Bar Harbor anyone?

[jefndeb]

Hello again,

We are anchored in Seal Cove in the interior of Vinylhaven island and will be heading over to Bar Harbor in a few days. Never been there and was looking for comments and suggestions about the area.

I see there is a bus that you can take to the park,,,wow, thats nice.

And since this will probably be our turn around point, what would a good round about date to start heading south?

Thanks,
Jeff
M/V Indigo Star

 

[DavidM]

Pick up a mooring in NE Harbor. From there you can take a shuttle bus to Bar Harbor.

I would want to be out of DE Maine by mid September.

David

 

[bottomscraper]

Unfortunately stuff starts to shut down after Labor Day. The free Bean bus is great. Personally I would do what David says, get mooring in North East Harbor rather than Bar Harbor. It has better protection and is way more comfortable.

 

[Jeff F]

I wouldn't be in a big rush to turn around, especially if you have a good heating system. September and early October is beautiful around there IMO - clear and cool with beautiful colours and fewer other cruisers around.

I left Bar Harbor in mid-November last year and had a fine trip south. In my case the late start was dictated by COVID restrictions, as the US didn't open up entry for Canadian boats until Nov 10. I started catching up with snowbirds around Norfolk in early December. If left to my own schedule I would have gone to Maine from NS in late Sept and had a more leisurely cruise down to the Chesapeake in October.

YMMV of course.

Sent from my moto g play (2021) using Trawler Forum mobile app

 

[PNK]

I echo DavidM's comments, Northeast Harbor is way nicer than Bar Harbor, also has a stop for the Acadia Park bus, and you can easily walk to the restaurants and shops in town. Somes Sound is a beautiful place to cruise, and you can anchor in Valley Cove, or stop at a small marina right up at the northern end, can't remember the name right now, but it has a nice restaurant on the hill overlooking the water.
If you are interested in something different, try Bass Harbor, on the other side of the island, which is more of a working harbor than Northeast, but very picturesque. The lobster roll at Thurston's, right on the harbor, is worth a trip by itself!
Bar Harbor is a nice town, but when a cruise ship comes in, which is several times a week, it gets way too crowded for my taste.

 

[jefndeb]

Thanks for all your suggestions....just not really sure where the NE harbor is...
Do you mean the anchorage east of Bar Island?

 

[Sealife]

No advice on bar harbor, but I'd be south of Norfolk before end of November at the latest. Chesapeake cold fronts are no joke.

 

[O C Diver]

No advice on bar harbor, but I'd be south of Norfolk before end of November at the latest. Chesapeake cold fronts are no joke.

Probably good advice, but there was that one year I left January 28th.

Ted

 

[CaptTom]

Thanks for all your suggestions....just not really sure where the NE harbor is...
Do you mean the anchorage east of Bar Island?

No, the town of Northeast Harbor has a huge mooring field.

Bar Harbor is a nice town to walk around (very touristy) but the marina isn't worth the price. You can take the bus all over the island from any other nearby town, including Northeast Harbor. Do Bar Harbor (and any other stops which interest you) by bus from there.

Another option if you want a slip is Southeast Harbor. Still pricey, but I think the facilities are much better than Bar Harbor.

Glad you found Seal Cove, that's a nice spot.

 

[jefndeb]

Capt Tom, I am looking on the charts but I can't seems to find a mooring field thats NE of Bar Harbor...nevermind..I found it..thanks

 

[SoWhat]

No, the town of Northeast Harbor has a huge mooring field.

Capt Tom, I am looking on the charts but I can't seems to find a mooring field thats NE of Bar Harbor...nevermind..I found it..thanks

 

[PNK]

No, Northeast Harbor is south and west of Bar Harbor, check the NOAA chart for Mt Desert Island, you will see it marked as both a harbor, and a town. Somes Sound is the long body of water west of NE Harbor.
Be careful to stay in the marked channels, there are rocks and ledges everywhere

 

[PNK]

Bar Harbor anyone

https://www.charts.noaa.gov/InteractiveCatalog/nrnc.shtml


This link should take you to the right chart, sorry, I am not good at attaching files to my posts.

 

[CaptTom]

Capt Tom, I am looking on the charts but I can't seems to find a mooring field thats NE of Bar Harbor...nevermind..I found it..thanks

LOL, I can see where you could have read that backward, the town North-East of the harbor, rather than THE town of Northeast Harbor.

The town (and harbor) are to the Northeast of the entrance to Somes Sound. The town of Southwest Harbor is (unsurprisingly) to the Southwest of the entrance.

Let us know which you choose, and how it went!

 

[twistedtree]

LOL, I can see where you could have read that backward, the town North-East of the harbor, rather than THE town of Northeast Harbor.

The town (and harbor) are to the Northeast of the entrance to Somes Sound. The town of Southwest Harbor is (unsurprisingly) to the Southwest of the entrance.

Let us know which you choose, and how it went!

Maine is directionally challenged. After all, what exactly is Downeast about any part of the Maine coast? If you go down the coast, or go south, the coast is more to the west, not the east. And as you go east, the coast goes north, not south. It’s never made sense to me, and I’ve never heard a cogent explanation.

