A Day On The Water

After our strenuous exertion on land on our first day in Maine, it seemed fitting to spend the second day on water.
Fortunately, there are numerous opportunities to take to the lakes or ocean, whether it is in a kayak, a ferry or even a sailing ship. Given the glorious weather – a pleasant mid-seventies temperature under brilliant sunshine – we settled on a kayaking trip on Long Pond, the largest lake in the area. It was my first experience in a tandem kayak as normally I go solo, but it did mean that occasionally I could sit back and let my daughter do all the work!

The official vacation season here does not start until this coming weekend so at times it seemed like we were the only ones on the lake for much of our three hour trip, able to soak in nature’s sights and sounds and reflect on how, if you ignored the occasional lake-side cottage, this was what it must have been like when the first explorers arrived.

After a land-based rest, it was onto the sailing ship The Margaret Todd, a four mast schooner, for a sunset cruise around the harbor. I’ve never been on a sailing ship before and it was quite an education to see how much physical effort has to go into manually raising the sails and imagine what it must have been like having to do this in all weathers and in choppy seas! Nowadays the sailing ships do have engines to allow them to maneuver safely around the busy docks, but once under sail in open water the engine is turned off and the only sound is that of the vessel slicing through the waves and the creaking of the sails. All in all, a wonderful experience, and made extra special by the wonderful sunset as we came back to the dock.