Ingomar to Port Mouton

       We spent two nights at Ingomar.  A heavy wet fog had descended on us, with intermittent drizzle and the occasional burst of heavier rain and wind, so we just stayed put.  When the second morning dawned with the same weather, we’d had enough and decided to set out anyway.  That’s what radar’s for, right?

We motored slowly, keep a watch for the buoys and rocks that showed up on radar.  Visibility was about an eighth of a mile.  We tossed around possible destinations and settled on Lockeport, which the guide books said offered floating docks, a small marina, and a grocery store.  As we approached, the fog suddenly cleared to reveal a beautiful, sunny, hot day.  

Lockeport - you can see the rock wall enclosing the harbor. 

Lockeport was once a bustling town with a strong fishing industry.  Its past economy is evident in some of the modest but well-maintained Victorian houses, but much of the fishing is so seasonal it doesn’t bring so much money to the fish processing plant that dominates the waterfront, though we did watch one fishboat unload baskets of giant flounder while we were there.  We entered the man-made harbor to find the floating docks piled neatly ashore and no evidence of a marina.  We tied up alongside a fishboat at the town wharf.  Just as we’d gotten ourselves set we watched three sailboats from the Manchester, MA yacht club come in and circle round and round, trying to figure out where to go.  Though the harbor is large enough to anchor, the holding ground is poor and all the guidebooks are quite specific about not anchoring here.  We ended up helping one of the boats tie up to the fishboat astern of us, and the other two rafted together at a small private dock near the fish plant. 

Willie Dawes is dwarfed by the fishing fleet!

Dan and I walked to the small downtown where we found both the grocery store and a liquor store.  There were welcoming signs everywhere, inviting us to read about the town’s history and showing us the way to the sandy beaches and small park on the town’s shoreline.  Our new friends from the Manchester Yacht Club invited us to join them for dinner at the local restaurant and as we swapped boat cards, we realized we had met one of the couples in P.E.I. back in 2015 when we were cruising the Down East Circle.  Small world.  We went from the restaurant back to one of the boats for after dinner rum and stories.

Crescent Beach.  The guidebook cautions it's been 'discovered' by the local tourists.  This is a Sunday morning 'busy' with locals. 

The next morning we walked the length of Crescent beach and then over to Rood’s Head Park before saying goodbye to Lockeport.  What a lovely little place.  Our MYC friends were on the last leg of their Nova Scotia trip, headed west for Shelburne and then home to the States, so we said our goodbyes and left to go east.

We cruised to Port Mouton (they pronounce it Muh-toon; it was named after a sheep that fell overboard when Samuel de Champlain was mapping the shores) and anchored in front of a beautiful sandy beach.  Being a Sunday, the beach was lively with families, couples and romping dogs, but few people were in the water.  Though it looks almost Caribbean here with the fine white sand and aqua water, it’s still the North Atlantic, and the water is only about 50 degrees.  We spent a beautiful evening people watching.

Sunset Port Mouton.