HIGH SEAS HOLIDAY

Sailing on an historic tall ship

By CINDA CHAVICH

(Rockport, Maine) - When I open my eyes and realize it’s not yet 6 a.m., I’m tempted to simply roll over in my bunk and pull the wooly L.L. Bean blanket over my head.

I’m still lulled by the gentle rocking of the big schooner, and there are no sounds yet on deck to indicate that others are afoot. I’m just about to rejoin the snoring set when it hits me, right between the eyes. Well, right in the nose actually.

It’s bread, fresh bread, baking bread – that unmistakable warm, yeasty aroma wafting through the chill morning air, beckoning me involuntarily from my bed. I pull on my fleece jacket, slide back the hatch and, like some cartoon character dragged along by animated, aromatic fingers, I float along in a heady haze, making a beeline for the galley.

I’m dead right. Down below, Annie Mahle – this salty schooner’s multi-talented chef, co-captain, roving mother and chanteuse – is just pulling a tray of fresh rolls from the oven. It’s impressive, like all of the incredible food she’s been conjuring up down here, three times a day for the 28 people on board, especially when you see her cramped kitchen.

For we’re sailing, not on some luxury yacht or exclusive cruise ship, but on the J&E Riggin, a restored 1927 oyster boat that Mahle, her husband captain Jon Finger and two young daughters (Ella, 2, and Chloe, 5) just happen to share with tourists who want a taste of what life on the high seas in a tall-masted schooner might have been like a century ago. Jon and Annie’s story is a romantic one – two mid-western sailing bums who met while working on board a tour boat like this and never went home. They were married on a Maine windjammer by a captain colleague, crewed in the Caribbean together, then settled down to raise a family on the Riggin.

Living on the water like the Swiss family Robinson is exciting, but from the cook’s perspective, it can be primitive.

Annie pushes a strand of thick yellow hair off her face, flips the big pan around and puts it back into the hot oven, fastening the blackened iron door with an ancient latch. Then she grabs another chunk of wood and shoves it into the firebox – stoking the hungry wood stove as she has been for several hours already this morning.

“Today was good, if it’s too windy, all of the heat is sucked up the chimney and the top of the oven is hot while the bottom stays cool,” the pretty young chef explains matter-of-factly, beating a batch of cornbread for lunch. A professional cook, who apprenticed in fine Maine dining rooms and honed her pastry skills at the Culinary Institute of America, you’d think she was born on a boat like this, cooking on a wood stove like a pioneer.  But it’s just one of the skills she’s acquired since the couple bought the Riggin and set sail together six years ago.

“You learn to know how to adjust the heat – when to use the dampers, what kind of wood to add, what size of pieces,” she says, crammed into the narrow space where the old stove, stamped “Atlantic Fisherman #33, Lunenburg, N.S.,” belches heat and smoke all day long.

Most of the Maine Windjammer Association’s fleet of 14 antique schooners are pretty similar to this vessel, a 100-foot sailing ship with creaky wooden masts, more than 8,000 square feet of heavy canvass sail and a pared down, functional aesthetic.  Independently owned and operated by couples like Jon and Annie, these are the original working boats that hauled lumber, fish, granite and commercial goods up and down this rugged coast before they were replaced by trains and automobiles in the 1930s. Seven in the fleet, including the J&E Riggin, have been designated national historic landmarks, so each comes with a rich provenance.

The twin-masted schooner’s design dates to the 1700s, a relatively small, fast and maneuverable wooden boat, rigged fore and aft, that can be run with a small crew. Thousands of wooden sailing ships like this once hauled cargo along the eastern seaboard, from Halifax to Cape Cod, but now only a handful are left. The famous Bluenose, immortalized on the Canadian dime, was a Grand Banks fishing schooner, but is now long gone, replaced by a replica boat, Bluenose II.

Among the Maine windjammers are America’s two oldest commercial schooners, the Grace Bailey and Mercantile, both built in 1871, along with a historic pilot boat, a racing yacht and a couple of fishing schooners like the Riggin, a shallow-hulled boat that dredged the coastal waters for oysters in the early 1900s. Three replica wooden schooners, built in the 1960s, round out the fleet.

It was Capt. Frank Swift who saved the first old schooners and converted them for passenger cruises for “rusticators” in 1936. By the 1940s, Swift was doing a healthy business, attracting big city tourists to sail “down east” on his windjammers.  Those early weeklong trips cost a mere $25 but sailing on a windjammer is still a bargain for adventurous souls who enjoy a rustic holiday.

These historic wooden boats have been meticulously restored and minimally retrofitted to accommodate up to two dozen passengers. It’s not a luxury cruise – more akin to a kayaking or horseback holiday with a great guide, or a stay at a simple B&B with particularly knowledgeable and accommodating hosts.

