Sailing by the Seasons:

June? July? August? September? Which do you choose?!

Sailing in Maine is world renowned and each month brings its own unique change in the wind and weather patterns, which begs the question "What is the best month to come windjamming along the coast of Maine?" Well the answer is a rather predictable "Any of them!" But there are some differences which may be helpful in guiding the aspiring sailing guest.

photo courtesy of: Tracy Madigan-Sheppard

June is one of the best months of the year for sailing. The changing of the seasons, whether from spring to summer or summer to fall brings large temperature variations--cool nights and warm days guarantee more consistent wind for sailing. The summer crowds do not arrive to the Midcoast area till July, meaning June feels more like the summer without the hustle and bustle. Compared to late September, another month with good sailing winds, it tends to be warmer and quiet as opposed to cool and quiet.

photo courtesy of: Sean Sheppard

Offcuts & Tailings... Big Changes

What do you think Marty is smiling about? Our galley renovation of course! What are we changing? Keep scrolling to find out.

Photo courtesy of Sofia Soderberg

After a few drawings and LiDar scanning the space to fully capture all the angles an old schooner can have, plans were drawn up and approved. Then Tyler began by making space out of the starboard side of the galley to expand the workspace and add a new sink to help streamline the area for our hardworking galley crew.

We've already hauled four schooners this spring, and we're getting ready to haul the fifth today. Soon the American Eagle will have her turn on the railway to get fresh bottom paint and shining topsides.

And Now For Something Completely Different

We were lucky enough to be just below the path of the total eclipse. The whole shipyard was able to take a bit of time to enjoy the almost-total eclipse.

Photo courtesy of: Nate Cooper

Nate was able to take some time to drive a couple hours north to Sangerville to view the eclipse in its totality. He brought his camera and the office phone along and was able to capture some beautiful photos on the rare clear sunny day this time of year.

Photo courtesy of: Nate Cooper

Photo courtesy of: Nate Cooper

Congratulations to Kate and Courtney on their impending graduations from college! Kate will be graduating from Boston University with a Bachelor of Science in Public Relations and Courtney will be graduating from Maine Maritime Academy with a Bachelor of Science in Oceanography and Small Vessel Operations. We're honored that they are choosing to celebrate their graduation by joining us just in time for haul-out.

We have some exciting news about the episode of Windows to the Wild "Coastal Trek" that was filmed on the American Eagle back in 2022. It has been nominated for a New England Emmy! It was such a pleasure to have Willem and his crew join us for our Hidden Traces of the Past trip. If you would like to watch it, here is a link.

From Beside the Wheelbox...

Well its certainly been another busy month around here, we have had some very large projects come together with alot of teamwork and a fair bit of head scratching. The railway is trundling up and down hauling and launching schooners with each one bringing its own projects to take place in between the raindrops.

I am often reminded how truly special this thing that we do is in so many ways with joys to be found in the small, the larger, and even the mundane. The satisfaction of supporting our beloved schooner in such sustainable way while sharing so much with our guests and friends out on the bay, or even just a good fit on some tricky joinery just feels good. We enjoy so much of what we do and hope to see you again this summer.

You'll be hearing from us again before long, there is far too much going on to fit in just one newsletter.