Maine (Penobscot Bay)

Penobscot Bay is the centrepiece of Maine's cruising coast, a body of water roughly 30 miles wide and 30 miles long, scattered with granite islands and bounded by a coastline of spruce forest, lobster wharves, and small harbours that have changed less in character than almost any sailing ground on the US east coast. Rockland and Camden, on the bay's western shore, are the charter bases. Rockland has a working waterfront — lobster boats, the Maine Windjammer fleet (traditional schooners offering week-long passenger cruises), and an art museum that punches above the town's size. Camden, three miles north, is prettier — a harbour framed by a waterfall and overlooked by the Camden Hills. The bay's islands provide the itinerary. Vinalhaven, the largest, has a working lobster-fishing community, a granite quarry heritage, and a harbour at Carver's Cove that accommodates visiting yachts. North Haven, its neighbour, is quieter and wealthier. Islesboro, further up the bay, has a long, narrow shape and a ferry connection to the mainland. The Fox Islands Thorofare, the channel between Vinalhaven and North Haven, is one of the most scenic passages in New England. The smaller islands — Hurricane Island (a former Outward Bound base), Butter Island, the archipelago south of Deer Isle — offer anchorages where the only neighbours are seals on the ledges and lobster pot buoys marking the working waterway. Fog is the defining navigational challenge. Maine's coast produces fog when warm, moist air from the south moves over cold North Atlantic water, and it can persist for days. Radar, GPS, and a fog horn are essential equipment; the ability to navigate confidently in zero visibility separates comfortable Maine sailing from anxious Maine sailing. Lobster pot buoys, unmarked on any chart, add a secondary hazard — their lines can foul propellers and require constant watchfulness. The tidal range in Penobscot Bay is 9-12 feet, exposing ledges and mudflats at low water and creating tidal currents in the narrows and thorofares. Water temperature is cold — 12-16 degrees in summer. Provisioning in Rockland and Camden is good. Island shops are small and seasonal. Lobster, bought from the lobstermen's cooperative wharves on the islands, is the standard charter dinner — boiled in seawater on the stern. Fuel and water are at the main marinas.