Newagen

Joy. Pure joy. That’s what you feel when you spend some time with Angus on a boat. Any boat. He’s on point the whole time, wagging his tail, barking at ducks, cormorants, seals, seagulls, buoys, anything really that catches his attention. Oh, and wagging his tail. He loves the water, he loves boats, and he loves his humans!

We’ve known Dave and Di for more than 20 years now. They were the 3rd stop on our very first adventure trip back in 2016. Prior to that, Dave and I were among a group of work colleagues at a big consulting firm who left. Dave and I collaborated between our two small firms, each of which was named for its founder’s chosen refuge – Newagen Group (Dave) and Northfield Associates (me). Our spouses, Doug and Di, ran the operations for our respective firms, at least until Doug and I retired and started doing these travels. Dave and Di say they’re retiring soon…

Dave and Di have long spent weekends and vacations in their ‘Northern Office,’ and now more and more weekdays of their weekdays, as well. Their Southport Island home on the coast of Maine was built in 1903. Although they’ve done much structural work to the house and property, they’ve focused on maintaining the turn of the (last!) century feel. And, OMG, the porches! We could sit all day looking out over the cove watching the tide come and go, the boats at their moorings, and coastal critters of all kinds – seagulls, cormorants, seals, hawks, and more. It’s also the ultimate happy hour spot and a great place for friends who haven’t seen each other for a while to sit and get caught up.

Dave and Di graciously arranged for perfect weather for the weekend! Considering the forecast prior to our arrival, this was no mean feat (i.e., we lucked out, big time!). Anyway, after lots of catching up on the porch, they brought us along on this year’s inaugural, shake-down cruise on their sailboat, Tenacious – a recent (and beautiful!) upgrade to the household fleet.

Leaving from Pierce Cove, we made our way out to the wide Sheepscot River, past several islands and peninsulas into the Gulf of Maine. Capt. Dave laid out a wonderful course along the river and coast. First Mate Di expertly managed the sails and rigging.

They also brought us on a tour around Newagen and Southport Island, as well as Boothbay Harbor, in the Sea Dog, a smaller and more maneuverable power boat. After summering in the area for 25 years, they provided fascinating narrations for all of the scenes and had lots of stories to tell as we passed towns, islands, other boats, and lighthouses.

Back on shore, Di has a stash of recipes for special occasions which made for awesome dinners. Wow on the pappardelle with mushroom sauce! She also took me along on a land-based foodie’s exploration in the town of Boothbay Harbor through small boutique shops as we gathered ingredients for her famous dinner of seared scallops over pea puree.

After dinner, Dave and Di taught us a favorite game of theirs called Ten Dice. It is destined to become our ultimate RV game – small and lightweight, requiring only 10 dice and a scorepad – equally rewarding of careful logic and statistical analysis as it is for bold and audacious risk-taking. Finishing well in front of the pack (i.e., trouncing the rest of us), Di showed us how it was done…

Thanks for your wonderful hospitality, Dave and Di! Until next time…

For anyone who’s interested, more pix…