Below deck, our cabin is a tight little cubby, narrow bunk beds stacked and fitted like gigantic puzzle pieces against the curve of the wooden hull, with hooks and a few small shelves to stow gear, and a tiny sink with cold running water. Entry is down a vertical ladder, tricky at first but soon mastered. The two heads (toilets) are shared, and not much bigger than an airline loo. Miraculously, one converts into a shower for occasional quick rinses.  It’s pretty basic, but heaven compared with back packing.

Each boat has its own schedule of three- to six-day cruises through the picturesque islands around Rockport and Camden, Maine, some geared to special interests like nature photography, lighthouses or traditional East Coast music. Our trip corresponded with the annual Schooner Gam – a magical June evening when we rendezvoused and tied up with several other tall ships, and had a chance to board and explore several beautiful old boats.

While this is dubbed a “working vacation” since passengers need to pitch in every morning to help pull up the anchor, hoist or stow the massive sails, and wash dishes, there’s really not much to do once you’re underway.

Windjamming is a leisurely way to see the sights of coastal Maine, a relaxing soft adventure for anyone of any age. Our 21 guests included a Texas couple and their two charming teenagers who had sailed on this boat several times before, four friends from Portland, a couple of young physiotherapists from Ohio, and an Idaho senior who, with her adult siblings and their spouses, was fulfilling a longtime dream to sail on a tall ship. None seemed put out by the rustic reality of sailing on a 100-year-old schooner and there was plenty of down time to rest, read and relax between the amazing, home-cooked meals.

Toothsome loaves of brown bread shot with molasses, fluffy scones and fresh blueberry pancakes, creamy clam chowder and perfectly oven- poached salmon for 25, were all cooked on the wood stove. Annie is adamant about using seasonal and sustainable ingredients, stocking the boat’s big ice chest with organic produce purchased directly from local farmers. The flavourful corned beef she serves is spiced by a local butcher the old-fashioned way and the sweet fiddleheads come fresh from the Maine forests. Every meal was memorable but nothing beat the 40 pounds of fresh lobster, cooked in a tub filled with rockweed and seawater over a campfire on a deserted beach. We sat on the sand, cracking the scarlet shells on nearby rocks, and devouring the sweet meat with corn, potatoes and lots of melted butter.

While you’re dependent on the weather (some days were too calm to sail, others too wet and cold for comfort), that’s part of the charm of windjamming. You’re off the grid with no schedule – you go where the wind takes you.

Sailors will love the chance to pitch in and help, and non-sailors will learn enough seafaring lingo to take orders when needed. Jon is happy to let you take the big wooden wheel and explain how he charts his course through the dangerous, rocky shoals along this spectacular coast.  He pulled us into snug harbours each night, pointed out eagles and seals, and played guitar in perfect harmony with his wife’s strong voice while we sat around the soft lantern light under the spectacular stars.

Sailing with a family like this on their own boat is not like boarding a fancy, full-service yacht, or taking a cruise. There’s no casino, no happy hour, no show tunes - just the sound of the sails chattering in a stiff breeze and the salt water slipping swiftly along the hull.

It’s the perfect place to lay back, chill out and spend some stress-free time with family and friends – no wonder that many guests return year after year.

Windjamming is truly a unique outdoor experience, a chance to climb aboard a bit of living history.

IF YOU GO:

With more than 3,000 islands to explore, the Maine coast is considered some of the most spectacular sailing areas in the world. Each day the windjammers drop anchor in a port or harbour where guests can go ashore to explore deserted beaches or small fishing ports.

There are 14 tall ships in the Maine Windjammer fleet – go to their website, www.sailmainecoast.com to choose a vessel and contact the crew. Some windjammers cater to families with kids, some focus on whale watching or photography and fall colours. Many families charter complete vessels for reunions and trips are perfect for several generations to enjoy. But don’t expect to plug your kids into a movie or a video game – make sure they can make their own fun.

Sailings aboard the J&E Riggin run from late May through mid-October, with Fall Colour Photography  and Leaf Peeper cruises Sept. 22-27, Sept. 29 to Oct. 2 and Oct. 3-6. Contact them about rates and availability by calling 1-800-869-0604 (207-594-1875) or via email, info@riggin.com Check out Annie’s newsletter and recipes at www.riggin.com

Maine Windjammer vacations are affordable – three- to six-day cruises range from $350 to $850 (US) per passenger, all meals included.

From Boston, it’s a four-hour drive to Camden/Rockland,  the home ports to most of the Maine windjammer fleet.  From Portland, it’s a two-hour drive or $90 (PP return) limo ride. We flew to Halifax, then rented a car and crossed from Yarmouth, N.S., to Bar Harbor, Maine, on the 3-hour Cat ferry ($180 US with car and two passengers,  1-888-249-7245. www.catfery.com). The fast ferry crosses once daily, complete with large-screen movies, casino and airline-style seating. Stay in pretty Bar Harbor at the historic Balance Rock or Ledgelawn inns, two of Maine’s remaining summer mansions,  and spend some quality land time exploring the spectacular hiking and cycling trails of Acadia National Park.

(this story first appeared in the Globe and Mail newspaper)

©Cinda Chavich

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