On route to The Basin, desipte the rain, we sailed by the Eastern Egg Rock Islands to see if we could see any puffins, and yay! we did see them (the other bird is a laughing gull)
.. and some of the lighthouses we passed by on passage: Ram Island and The Cuckold's Lighthouse shown here
The Basin was the first anchorage in Maine that we visited the very first time we came way back in May 2008 (in Footprint). It was early in the season then and we had not only The Basin to ourselves, but also the surrounding five or six anchorages. Since entry requires two ninety-degree turns, it really did feel like we had left the ocean entirely and had been plopped down on an alpine lake.
Five years later (in June 2013), we returned in Begonia to relive that sense of remoteness and solitude. It was a month later in the season, but again, we were the only boat.
Since this year may well be our last pass through Maine, there was no way I was going to just sail by. This time, when we rounded the last corner, we were shocked, SHOCKED, to find over a dozen vessels bobbing around. We actually had to weave our way through to find a space.
I blame the internet. It's so easy to look up "great hidden gems in Maine that no one knows about". I don't now why I thought I was the only one who knew that trick. I didn't even use the internet this time, just my own memory. The irony is that this very blog could have steered a few people this way. Then, when word gets out...
Also, there was a rumor floating around that there was some sort of "Come See Maine" rally out there and this was one of their stops. The crowd may be just an "unlucky" coincidence of timing. The place may be empty again next week.
Anyway, it was a lovely bunch. They were all very well-behaved. We're glad they got to see it, too.
Since we have been here before, I was quite content to spend our time sitting in the cockpit and enjoying the views. Perhaps we'd do some light kayaking and introduce ourselves to some of our neighbors.
Maryanne wasn't having any of it. She wanted to go ashore and walk one of the slightly longer trails in the area that we haven't done before. It didn't look too bad. The whole thing fit on her phone's screen.
Well, sure! Why not?
It wasn't until we were well away from even the vicinity of The Basin that I realized she had zoomed out A LOT. By then, we were committed. I am particularly goal oriented, so once we realized we were already getting sore well before we were even halfway out, I was determined to finish the whole thing, even if we had to feel our way home in the dark.
It didn't come to that, fortunately. There was a section, though, where it became quite clear that we were on a disused part of an archaic trail that hasn't been maintained, or possibly even seen, for years. One stretch had since been completely flooded by beavers, giving us the choice of backtracking a long way or improvising a crossing way off where the track was supposed to be. If we get stranded out here, vultures will have our bones picked clean before anyone ever gets a chance to notice a funny smell.
We did eventually find a way through and after another couple of false starts, finally located a trail that looks like it is in regular use. We still don't know by whom, because we never saw anyone during a whole day of hiking.
The scenery was nice. It wasn't amazing, but it's always nice to be in the woods and the main point was to feel like we had earned our dinners. That we did, arriving back at The Basin properly sore from a good day's exertion. We were then able to do a tour in the kayak, enjoying the antics of the Bald Eagles and Ospreys.
We parked the dinghy and set off for the Mica Mine trail, which was an easy trail; but then we attempted to connect to the Sprague Pond Trail things became a little more challenging (we should not always believe the maps it seems!).
We made it safely to the Sprague Pond Trail
We returned to The Basin via the road (much easier, and quicker) and ended the day paddling around and enjoying the wildlife
Anchorage location >> On google maps
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