Category: boats

'scene' along the way, boats, Camping, fun, go with the flow, Just do it, natural wonders, perseverance, photography, road trip, travel, weather

Perkins Cove…

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If I hadn’t dithered so long in the gift shop at Nubble I wouldn’t have even known that Perkins Cove existed, which would have been a shame.  I asked the clerk for suggestions of other places to go for photos, and her face just lit up when she mentioned Perkins Cove.

I knew I’d love it as soon as I drove into the little town.  Like Kennebunk and Ogunquit, the shops and restaurants were charming, sitting as they were at the docks with sailboats tied up, just waiting for someone to sail them away.  And lots of people about too, I half expected Jessica Fletcher to pop out of the little book store, and if you know who that is then you are old, like me!PerkinsflowersPerkinsfrom the bridgePerkinshousesPerkinscommingthrough

Do you see that the bridge is up?  The controls are on the bridge and a sign says that only adults can operate it. The sign called it a pedestrian bridge, so maybe it’s up all the time until someone wants to cross it.  Unlike the campground which is emptying out, this town was full of tourists, shopping in the pretty shops or having lunch on the porches of the waterfront restaurants.

But it was Marginal Way that had caught my attention.  A mile long ‘cliff walk’ overlooking the ocean.  I was so lucky to be there on such a perfect day.PerkinscovePerkinshousescenePerkinssailboat2PerkinssailboatscenePerkins2benchesPerkinslighthouseThis is Little Beach Light, it sits at about the halfway point in your walk.  I just loved it.

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I spent a lot of time waiting for this paddle boarder to decide to ride a wave so I could try for some action shots.  Maybe he was shy because he kept letting them go by.  And maybe I’m not the only senior citizen who doesn’t seem to know enough to act their age.

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My last shot of the visit, taken while sitting on a bench with my back to the parking lot, and eating a coffee kahlua brownie ice cream cone.  The sun felt wonderful, almost too warm and then you’d feel the breeze and it was perfect.

'scene' along the way, boats, Camping, finding my way, perseverance, photography, road trip, strangers become friends, Uncategorized

Wells Marina…

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I have a new facebook friend named Phil.  He is a friend of a friend, and he is who we called upon when I needed to refill the propane canister on the pop up.  The canister was stuck, I couldn’t get the screw loose (no comments here please), and even when I got the wing nut off, the screw and the metal strap that holds the tank in place seemed to be cemented to the tank.  Phil is an old hand at a lot of things, and he strolled up the driveway holding the biggest set of channel locks that I’d ever seen.  He paid no attention to the screw, and when I pointed out what I thought the problem was he said no, the screw was welded on there.  He went for the metal strap that held the tank, and had it liberated in no time flat.  And then he bent the strap so that it would be easy to strap the tank back on after I had it refilled.  I so appreciate the help, but at the same time I hate when I’m left standing there with a screwdriver in my hand, feeling stupid for thinking it was the tool for the job.

Well, I heard from Phil the other day, he asked if some of my pictures from the Fisherman’s co-op that I posted were taken in Wells, Maine.  He said there is a marina there, and a very nice restaurant also.  So on my way home from Nubble I realized I was passing through Wells, ME and saw a sign for the Fisherman’s Catch, and hung a right to check it out.   Had a nice lunch at that restaurant, sitting with a German couple who were delighted to hear about my granddaughter enjoying her life in Munich.  Nice company, but the lunch couldn’t compare to Red’s Eats.  But I continued down the road and that’s when I found the marina, and the restaurant I think Phil meant, and wished I’d gone further down the road before I ate.  But thanks Phil, for fixing the tank, and for the heads up about the Wells Marina.  What started out as a not-very-promising day just kept getting better!Wellsmarina2Wellsmarina3Wellsmarina5Wellsmarina6Wellsmarina7

There have been so many painters out and about on this trip.  In Boston, but more so in Maine.  Guess I’m not the only one enamored with this rocky coastline.  And I stopped at a quilt shop that I happened to pass the other day and picked up a panel of fabric with pictures of that coastline.  I’ll have fun with that when I get home.  And I will, get home I mean, eventually…

boats, bucket list, Camping, finding my way, moments, nature, perseverance, photography, road trip, sunrise, travel

