Cutler photos

Carina at anchor in Cutler

Selfie at the Knubble in Cutler

O Canada!

We departed Cutler, Maine on Wednesday, May 28 for Grand Manan Island.  We had planned to leave early in the morning but when Tim took Shamus to shore for his morning walk he noticed breakers outside the harbor.  Tim spoke with some fisherman who had just come in who confirmed that it was quite rough.   The boat had rolled a lot through the night so we weren’t surprised.   We decided to wait until just before slack tide to leave – around 10:30 a.m. - with the hope that the seas would calm somewhat.

The seas were still confused when we eventually left Cutler later in the morning.  Initially the waves were about 4’ to 6’ feet with some breakers.   I used this time to practice my helmsmanship.  Tim gave me some great pointers and other than a few punches into the troughs I did pretty well.  The seas calmed with the incoming tide and the closer we came to Grand Manan Island.   

We “reported” into customs in Seal Cove on Grand Manan Island.  Reporting in means Tim called customs and they asked him several questions and then gave us a report number. They never actually visited the boat.   Seal Cove is typically a Nexus only site but we had overlooked this.  The customs officials were kind enough, and I assume, not too busy, so they reported us in to Canada rather than sending us to a different harbor.  It was a very easy process.  

Seal Cove is a quiet little harbor.  The Canadian Government is in the process of completing a new breakwater that has new floating docks.  It is an impressive project that is scheduled to be completed this July.

New breakwater and docks at Seal Cove

We were approached by a lobsterman named Richard Green when we returned to the boat from walking Shamus.   He thought Carina was a pretty boat but it was her name that stood out to him most.   He had a good friend who recently passed away who also had a sailboat named “Carina”.  We had heard that the people on Grand Manan and throughout Nova Scotia are extremely friendly. Richard and his wife Sharon joined us on Carina for the evening and we really enjoyed getting to know them.  Both of them grew up and have lived on Grand Manan for most of their lives.   They each left for a few years shortly after high school but then returned to Grand Manan, got reaquainted with each other, married and raised their daughter and son there.   Richard has been a commercial diver for 35 years and is now “semi-retired” and spends his days lobstering on his boat, the “Divers Den”, which he built himself.  We hope to see Richard and Sharon again on our way back to Maine.  When we do we hope to get to meet Richard’s dad, who is nicknamed “Smiles.”   Smiles recently celebrated his 100th birthday with 600+ people.   He still lives alone, prepares his own meals, wields his chainsaw as needed, and drives himself where he needs to go.  He sounds like a terrific person.

Abandoned herring smokers at Seal Cove

The leg from Grand Manan to Yarmouth was fairly uneventful.  We made the trip on Thursday, May 29th.  It was a full day of motoring – about 9.5 hours.   The winds were soft most of the day and were from the Northeast but gradually they turned Southwest as the day progressed.  There was a 1 to 1.5 knot current was against us to start but the current changed quite significantly throughout the day.  Towards the middle of the trip we passed through a deep but narrow channel with a tidal rip right on our nose.   The current was running about 4 knots through the rip.   Our speed through the water was 6 to 7 knots but over-ground we were only making about 2.5 knots.  As we expected the tide and current turned in our favor later in the afternoon and pushed us towards Yarmouth at up to 8.22 knots over-ground.

Cape Forchu light off Yarmouth

We picked up a mooring in Yarmouth.  Their marina is not open yet as they don’t expect many transients this time of year.  Tim had brought the truck to Yarmouth via the new ferry and we used it to explore all around the area.   There are some beautiful salt water farms with amazing views of the Bay of Fundy.   We saw “the world’s smallest operating wooden drawbridge”.   I would say it is only operational in the sense that they can raise and lower it but it. From the looks of it is a good thing it is no longer regularly used.  It looked quite rickety!  I might consider walking across it but not at the same time as anyone else!  We also toured the cliffs of Cape St. Mary and visited a historical Acadian Village in West Publico.  We are, and hope to continue, learning a lot about Nova Scotia’s history.

Selfie at Cape St. Marys

On Sunday, June 1, 2014, we spent the day transporting the truck to Halifax.   We left it at the Armdale Yacht Club.   Their hospitality was incredible! Norman Raine, the Vice Commodore of the club, not only welcomed us warmly and squared us away with the car but also gave us tips about several places that were good cruising spots between Yarmouth and Halifax.  It was our pleasure to meet a few other folks who were at the club getting their boats ready to launch.   They all shared some of their favorite cruising locations and started telling us about several of the club events we would be welcome to attend.

One thing we are still trying to get used to is the sun setting after 9 p.m.  While enroute to Grand Manan we entered the Atlantic Time Zone .  On various vacations, Tim and I have visited several places in different time zones from Maine (EST) and have had few issues adjusting.   Typically we are early to bed people – 9:30ish – but it just seems odd to start brushing our teeth and putting our pajamas on when the sun is still up!

Boats being launched by crane at Argle, NS