Yarmouth, NS to Portland, ME

June 27, 2015

Today was our last ferry crossing. But it would be a long one. Ten hours on open water! I have never been "at sea" before, and this would be the largest floating vessel I have ever been on. Being a long voyage, we upgraded to an outside cabin so we could change clothes easily and rest when we wanted.

Today's short ride to the ferry terminal and the track across the Gulf of Maine

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We had to be at the terminal at 8:00 AM (no later than 8:30) for the 9:15 departure. We were still early in the season, and the ship was not full, so we arrived at maybe 8:15, went through the control point (which was not time- consuming; the real control is in Portland at customs), and got in line.

Our "cruise ship" ferry, waiting to be boarded.

Happy and I, in line behind Patrick and his motorcycle. Patrick was headed for Connecticut.

And, of course, we had to secure our bikes. This guy was nice, but he had a real hard time figuring out how to use the straps to secure them. Rope would have been easier and just as good.

Note that I had removed my left front pannier. I had repacked it into a day bag so I would have a change of clothes on board. Access to the car deck was not allowed after we left port.

Our exterior cabin with a porthole! Not too bad. The interior cabins are identical but have a round mirror at the same location lol.

We then explored the ship. I had only heard stories, so I was very curious. Keep in mind, this was a much scaled-down version and not as well appointed, but they did have several restaurants (one with white tablecloths), several bars, private lounges, reserved seating that sort of looked like business class seats on an international airline flight, and a casino. And lots of decks to wander about on and enjoy the scenery. The latter being bird and whale watching and just staring at the ocean and the ship's wake.

So besides eating and drinking, and maybe gambling, there was not a whole lot to do. They did have cable in one of the bars, so I was able to follow the New York manhunt pretty closely. For what it was worth. It was sort of like a soap opera; events happened very slowly.

We lost cell phone service about two hours after leaving port and recovered it about an hour or so out of Portland. The departures and arrivals were pretty exciting. In between, we chatted, ate, drank a little, and napped.

Leaving Nova Scotia behind. I hope to return sometime soon!

I didn't get a pic boarding but did grab this one as we unloaded.

Back in the U.S. of A. — almost. Waiting in line at customs.

Customs and passport. They confiscated my banana, orange, and apple!

Afterwards we rode to our hotel in downtown Portland and relaxed. We were not in a rush to eat since we had gorged ourselves at the ship's buffet (not bad food), but when we did go out, we had pizza. If the timing had been better, I would have gone for another lobster . . . that will have to wait, I guess!

Today's ride: 2 miles (3 km)
Total: 3,269 miles (5,261 km)

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