Good morning…

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Life is simple, right?  If you are on the East coast then obviously just go to the beach and enjoy the sunrise.  But it’s never that simple.  I walked out onto Pine Point Beach expecting a great view, but the sunrise was going to be so far off to my left that I realized that I should continue down the road to the Fisherman’s Co-op for the better view.  Which makes that spot my best, closest, spot for both the sunset and the sunrise.  But the hint of sunrise color that I found when I got there was about as colorful as it got.  And there weren’t many fishermen there either.  I figured there would at least be fishermen getting ready for their day.  Nope, it was just me and some gulls…coopsunrise1coopsunrise2coopsunrise3coopsunrise5coopsunrise6coopsunrise7coopsunrise8coopsunrise9IMG_7713_4_5_easyHDRcoopsunrisegull

a second look, birds, boats, Camping, finding my way, Just do it, moments, nature, old dogs new tricks, perseverance, photography, road trip, second chances, sunset, travel

A smelly sunset…

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On my first night here I was making a mad dash out to try to get some photos of what was promising to be a very pretty sunset.  Just thought I’d head to the marsh.  But when I mentioned where I was going a fellow camper said that she knew just the place to go, and I tried to find it, but I never did.  So when I thought of that yesterday I decided to see if I could find something called the fisherman’s coop in the daylight.  And guess what, it came up in the GPS.  Only a couple of miles away.  So I found it that morning, and again for the sunset.  But fishermen is the operative word here, because it smelled pretty fishy.  But it looked pretty too…beachscenewharfbirdwharfbird2wharfsunset5wharfsunset4wharfsunset2wharfsunset1wharfsunset3

'scene' along the way, a second look, adventure, birds, boats, Camping, history, honor, perseverance, photography, road trip, travel, Uncategorized

Bath, Maine…

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Ships and ship building dominate the history of Bath, ME.  Over 200 ship builders once made their living here.  During WW2 over 16,000 workers produced 80 ships for the Navy, roughly turning out one every 2 weeks.  Bath Iron Works has three Navy ships currently being outfitted, and contracts for 11 more, so this tradition continues.  The years of ship building along the Kennebec River, along with the related industries, resulted in the river being essentially dead.  No fish and no birds.  The captain of our tour boat was a font of information, and he seemed most proud to say that the river has recovered and the fish and birds are back.

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Juvenile eagle

This wasn’t the tour I had hoped to take when I drove to the Maine Maritime Museum.  I hoped to take a lighthouse cruise, but the only lighthouse on this cruise was the little one here.  Little because a lighthouse along a river only needs to be seen for 3 miles.  But in foggy weather ships couldn’t see the lights and still ran aground, so they built a bell tower as an added safety factor.  The lighthouse keeper was required to trudge through the woods every four hours in bad weather to wind up the bell. bathlighthosebathbell

This proved to be quite an interesting tour and talk, and even though it wasn’t the tour I had hoped for I was happy to have had the experience.  I was a Navy wife in the summer of ’71 when I lived here while my husband’s ship was readied for it’s trip to it’s eventual port in San Diego.  For a short while the plan was for the ship to cruise south around South America, stopping at all the famous (infamous) ports along the way, but clearer heads eventually prevailed and that plan was nixed, and his ship went through the Panama Canal instead.  That must have been an experience in itself, though not the one whomever made the first plan probably had in mind.bathscenebathscene2BathshipsBathwyoming2This represents the Wyoming, which was built in Bath.  It’s true to the size except for the masts.  They were an additional 70 feet high, but the FAA wouldn’t let them build those to scale.Bathzumwaltclass

The other two Navy ships being built are very different from this one.  This is a Zumwalt class ship, built to be stealth.  On radar this ship appears to be a 40 foot fishing boat.BathmaryEThis little ship is the Mary E.  She was built in Bath in 1906 and was in service carrying many different cargos over the years.  She was eventually sunk, but was brought back to Bath and restored to her original and now carries passengers instead.

In the feature photo you see the size of the dry dock itself.  It was built in China and had a long journey to Bath since it was too big to go through the Panama Canal.  This isn’t a town that grew up to serve the tourist trade, and it shows.  But it’s worth a trip to see.

'scene' along the way, boats, friends, fun, gardens, moments, nature, on closer examination, perseverance, photography, road trip, travel

Lakeside views…

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Arriving at Lake Winnipesaukee we found ourselves enjoying the view from a waterfront park.  That the park also had sculptures was a nice added attraction.  But we were a little mystified by the signage announcing that the park was safe for kids and animals, based on the lack of pesticide use.  What they neglected to warn us about was the Canada geese and their droppings, which were tough to avoid.  Not complaining though, it was just funny funny to read how safe it was and find yourself tiptoeing through the, well, not the tulips…Meredithscene6Meredithscene10Meredithscene7Meredithscene3Meredithscene5Meredithscene4Meredithscene2MeredithsceneMeredithscene9Meredith12Meredith13MeredithadirondacksMeredithgateMeredithgeese