And while on the subject of Maine confusion, what exactly is the purpose of a toggle buoy other than to entangle boats. For those unfamiliar, it’s a second buoy for a lobster pot line that is connected to the primary buoy by about a 12’ line, essentially creating a trip line between the two buoys.

The explanation I have heard is that it keeps the line off the bottom. But for that to actually happen the buoy would need to always be submerged and placing tension on the line. But they are always floating which means the line is slack and likely sitting on the bottom.

Can anyone explain what they actually accomplish, or are they really just a misguided attempt.

 

[AlaskaProf]

And while on the subject of Maine confusion, what exactly is the purpose of a toggle buoy other than to entangle boats. For those unfamiliar, it’s a second buoy for a lobster pot line that is connected to the primary buoy by about a 12’ line, essentially creating a trip line between the two buoys.


Can anyone explain what they actually accomplish, or are they really just a misguided attempt.

It creates a bight in the line for picking up with a boat hook. At least that's how it works for crab pots; not sure about lobstah.

 

[rslifkin]

It creates a bight in the line for picking up with a boat hook. At least that's how it works for crab pots; not sure about lobstah.

That's my understanding as well. You hook the line between the buoys to grab the pot for retrieval.

 

[twistedtree]

It creates a bight in the line for picking up with a boat hook. At least that's how it works for crab pots; not sure about lobstah.

That makes sense, and I have seen rig like that elsewhere. But wouldn’t a few feet of line be sufficient, and eliminate the risk of mistaking the buoys as separate and I dependent and running between them?

 

[rslifkin]

That makes sense, and I have seen rig like that elsewhere. But wouldn’t a few feet of line be sufficient, and eliminate the risk of mistaking the buoys as separate and I dependent and running between them?

Putting them closer would be nice, but it also gives a smaller target when you're picking them up. A missed grab wastes time, so...

 

[CaptTom]

Maine is directionally challenged. After all, what exactly is Downeast about any part of the Maine coast? If you go down the coast, or go south, the coast is more to the west, not the east. And as you go east, the coast goes north, not south. It’s never made sense to me, and I’ve never heard a cogent explanation.

If you look, the coast of Maine is more East-West than North-South. On a typical Mercator projection of the entire US, this is distorted quite a bit.

And of course, "down" to a old-time sailor was down wind, not South.

And while on the subject of Maine confusion, what exactly is the purpose of a toggle buoy other than to entangle boats.

On this we're in 100% agreement. We never fished with toggles, and we had some of the rockiest and most dynamic bottom conditions of the whole coast. I'll ask whenever I get a chance, but no lobsterman who fishes toggles has ever been able to give me a sensible answer. The guys around here all agree with me.

I've heard the argument about keeping the line from snagging on rocks, but that's patently absurd if the toggle is visible on the surface at anything but dead low tide. I have yet to hear any lobsterman admit he has trouble grabbing the pick-up buoy on the first try, nor have I seen this in my time lobstering or working on other lobster boats. That would be like a major league pitcher saying he has trouble putting the ball over the plate. It's the most important part of your job.

My conclusion is that none of the fishermen know why they do it. It's just the way everyone else does it, and they don't want to be left out. This is why you see all the buoys with toggles in some areas, and none in others.

 

[twistedtree]

Putting them closer would be nice, but it also gives a smaller target when you're picking them up. A missed grab wastes time, so...

Well, most other places where lobstering is a big thing, like in Mass, there are no toggles at all and nobody seems to have any issue picking up the buoys.

It’s lobstermen who have told me it’s about keeping the line off the rocky bottom, so that seems to be the most likely intent. I just don’t see how it accomplishes that.

 

[BobMc]

Pick up a mooring in NE Harbor. From there you can take a shuttle bus to Bar Harbor.

I would want to be out of DE Maine by mid September.

David

Totally agree with DavidM. The facilities, and everything else, are much nicer at NE Harbor. Bar Harbor is basically a crowded tourist trap! On multiple trips to Maine, we stayed at Bar Harbor on a rock and roll mooring once - only once; never again! If you want to get a day in touristy Bar Harbor, take the bus from Bar Harbor.

 

[Billeilers]

I echo DavidM's comments, Northeast Harbor is way nicer than Bar Harbor, also has a stop for the Acadia Park bus, and you can easily walk to the restaurants and shops in town. Somes Sound is a beautiful place to cruise, and you can anchor in Valley Cove, or stop at a small marina right up at the northern end, can't remember the name right now, but it has a nice restaurant on the hill overlooking the water.
If you are interested in something different, try Bass Harbor, on the other side of the island, which is more of a working harbor than Northeast, but very picturesque. The lobster roll at Thurston's, right on the harbor, is worth a trip by itself!
Bar Harbor is a nice town, but when a cruise ship comes in, which is several times a week, it gets way too crowded for my taste.

