidayers coming across on the fast ferry from Boston, only 40 miles to the  northwest. P-town is situated  inside the hook at the very northern end of Cape Cod and is part of the Cape Cod National Seashore that was established by President J F Kennedy back in the 60’s. It has beautiful sandy  beaches and endless walking and bike paths making it a great spot to come and chill out. But before we could venture ashore, there were the usual boat chores to attend to and heading today's list was to check both of our Yanmar engines which lay under each of our aft beds. And just as the title of the Harrison Ford movie “What Lies Beneath” suggests, you  also never know what  nasties may be lurking beneath our mattresses. Well, we soon discovered that a shore excursion was to be put back a few hours as one of our hot water tanks had broken free from it’s supportive housing and was dangling procarresly by it’s water hoses. This was a major, major that needed Liam’s urgent and undivided  attention. Lucky for us Liam, or Joseph the carpenter as I call him, loves a challenge, so off to his tool shed in the bow he went and after a few solid hours of toiling he had fashioned a  lovely set of wooden legs and supports that anyone in the timber trade would be proud of. I always new that the big piece of timber that we’d been carrying around the planet since leaving Sydney back in 2006 would come in handy one day! And seeing as how one tank had broke free there was no use waiting for the other one to do likewise, so it also got a housing makeover and a new set of legs, to be sure , to be sure. See, it’s not always fun and games out here.

So our day ashore turned turned into an evening ashore instead. By the time we got in there P-town was in full swing, it  was alive and vibrant. The streets, cafes and bars were overflowing with revellers, some in varying degrees of attire. Buskers belted out tunes from the sidewalks and the whole place seemed to be in party mode. There were  lots of entertainment venues with posters advertising  live theatre shows and the promise of a good night. Free tickets were handed out to Annie, however the show  wasn’t due to start for a couple more hours and  given the tough day we’d, well Liam had just had, we figured a nice meal, a chilled glass of wine and some people watching would suit us down to the ground.    

   

So after a great evening ashore, once again we retired back to our floating home ready to take on whatever tomorrow might bring. One thing we knew for sure was that we’d  be doing an overnight passage to the place that we’d looked forward to going to for a very long time … Maine.

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CRUISING INFO: Formalities. Call CBP Holton Maine on 207 532 2131.You will need to call this number each time you change anchorages throughout the entire New England area, ie Massachusetts & Maine. Other: Sorry no other info for this stop, so just have fun in  P-town.

Newport , Rhode Island
27th-30th July                                                                                                                            

After a great run with the screecher from Block Island, duelling with Remi De along the way, we arrived into the very busy bay of Newport, Rhode Island. Newport is the legendary and former home of the “Auld Mug”, the “Americas Cup”. And fittingly, as we sailed up the bay sporting our Boxing Kangaroo flag, we were welcomed by the magnificent sight of a squadron of elegant retired old ladies, several 12 metre racing yachts, criss-crossing our path as we headed toward our anchorage in Brenton Cove. Turning into the bay, the scene ahead of us was dominated by a field of mooring balls, as is the way in many of the more popular east coast ports. Still, we managed to find a spot big enough that worked just fine.
                   
Along the way to the anchorage we once again gazed, somewhat gob smacked, at the size and number of massive summer homes. Some of these places occupy land that would cover a small golf course, and there are simply dozens of them around these parts. Clearly, Newport is a desired address for many well-to-do Americans.
Amongst our priorities on arrival was getting our 15 hp outboard back into action, it had died in Block Island, cause unknown, and being without the family car makes our life somewhat tough. Luckily, there was a local outfit prepared to come and collect the motor, fix it, and return it the same day, sounded pretty damn good to us. So, after Bruce from Remi De towed us in to the nearest dock, we handed over the Mercury 15 to the local experts (???) and off we trekked  to explore downtown Newport. The visitors centre seemed like a  a good place to start so, along with friends from Wings, Deb and Terry, we decided to take  a tour of one of the many mansions. Hopping onto one of the local sightseeing trolley buses and armed with cameras and maps,  we headed off to the the house that was previously the home to the fabulously wealthy Vanderbilt  family.

