Tuesday

I woke up to a quiet boat and checked my watch: 6:30. We dressed and went topside where we were greeted by a thick fog surrounding the boat. Visibility was no more then 150', so Capt. Mike had delayed our departure.

It was slowly lifting when we headed down for breakfast, scrambled eggs, bacon and muffins. The Mary Day appeared out of the mist. We heard the anchor being raised and the boat started to move soon afterward.

We headed out towards Mount Desert Rock Island, about 20 miles at sea. More seals and harbor porpoises swam nearby as we reached an area where whales had been seen. On the way lunch was served, corn chowder with chicken salad (or PBJ!) sandwiches. The weather was a little hazy but generally pleasant.

Burnt Coat Harbor Light Swans Island

Following the lead of a boat that was sent out from the island we spotted spouts of water in the distance. As we approached the 2 whales (finbacks) they would exhale, make a shallow dive, exhale again, then deep dive for a minute or two, appearing somewhere else on the surface. We also saw a pair of humpbacked whales, which are slightly smaller, and later had a pair of finbacks (same?) circle the boat at about 75'. I had a hard time switching between film, video, and still digital cameras! Everyone had a marvelous time running around the boat to see the whales.

It was mid-afternoon when we headed back towards land. Our mooring spot for the night was once again Swan Island, but on the opposite shore to the north near the ferry slip in Mackerel Cove. Supper that night was ham, baked beans, pineapple, brown bread, and coleslaw. The dinghies were lowered to allow shore visits, one with a motor, the other needed volunteers to row. Maggie and I joined the rowing team and walked around Swan Island for about an hour. There were houses and a breakfast/lunch diner on shore, and the ferry to Bass harbor was tied up for the night. A lot of car traffic for a small island, though. We came back on the motor boat piloted by Dennis, who is, by the way, a big fan of the cartoon "The Tick", one of my favorites. Dennis can also recite from any point passages from the movie "The Princess Bride", which provided us an entertaining evening. Maggie joined a group playing the card game Rotten, similar to a game we played in college. I held down the couch in the deckhouse until heading for bed.