We left Port Clyde and headed to Boothbay Harbor in the thickest flog we’ve experienced yet. We inched along at bare steerageway (the slowest a boat can go and still have enough flow on the rudder to be able to steer) with the fog horn blasting. We couldn’t see more than a boat length ahead of us and twice, we were surprised by lobster boats emerging from the fog, way too close for comfort. The Maine coast is notorious for pea soup fog, but fortunately it’s also notorious for delicious clam chowder!
The Boothbay region is a center of summer tourist activity, and only a third of its population lives here year round.
Boothbay’s motto is, “pelegrinis cibum dedimus,” Latin for, “we fed the pilgrims.” By 1620 there were permanent year-round cod fishing settlements on islands in the Gulf of Maine. The export of dried and salted fish, especially cod, was the primary driver of the economy. In 1623, English fishermen from these settlements provided fish to the Pilgrims who journeyed from North Plymouth in search of food.
We docked at Boothbay Harbor Marina. This is a very special place. First of all, Kim, the owner / manager, is the most kind and attentive marina manager we’ve met. She phoned us in the morning to extend an advance welcome and give us navigation and docking instructions. Once we arrived, she assisted us until we were completely settled in and comfortable. And the marina has many special touches such as flower boxes in the office window, dock steps, complimentary laundry & pump-out service and a happy hour (“docktails”) for guests on Saturday afternoons.
As popular as Boothbay Harbor is, like Camden and Bar Harbor, it’s not tacky and gift shops share the streets with a public library, opera house and a theater. The waterfront, although popular with cruisers, is shared with the Monhegan Island ferry and a working lobster fleet.
We look forward to a couple of days here. And, we’ll be meeting with Bob, Dan’s roommate in 1987 when they were both junior software engineers at GE Corporate R&D in Schenectady, NY. If you read our post from Day 38, you may recall that we met with another Bob from Dan’s past in Charlottetown, PE. Conclusion: all Dan’s friends from the past must be called Bob.
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