We have been very impressed by the wealth and the vastness of properties all along the east coast but none such as those in Newport, and the Vanderbilt’s “The Breakers”, perched on the cliffs overlooking the sea was an outstanding example. Open to the public for a modest fee, as are many such mansions, the tour inside and around the grounds was somewhat surreal…it is so BIG and LAVISH, but don’t just take our word for it, Google it and see for yourself.  Unfortunately no photographs were allowed inside. Cornelius Vanderbilt, like many of his neighbors, had far too much money, and, aided by European experts, created what we considered  was a way-over-the-top “summer cottage”. The detail, craftsmanship and quality are unsurpassed, and I guess it was chic in it’s day. But really…do you need 70 rooms, 40 odd servants and running salt and fresh hot water? Still, it was impressive, and well worth a visit.
Later that afternoon, true to his word, Randy (yep, that was his name) delivered our outboard back  and sure enough, it started first go…excellent. And it went brilliantly for around 200 yards, and  then coughed and died, just as we approached  the stern of GWTW…bugger!  A quick  phone call back to Randy and he agreed to come by next morning, his diagnosis – crap in the fuel system related to the ethanol in  domestic USA gasoline. Solution – replace the fuel tank, the fuel lines and toss out any unused fuel. Liam did this with the exception of the tank, which he cleaned out thoroughly, and the squeeze fuel primer (a  big mistake we later discovered) and, using some of Randy’s tips, Liam soon became proficient at pulling down the carby, cleaning it and putting it back together. Randy, an expert, charged us $250 for 2 1/2 hours work, whereas our GWTW in house Mr Fix-it did it first time in less than 2 hours, and at no cost, and got progressively quicker each time thereafter, maybe Liam  should consider a new vocation in outboard mechanics.
 
Over the next few days along with Remi De and friends from another cat, Daydreamer, we did lots of walking, probably about 5 miles in total. Strolling along the well beaten cliff top pathway we enjoyed seeing a few more of the mansions and chatted with a couple of locals along the way.

We worked up quite an appetite  and following the recommendation of some fellow walkers headed back to town to the Fastnet Irish pub, which proved to be a great lunch venue where hearty food and cold drinks went down a treat after a couple of hours of sightseeing. Rounding off our big day out we ogled at the expansive lawns and buildings of the Newport annex of the New York Yacht Club, and soaked up as much of the nautical history of the place our time would allow, it was pretty cool really for those of us interested in sailing
Evenings  in town were very vibrant, lots of busy cafes serving a variety of foods, with seafood a definite  favorite on most of the menus. Getting to the restaurants was a  challenge though, the dingy dock in the town centre was rather small and generally chocker.

 
 
You needed to be pretty agile to  clamber over  the other dinghies to get to the dock, not too bad on the way in, but it was a little more challenging on the way back, especially after a bit of  socializing with friends. We had a good time one afternoon at the Black Pearl restaurant on the waterfront, great clam chowder, friendly welcoming people and an easy spot to sit and  people-watch as the tourists boarded the old schooners for their sunset cruises on the bay. 
Newport, like many other places where we’ve stopped, continued the “Welcome to America” feel we have enjoyed now since Fort Lauderdale. We are often asked where we are from, do we need assistance, and are  always encouraged to “have a good one”! We like it, it’s a nice touch that is certainly lacking in a lot of the  other countries that we’ve been.
While Newport is something of a sailing Mecca, there are also dozens of power superyachts…boats over 100 feet long and usually much larger.They adorn the docks and must bring heaps of money to the local economy. A few large sail yachts were here too, but they were seriously out numbered by their motored cousins. Still, there was something for everyone  who were interested in taking a leisurely walk  along the foreshore and gawking at whatever was tied alongside. Naturally, as in any tourist hot spot, there were any number of shops happy to sell you T-shirts, tea towels,nick nacks etc, it’s definitely  not a problem finding a memento of the place before you depart.
Our next stop is Provincetown on Cape Cod, a place with something of a colourful reputation, and it promises to be very different from “traditional” Newport. So it’s “goodbye” to elegant yachting attire and hello to “anything goes”…should be fun!
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Cruising Info: Formalities: Call CBP on arrival on 207 532 2906. Supermarkets: A small convenience store is on Thames St along the waterfront or a large Stop and Shop about a half mile walk up hill to Bellevue Ave. The trolley bus from the visitors centre stops at the stop and shop as well. Local Attractions: The Herreshoff Museum, The Museum of Yachting, The Tennis Hall of Fame and the Wooden Boat Building Yard are all within a short distance of the anchorage. Other: West Marine and Wall-Mart about 2 miles away on the bus, check at the visitors centre.      Laundry: Machines and dryers are available  at the Seaman’s  Church Institute.