Dean B wrote:
I also have a few questions about Southern New England:
Do the winds hold up in Sep.?

See the Maine response and associated details.

It sounds pretty commercialized. I'm worried about not finding a
place to anchor. Is there much hope for a primitive experience or
are you at the mercy of the local property owners?

Forget trespassing. You will get into trouble fast. In Southern New
England one simply does not land on private property.

The issue instead is usually the availability of space in the standard
harbors. Years ago the trend switched to moorings, and it's only gotten
worse. At least in September you will be pretty sure to find a mooring, but
most harbors of interest are so clogged with mooring balls that lying to
your own steel is not simple. I try to do it most of the time, but I have
been using these harbors for many years and I can usually make an educated
guess about what's possible and what's trouble. In some harbors you will
definitely draw the ire of the local constable if you get creative.

Now for a fee I will give you the coordinates of some really neat places to
drop a hook not matter what the situation (smile).

--
Good luck and good sailing.
s/v Kerry Deare of Barnegat
http://kerrydeare.tripod.com

Buzzards Bay and the Cape and Islands are great, but they're not exactly
"primitive." We used to go to Maine for the primitive escape, but switched to
the sound when our daughter was born. Martha's Vineyard is a lot more fun for a
child, especially being able to swim off the boat and go in for ice cream and a
carousel every day.

There are more primitive places, but you'll always be sharing them with lots of
other cruisers. This is not a problem if you like to anchor outside away from
the crowds, but getting an "inside" spot at the head of the little hurricane
hole is an art form. Our itinerary is often designed around arriving at the
optimal time to get the ideal spot.

As for the wind, its hard to predict. Last Labor Day we came back in about 30
knots, but often as not we've had to power to make time. September is the heart
of the hurricane season here. Its very rare they strike north of Boston, but
Buzzard Bay usually gets at least one scare every season.

Frankly, its sounds to me like Maine is what you're after. Just don't plan on
swimming.


"Dean B" wrote in message
om...
I also have a few questions about Southern New England:
Do the winds hold up in Sep.?
It sounds pretty commercialized. I'm worried about not finding a
place to anchor. Is there much hope for a primitive experience or are
you at the mercy of the local property owners?
Don't get me wrong, I do like to stop in at the occasional small port
but there are only so many gift shops and book stores that I can put
up with.

Dean

Wow! what great responses. I think I owe it to you to fill in some
more details about myself and my needs.

I will be sailing with just my wife with whom I race in Portland. She
has limited cruising experience. Boat size is always a compromise of
a number of factors so we tend to prefer a boat in the 30-35 foot
range. We're both athletic and don't like being stuck on-board for
days at a time so shore activities are important. State Parks, like
those in the San Juans, are ideal because the better ones have nice
trails that one can spend considerable time walking around and
exploring the entire island.

I expect that we'll use just one week but two weeks are not out of the
question. Because it's going to be a charter we'll need to schedule
in advance. We are pretty flexible about what time of the season. Of
course the longer days, earlier in Summer give you more time to travel
and go ashore.

All of my sailing has been in the PNW. I have probably a year on-board
sailing the leeward side of Vancouver Island: Puget Sound, San Jauns,
Gulf Islands, Strait of Jaun de Fuca, Strait of Georgia, Desolation
Sound, Johnstone Strait, Queen Charlotte Strait, and probably 100 days
on the Columbia river between Portland and Astoria. I have sailed in
fog (prefer not to repeat). My chart reading and dead reckoning
skills are fine, of course GPS with built in charting make those
skills less important these days. I have lots of experience coping
with strong currents. I have no real offshore Pacific coast
passage-making experience as I'm not a big fan of the sea-sickness
that seems enevitable with the Pacific swell.

Dean

The most encouraging destinations discussed so far are on the New
England coast. I have a few questions that I'd like to push back
about Maine:
Is the Maine fog less of a problem in September? Is the high season
fog all that bad? Does it burn of in the afternoon?
Do the winds hold up in Maine in Sep.?
What is the public land situation in Maine? Are there public parks
where one can wander around?

Thanks,
Dean

I also have a few questions about Southern New England:
Do the winds hold up in Sep.?
It sounds pretty commercialized. I'm worried about not finding a
place to anchor. Is there much hope for a primitive experience or are
you at the mercy of the local property owners?
Don't get me wrong, I do like to stop in at the occasional small port
but there are only so many gift shops and book stores that I can put
up with.

Dean