Marina and restaurant is Henry Able & co. Very nice and nice diner

 

[AnnapolisJoy]

Avoid BH

Hello again,

We are anchored in Seal Cove in the interior of Vinylhaven island and will be heading over to Bar Harbor in a few days. Never been there and was looking for comments and suggestions about the area.

I see there is a bus that you can take to the park,,,wow, thats nice.

And since this will probably be our turn around point, what would a good round about date to start heading south?

Thanks,
Jeff
M/V Indigo Star

BH=Tourists. $$$$

Try Southwest Harbor or Northeast. Both have access to the park busses. SW has the better restaurants and a West Marine. Dysarts for fuel and a slip. For a mooring our go to is Hinkley. A dinghy ride to the dock at Dysarts. Tell the dock master you are going shopping at West and there is no charge.

The best food is at Coda. Just off Main Street. Many nights they have entertainment. Enjoy your stay.

 

[GPBLENKHORN]

As a Mainer for nearly 80 years now, it has always been my understanding that toggle buoys on Lobster traps are only used in areas that experience strong current that could pull the pick up buoy under water. The toggle buoy takes the strain of the current and leaves the line between the toggle and pick up slack enough to keep the pick up buoy on the surface.
As far as an explanation for the term Down East. It refers to the coastal area beyond the point where the Maine coast takes a sharp turn to the East (Just beyond Casco Bay). It got that name from the old cargo and passenger sailing vessels heading to Europe. They would sail up the lower coast of Maine and turn "Down wind " and "East" when they got to Casco Bay. The prevailing winds along the Maine coast are out of the southwest, thus they would be sailing downwind when they made their turn to follow the coast easterly.

 

[psneeld]

My friend who is a Maine lobterman of many generations doesnt get why some use toggles either.

For pretty much any reason as he, his son, his friends or most in their lobster consortium dont either.

 

[Archhibb]

Hope the OP took others advice and went to Northeast. They’re well set up for cruisers (showers, laundry, etc) The local convenience has block ice for $2.50! and there’s great access to hiking in Acadia.

We were there in mid-August and just a heads up to cruisers up & down the ME coast, due to this summer’s intense heat we found some places no longer offered water at the dock.

 

[twistedtree]

As a Mainer for nearly 80 years now, it has always been my understanding that toggle buoys on Lobster traps are only used in areas that experience strong current that could pull the pick up buoy under water. The toggle buoy takes the strain of the current and leaves the line between the toggle and pick up slack enough to keep the pick up buoy on the surface.
As far as an explanation for the term Down East. It refers to the coastal area beyond the point where the Maine coast takes a sharp turn to the East (Just beyond Casco Bay). It got that name from the old cargo and passenger sailing vessels heading to Europe. They would sail up the lower coast of Maine and turn "Down wind " and "East" when they got to Casco Bay. The prevailing winds along the Maine coast are out of the southwest, thus they would be sailing downwind when they made their turn to follow the coast easterly.

Thanks. Two excellent explanations.


On the toggle buoy, it seems that the line between the two buoys could be a lot shorter and still be effective. As mentioned earlier, they are used in other areas, but with much shorter line between them. And use in Maine seems to be everywhere, not just where there are large currents.

 

[CaptTom]

For the record, I did lobstering in the strongest currents on the Maine coast. Never used toggles. Nobody here did, and still don't. Also rocky bottoms, where the whole trap could become buried in rocks by the current overnight.

The "reasons" given for toggles are pure BS. It's just a tradition, Nobody can really explain why they use them. And the way they're attached doesn't match the supposed reasons given anyway.

 

[Mike H]

In answer to a couple questions (or more like one answer and one observation).

We have been in NE Harbor a couple times, once this summer (we live in Rockport, ME, so it is relatively close).

Coming in, NE Harbor has a number of moorings, series 30 for 30-foot, series 40 for 40-foot, etc. First come, first serve. But simply call them on the phone when you are a little under an hour out, and they will set one for you.

What to do? Take the dinghy over to the dinghy dock on the east side of the harbor (not the City dock which is on the west side) and walk up to Asticou gardens, then walk over to Thuja (sp?) gardens.

The only "good" restaurant (in my opinion) is Copita, but the service is somewhat slow. Perhaps NE Harbor Inn, but we only had lunch there (very good). If you Google nice restaurants nearby, it will come up with several showing only a mile or so away. Great, you say, we can walk. But then when you Google directions, it is 20 miles away. That's because it is in SW Harbor.

The big question is if you call on the radio. Do you call for Northeast Harbor Master or Northeast Harbor Harbor master. I've heard it both ways.

As for toggles on lobster buoys. All I can say is be careful when approaching a buoy too close. There may be a toggle near it, and many times they are about 6 inches under water, so you don't see it until right there. We literally lost a rudder when tangled with a trap.

FYI, and just to confuse you. There is a NW Harbor and SE Harbor in Maine, but they are not towns, but simply harbors/coves.

Timing of leaving Maine. We brought our boat up from Maryland at the beginning of October. Great weather the entire trip, but that was pure luck. The only thing is that things start to close down, and slip space/moorings may be somewhat limited.