Sunday, June 27, 2010

Another Day Trip - Warren Island State Park

Wow, has it really been 4 weeks since we've taken Spray out? It seems that something always comes up to mess with our plans for boating. This weekend we had planned to spend at least 2 days aboard but Katie Bopp took sick last week and wasn't well enough on Friday for a planned trip to Camden.

So we went for plan B: a day trip today since Katie B. is apparently recovered. I was thinking maybe Great Spruce Head Island but Sheila suggested Warren Island, on the west side of Islesboro. Warren Island is a Maine State Park, with some great campsites and hiking trails, and we had never been there, so why not?

We left Hatch Cove at about 10:45 this morning and had an easy run out of Castine Harbor, across a very smooth Penobscot Bay to round Turtle Head, on the north end of Islesboro Island. We enjoyed the warm weather on the flying bridge and had a nice lunch as we headed southwards down the west side of Islesboro until we saw the ferry that runs from the mainland (at Lincolnville Beach) to Islesboro. Warren Island is just opposite the Islesboro ferry landing, at the west entrance to Gilkey Harbor, and the State maintains a large dock there and several moorings.

We tied to a mooring at about 1 pm and rowed the dinghy (Sheila's Monhegan skiff 'Razzle Dazzle') to the dock. We hiked the trails to the south end of the island where there is a decent beach. Both dogs went swimming to retrieve thrown sticks. Sheila and I stayed dry. We then hiked the remaining perimeter of the island, noting that about half of the campsites (all very deluxe looking) were occupied. There was a crew dismantling a huge circus-tent that had been used for a wedding yesterday. We were told that there were over 150 guests, which must have taxed the rustic outhouses.

Back aboard Spray, we worked the Sunday NY Times crossword for a while, and set sail at about 3:30, heading south through Gilkey Harbor, which is line with an impressive set of estates of the Dark Harbor community. Once around Pendleton Point we turned north up the east side of the bay and back to Castine, where we picked up Spray's mooring at about 6 pm. It was a great day trip and I think we'll go back to Warren Island soon.

Unfortunately I forgot to bring a camera so I can only post a couple images from the SPOT tracker site, showing Warren Island (above), and the entire loop of our trip (below).