Get Your Sail On!
Imagine ripping across the bay under thousands of square feet of canvas sails. Looking up, the sails seem to kiss the clouds. Wind in your hair, perhaps a book in your hand. Water, wind, islands, sun. It all starts like this. It takes a village to bend on the mainsail! With a mainsail, foresail (or
The Tradition Continues
It should be no secret that the vessels of the Maine Windjammer Association are steeped in history and tradition. The captains take great pride in sharing these traditions with guests and passing this knowledge onto their crew, as it was once passed on to them. Most captains spent years working their way up “through the
Spring Delicacies at the Farmstand and in the Galley
Spring can be a little slow to start up here in Maine. We get our first taste of it in early March when the first false spring lures us to get the grill out for a day. Then we celebrate maple sugaring season as the woods are filled with maple taps among the snowy trees.
Chefs on Air
This winter three of our Maine Windjammer Association chefs spent some time in the studio kitchen of Maine’s nightly news magazine show “207” demonstrating just a few of their favorite recipes. If you’re looking for an easy recipe for your grill or a new seafood recipe to impress your friends, check out these videos. Chef
BOTTOMS UP!
Step aboard a Maine windjammer before a cruise and you’ll see that all is ship-shape. The paint and varnish gleam, the sails are neatly furled, and the cabin linens are crisp and tidy. What you won’t be able to see though is all the work that’s also been done on the hull of the boat
Behind the Scenes with the Maine Windjammer Association Captains
Every spring around April 1st the crew members of the Maine Windjammer Association vessels arrive, eager not only to sail but also to help ready the boats for a season of sailing. The docks start buzzing with the sound of orbital sanders and shop vacs. There’s a camaraderie among the crew and captains that brings
Six super bonuses on a fall foliage Maine Windjammer Association cruise
Maine’s Midcoast, and the entire Penobscot Bay region glows in the harvest hues of Mother Nature’s fall colors from mid-September through October. From the water, the Maine Windjammer Association captains watch as color sets in and the reds, yellows, and oranges of the hillsides bathe the entire region in fall foliage vistas. Add in a
National Historic Landmark Vessels Celebrate Their 150th Birthdays In 2021
All of our vessels that are a part of the Maine Windjammer Association have seen it all but the ones who are the oldest of the fleet and are celebrating 150 years, schooners Lewis R. French and Stephen Taber, have seen more. As the oldest still operating commercial sailing vessels in the U.S.A., they have
Meet the J. & E. Riggin & Her Captain’s Justin Schaefer & Jocelyn Schmidt
The Schooner J. & E. Riggin was built in 1927 as an oyster dredger for Charles Riggin in Dorchester, New Jersey, and is one of the very few vessels of this kind that still sail today. Her name, J. & E., comes from the names of Mr. Riggin’s two sons, Jacob and Edward. This special windjammer has
Windjammer cruises in 2021: Smaller cruising offers a safe unplugged vacation at sea
Many feel that travel will take a long time to return to “normal” or at least pre-pandemic levels. What’s rocked the world of travel more than health concerns is the loss of a sense of security, say many travelers. Enter the Maine Windjammer Association, the largest fleet of historic working windjammers in America. Many refer to historic windjammers as the “un-cruise”, offering bespoke small boat experiences, minus itineraries, ports of call, and massive buffets yet filled with exploring at sea, wind-driven days, star-lit nights and entertainment compliments of Mother Nature.
