Position           44:23.55N 068:12.29W

Date                1530 – Sunday 3 July 2011 (UTC -4)

Today the aim was to get to Bar Harbor to be in place for the 4 July celebrations.  The bright and early start took place at 1200; well tearing ourselves away from Somes Sound was difficult.  Starting in sunshine the day went slightly downhill as the clouds rolled in.  Sailing along the coast of Mount Desert Island gave a great opportunity for real estate spotting.

This cottage may be smaller than many of the properties but as the saying goes it has location, location and location.

There was a decided “Highland” feel about this view, especially the plunging temperature compared with yesterday.  We understand that Mount Desert shares another similarity with the Highlands and that is midges; categorised here, in the same way as Scotland, as small birds in size.  We have yet to encounter these flying pests but are well armed with mozzy screens and spray for when we do.

It was our intention to anchor in Bar Harbor but the sea running through the anchorage rather put us off the idea of going ashore.  Except for two very inexpensive nights in a slip during the OCC Rally we last were alongside in St Martin; we therefore decided to splash out (the puns are getting worse, sorry) and use a marina.

Ringing the Bar Harbor Regency Hotel Marina we spoke to a lovely lady called Bev who offered to meet us down on the dock where they had free long slips alongside finger pontoons.  The marina on the chart is a mile north of the main harbour and the route required us to go around one of the off lying islands.  OK, so we found the hotel and the ferry dock but where was the marina.  Ringing Bev back and enquiring exactly where was the marina elicited the answer “somewhere drifting in the middle of the Atlantic”.  She had transferred to the Bar Harbor Hotel Marina and the Regency had put the call through to her, nobody thought to point out the increasingly obvious.  No problem, it makes for a good story.

Back around Bar Island and this time we found it, very conveniently close to the town and with an excellent view over the town dock from where the July 4 fireworks are set off.

Expensive, but we do get to use the Jacuzzi and heated pool.