Common Good Cafe

The next morning I needed to do a bit of provisioning so we came into Southwest Harbor again. We stopped for breakfast at the Common Good Café, a café that serves coffee, fresh popovers and irish oatmeal. Live music from a traditional/native duo was just starting as we sat down. The café operates on donations only that go to supporting the local community during the off-season (which is long, this is Maine). It felt similar to our soup kitchen back home in New Jersey so it not only was a good solid breakfast but also a very good cause.

racing sailboats (aft one lost the race)

 

We popped into the library (what is it with Maine and all these beautiful libraries?) for wifi after the market and then headed back to the boat. We dropped the mooring and headed north up into Somes Sound. While the descriptions comparing it to fjords in Norway seem a bit exaggerated (I haven’t been to Norway but I’ve been in Milford Sound in New Zealand and these are just hints of that type of topography), it’s a beautiful area. The wind was coming out of the northwest so we opted to motor, but two crazy local sailboats were racing right behind us, tacking back and forth across the sound. Maine sailors are nuts – it’s common for them to heel so hard their keel is showing. The race came to an abrupt end when one of the boats ran aground. I’m hoping it was Maine mud and not rock, he should have been floating again within the hour as the tide came in.

Somes Harbor

We were told about Somes Harbor when we were back in the Isle of Shoals by someone who had cruised Maine for years. The moorings are all private, but there is room to anchor for at least a dozen boats. Lawrence described it as Block Island rather than Maine anchoring, which is true – you’re a bit closer to your neighbor than at other wide open anchorages, but we found a good spot near the harbor entrance, and it would still be a short dinghy ride to shore.

precious cargo – sourdough bread

 

In the meantime I finally hit the sweet spot with baking bread on board. I had been feeding my sourdough starter for a few days. The previous night before going to bed I mixed up a batch of sourdough bread. You don’t have to sit around and let it rise to bake the next morning, you can let it continue to proof during the day. I didn’t shape the loaf for a second proofing till we dropped anchor mid afternoon, which meant it was baked off with plenty of time to cool for dinner. This gave me more time for cocktails, reading, and watching the eagles, ospreys & porpoises in the harbor while Trip was out for a row.

 

Creamy Pesto Pasta w/ Chicken & Onions

 

 

house in the harbor – that’s a glass winterized deck that’s cantilevered out over the water!

I made a creamy pesto chicken pasta dish for dinner. One apology while I figure out food photography. We don’t tend to eat dinner till after the sun has gone down which means lighting for photography has been an issue. While my dear dear husband (note: former professional photographer) sorts this issue out, you’ll have to deal with less than ideal pictures from the recipes. I promise the food tastes good!

 

Somesville Historic Society

 

 

 

The next morning we dinghied around the harbor and headed into Somesville, which is one of those charming towns so tiny if you blink you’ll miss it.  The historical society has a small but interesting museum and lovely gardens that sit on either side of the Mill Creek.  Further up the road along the creek is a beautiful little cemetery that makes for a quiet little walk off the main drag.    And just around the bend is the Acadia Repertory Theatre where we’ll be taking in Agatha Christie’s Black Coffee (featuring Hercule Poirot).

 

Update: we had a chance to visit the Mt Desert Island historical society right in Somesville. Turns out we have a bunch of wealthy Harvard students to thank for the founding of Acadia. They started coming up during their summers to explore and study all elements of the natural sciences, and were smart enough to recognize as tourism grew that the land needed to be protected for the public. Acadia was established in 1916.

charming gravestone at the local cemetery