The original plan was to leave the Marina where we’d stayed to get work done and to make Liam’s High School Graduation easier to coordinate and to move to Jewell Island in Casco Bay. But something came up and so we moved to the Portland Maine Anchorage first.

The plan was always to spend the week of the 4th of July at the Portland Maine Anchorage since it’s the best spot to see the fireworks. And then the plan was to move somewhere else.. but again something came up. These something’s were good things involving Ryan interviewing for jobs and eventually landing an offer.,

So what is there to do in at Anchor in Portland Maine for three weeks.

LOTS

Anchoring is simple enough. There is a large area across from the East End Beach mooring field where there is room for dozens of boats. We anchored in 10 feet of water at low tide which becomes 20 feet of water at high tide, so we put out 100 feet of chain for a 5:1 scope at high tide and in all three weeks we never moved an inch.

Portland has three public docks. There is a pickup and dropoff located on Commercial Street near the ferry docks, this is a common pickup and dropoff for the water taxi’s and it is pickup and dropoff only. Your dinghy will be taken if you leave it there. The second is the “official” Portland dinghy dock at the Maine State Pier. But to be honest there is a 2 hour limit and it’s actual purpose is for the large tankers and cargo ships to send a tender in with their officers to check in at customs and immigration which is essentially across the street. It’s not a practical stop. The third is the public boat launch at the East End Beach where I have seen folks leave their dinghies tied to the very end of the dock for long periods of time it’s against the rules and I never dared.

So what are the actual options?

First is the East End Beach, that boat launch dock is an excellent spot to pick up and drop off guests as well as tie up while you wait in the dinghy for a pizza or grocery delivery. But we almost always beach the dinghy immediately to the right (north) of the boat launch. The beach to beach at is easily identified since it usually has a ton of kayaks and paddle boards on the beach. Then there are several marinas that will let you dock your dinghy for a fee. We never do that because I’m much too cheap.

The Practical Side of Portland for the Cruising Sailor

From the beaching spot there is a short walk to Hanford Grocery Store which is the regional grocery store chain. Inexpensive with everything you’d need. But along the walk you pass a UHaul for propane, a West Marine, a Whole Foods (amazon lockers), a Trader Joe’s, and a UPS Store which will allow you to have mail shipped there. Not to mention doctors, dentists, veterinarians etc.

With the marine industry so significant in Portland there is also just about every marine service you can imagine. Mechanics, Electricians, Electronic Specialists, everything. Many will come to visit you at anchor and there are multiple yards to be hauled at if you need.

There is also a pumpout boat run by the Friends of Casco Bay and they will visit you just about anywhere in Casco Bay. And of course water at all of the fuel docks and water near the beach where you beach the boat.

Things to do in Portland

Portland has won “Restaurant City of the Year” multiple times. It’s an actual culinary destination, so food is almost always on the agenda. It also has one of the highest concentrations of breweries per capita in North America which also adds to the agenda. There is shopping, wondering the city which is exceptionally walkable, depending on when you arrive there is Shakespeare in the park, random other theater events, and live music every single night and dozens of venues.

We’re boring. Our Portland routine typically follows the practical with a handful of indulgences. We typically start each day at one of dozens of local independently owned coffee shops. Laptops open, tea hot, and I do my best to get as much of my day job work done as possible before lunch. Then we’ll enter the battle of whits as I argue that we should find a fantastic restaurant for lunch while my responsible 19 year old son argues that we should run a quick errand and then either pick up picnic stuff at the grocery store or return to the boat for lunch.

Then back to the boat since he usually wins.

Still. With so much to do in Portland, we’d usually end up back on shore later in the day for more adventures.

The need for an actual dinghy dock.

Portland Maine though as a glaring area of neglect and need, And that is regarding an actual dinghy dock. There are several areas where one would be appropriate. The first is along the wall by the East End Beach Boat Launch. With this being the most significant landing area having a place where locals could have permitted dinghies in the water would help with access to the water and if space were reserved for transients all the better.

Another area where a dinghy dock would work well would be where the old rail line ran under the Tukey’s Bridge. This would place it closer to the services that cruisers would need, could be made a “no overnight docking” type of dock, and I’m sure would attract a great many additional boaters to the area to spend money.

Portland Harbor itself is too busy commercially to place a dinghy dock for recreational boaters. But one last area where there might be a good spot is where the dock was at the Smelting Works & Dyers Shipyard was in the late 1800s. You can still see the foundation by the East End Beach if you’ve ever noticed the “square like” formation between the beach and the bathrooms at the beach. This was the location of the old pier and would make an excellent dinghy dock location and if built back up could also house a recreational boating / Casco Bay environmental awareness station perhaps with space for both the Friends of Casco Bay, the Portland Harbormaster’s office, and the Portland Parks & Rec department. I’m thinking of the “Maritime Center” in Newport RI.

Sadly I don’t think any of these will happen in Portland. The commercial side is just too big and keeps the city too occupied. And honestly given the choice there isn’t anything I’d consider risking the working waterfront of Portland for.