marking entry to Eggemoggin Reach
below Castine

the free lighthouse guide I brought along
2013 edition I see now
newsprint
has no mention of Saddleback Ledge light
not to be confused with Saddleback Island
other than a listing
no photo or description
nor does it list Eastport as a harbor
nor Lubec
though Calais somehow counts

buoys: green have flat tops
red, coneheads

Eggemoggin Reach
the Deer Isle bridge ahead
we’ll barely clear
six inches or sixty feet, what’s the difference?
other than a margin of error

the electronic gizmo’s
soundings in feet
at mean lower low water

I got to steer today
a feel of command
aiming for the arch of the bridge

Taking forever to get to the span
Deer Isle Bridge, as seen by vehicular traffic
Eggemoggen Reach Bridge from the water

a fixed bridge meaning
it doesn’t draw open
one more detail on the chart
(see Note B)
which I can’t find anywhere
until it’s pointed out in the margin,
same color type as the notice

we’re pushed by Greyhound
the inboard yawl

the motor behind me as a drone note
humming above lapping water

people bundled up this morning muted sun water depth 64
just gone to 72

Eggemoggen Reach broader
than Friar’s Road
where I live

this lapping water is a nagging unease
so far from a destination
you can address

do I walk as fast as we’re sailing?

a fathom is essentially an arm span

how far the sound carries
that lawnmower

I think we’re heading the wrong direction
with someone new at the helm
how can they see ahead
from way back there?

I’m freezing
ready on the down haul
island hopping

today’s cold
except in the galley

a day centered on shades of gray
trimmed in green and faint blue

slow bell
buoy, white and red

slow bell lazy-like,
lulling slow sea

we’re sailing about 1.3 knots

three times faster than I could swim
without a current
either way

Every morning, we had to lift anchor to get on our way. Our schooner relied on a four-person winch, plus a helper to keep the anchor chain orderly for the trip.