2015-03-21 Marguerite Bay Trip

I wasn't planning to go out this weekend, but when I checked the marine weather (wind and seas) and regular weather (rain/snow/temp) I could see it was supposed to be a stunning weather weekend for late March, and so I just had to get out there.

So about 8 PM on Friday I made the snap decision to make a weekend trip to Marguerite Bay in Traitors Cove, one of my favorite places to visit.  Anyone who has been reading my blog for awhile knows that I go there frequently.

I pulled out on Saturday morning at about 7 AM in almost dead calm sea conditions, partly cloudy skies, and temps in the high 40's.

We had been having extreme high tides over the last few days which always lifts lots of logs and other debris off the beaches.  The calm seas did not disburse them as quickly as rough seas do so there were many many patches of this debris along my route.  I had to slow down several times and either pick my way through them slowly or make a wide sweep around them.  Should have taken some pictures - but didn't.

I stopped for a short time in Clover Pass and prepped my shrimp pots.  It was dead calm, sunny, and warm in there.

Here's a map snippet that shows the route from Bar Harbor to the entrance to Traitors Cove.  It's about 27 nautical mile, one way.

About 10:45 AM I arrived in Traitors Cove and dropped my shrimp pots out in front of Marguerite Bay, in sight of the USFS dock.  I was glad to see that no one else was at the dock, which meant that I had my pick of tie up spots at the dock.  And I had the solitude that I seek.

I tied up to the dock about 11 AM and was just hanging out waiting for lunch time when I heard strange sounds coming from around and under the dock.  I finally figured out that it was a seal or perhaps an otter swimming around and under the dock and occasionally crunching away on some shell fish.  I tried to be stealthy and sneak up on him but never did get a visual, just a lot of audio.  He was crunching away on something.

I took some shots of my surroundings just because it was so calm and so beautiful that I just had to.

 Not a bad place to spend some time.

Here's an addition to the boat's gear that I recently added. That round silvery reel in the middle of the flybridge extension railings is a Quickline reel.  It holds 265' of 7000 lb test flat nylon web "rope."  I got it with the intention of using it for A) a stern tie to shore when anchored up in a tight place, B) a stern anchor when needed, C) towing the raft.  The advantage is that it takes far less space to store it in a flat line on a reel than 265' of standard rope in a coil.  Haven't used it yet.  Will let you know how it works.

I had lunch and then geared up and walked up the road to the lake.

I've taken, and posted, many pictures of Margaret Lake from the first bridge, but I don't seem to be able to stop myself from taking a picture there when I get there.  So here's another.

I really wanted to try some trout fishing but the skiff my boss has on the lake is too heavy for me to launch by myself so I walked way around the left side of the lake almost to the farthest point that you can see in this picture.  It wasn't easy as there is only a trail for the first few yards, and after that it was just brush.

And of course I didn't catch any fish.  But it was a nice day for a hike in the woods anyway.

I did see this one "critter" along the way.  I almost stepped on him.

I made it back to the boat about 4 PM, and then hurriedly dropped the raft in the water, mounted the kicker, and then prepped my two crab pots.  I have a small depth finder for the raft which I only use when I want to set the crab pots from the raft.  I putted over to the area in front of the lagoon and dropped them both in about 60' of water.

As the evening progressed the weather just got nicer and nicer.  Here are a few more pics to attest to that fact.

I put my thermometer out on the dock and it soon registered 73 F, but it was in the direct sunlight.

I was talking to Lisa on the sat phone when it started to sprinkle!  I couldn't believe it.  I looked around and found one lonely cloud in the sky.  I looked a little further and finally found half a rainbow.  You can just barely see it, and it didn't last long.

Had a quiet but productive evening on board.  I am taking the boat to Seattle in August and I am already working hard on trip planning, so that took up most of the evening after dinner.

In the morning I noticed a heron (crane?) working the shallows nearby so I took the time to put my zoom lens on and got a couple of shots.

Next I went out in the raft and pulled the two crab pots.
What's that they always say about real estate?  "Location, Location, Location."
I bet I had those two crab pots no more than 50 or 60 yards apart, and they were baited identically.
One of them was totally empty and the other had 9 crabs in it.

Of course you can't keep any females, and males have to be at least 6 1/2" wing tip to wing tip, so I could only keep 3 of these, but that is still a good haul for me.  I had not had crab for awhile, so was glad to get the 3 that I did.

Good for me, not so good for them, this is what awaited them:

That's my crab cooking set up.  I'm going to have to replace the fiberglass propane tank (in blue cover) because the rules have been changed and the propane providers are no longer allowed to refill these tanks.  Apparently they are considered a safety hazard because they are thin fiberglass tanks encased in a tough fiberglass outer shell.  Too bad, I like that little tank.

On the way out I pulled the shrimp pots.  Got three of what I call "rock crabs."  I don't think that is an official name, just one I use because these crabs really look like rocks when they are closed up.  I think I got Papa crab, Mama crab, and Baby crab.  Here are a few shots of them and also of the small load of shrimp I got along with them.

Here's one that is open.

Here's Papa, Mama, and Baby rock crabs.  All curled up.

Here's what they look like on the underside.  You can see why I call them rock crabs.

After that it was just a beautiful ride back to the harbor.

2015-03-07 Ice House Cove Trip

I had quite a few chores and tasks around home that I wanted to accomplish this weekend, but I also wanted to get out on the boat.  Hmm, so what's a guy to do?

I decided to make a very short overnight trip to Ice House Cove.

This map segment shows the access into the cove.
The black blob at the end of the blue access route is a mooring buoy ("MB").
The cove does not show as "Ice House Cove" on any charts that I have seen, so I guess that is a local name only.
It is only 9 miles from my home port in Bar Harbor, so not a long run to get there.

The access route is easy if you know the area and are aware of all the hazards.
There are several rock piles that are only visible on certain tides.
Here is what awaits you if you enter unaware of the dangers.

This boat wasn't up on the rocks the last time I came by here, so this is fairly recent.

Of course the mooring buoys are first come first served, so there are no reservations.
Whenever you come to a place like this intending to tie to the MB you'd better have a Plan B.
There is room to anchor in the cove and I have done that, but was really hoping to get the MB for this trip.

Fortunately when I came around the corner I could see the mooring buoy was open.
That red and white diamond shaped sign behind it and to the left on shore marks the beginning of a trail.  I did not leave the boat on this short trip.

I had brought along numerous "diversions" for this trip, and I spent the evening working on a few of them. 

It was dead calm when I tied up to the MB, but in the night the wind kicked up and some chop rolled into the cove.  The boat was fine, securely tied to the MB, but the waves slapping against the hull make a bit of noise, so that made it a little harder to sleep.

I left for home fairly early in the morning so I'd have plenty of time to work on my home projects.

I had a little bit of excitement on the short ride home.
A small open metal boat, approximately 20' long, with 2 people and a dog in it flew past me going the opposite direction.  Just as soon as they passed me I noticed that they stopped.  The man came back and took the cover off the outboard, which is never a good sign.

I circled back and just stood by as he worked on the engine.
I figured he would motion me in if they needed me.
I waited about 30 minutes and eventually he drifted into water too shallow for me to enter, so I called the Coast Guard.   The Coast Guard base was barely 2 miles ahead and they have fast response boats.  But as I was talking to them the guy got the engine started and backed away from the beach.  He came over and told me he had bad spark plugs, but had also inadvertently knocked out the "Kill Switch" for the outboard which prevents it from running.

All newer outboard motors have a "Kill Switch" that must be engaged for the engine to run.
The theory is that the operator will attach the Kill Switch to his body so that if he falls overboard the engine will quit and the boat will not circle around without steering and possibly run over him or someone else.

They came over to me after they got the engine started and said they were turning around and heading back to Bar Harbor  They asked me to watch for them in case they broke down again but I did not see them again, so I assume they got in safely.

I was back in the stall by about 11 AM with only a whopping 18 miles logged for this trip.