LONG COVE

43° 58.24’N 069° 11.47’W

4th ed. Cruising Guide page 191

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Charts: 13301, 13302

Chart Kit: 64, 19

Penobscot Bay overview chart Harbor chart

IF YOU prefer an anchorage that is quieter and more isolated than Tenants Harbor, tranquil Long Cove is right next door. The anchorage is broad and shallow but well protected in most weather. When the wind is blowing hard from the east or southeast, it is far preferable to Tenants Harbor.*
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Long Cove was a huge quarrying center. So many English stonecutters came to work in the granite industry here at the end of the 19th century that a section of Long Cove was called Englishtown. They were followed by Finns and Swedes and other nationalities, so that Clark Island and Long Cove developed a cosmopolitan air. In those days, the village boasted stores, a post office, boardinghouses, and even a bandstand. Only the silent quarries remain to remind us of that fascinating era.

* Stuart Jones writes (fall 2003): Long Cove at Tenants Harbor is no longer any good for overnight anchorage due to several factors: huge wakes from working and local pleasure craft plus large amount of oddd floats, mooring components and general flotsam and jetsam in the area.
COPYRIGHT 2002 DIAMOND PASS PUBLISHING
Approaches. Harbor chart. The approach to Long Cove is easy. Run between nun “2” at Northern Island and the ledge making out from the mainland, staying close to the nun.
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Anchorages, Moorings. With the exception of the 3-foot spot north of the entrance ledge and the shoal area southwest of the Spectacles and the reported rock just to the north of the word “Long” on the chart, you can anchor almost anywhere in Long Cove in 9 to 14 feet of water at low. There are no rental moorings, but plenty of lobster buoys. Protection is good in normal summer winds, and even when the wind is from the southeast, the ledge between High and Northern Island blocks most of the swells, except at high tide. If you go beyond the Spectacles, favor the west side of the cove to clear the shoal area to the east. Two yachtsmen who rode out a 50-knot northerly here report that the water barely rippled.
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The protection is excellent deeper in the cove up by Clark Island, but the channel is ledgy and narrow and no longer marked. It is swept by strong currents, full of lobster buoys, and not a good place for strangers.
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Getting Ashore. Row to the floats of Atwood Brothers by their gray building on the west side, or scramble up on the rocks nearby. Spectacles, Northern, and High Island are private and inhabited.
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Things to Do. A visit to the plant of Great Eastern Mussel Farms makes an interesting outing. It is tucked in a cove on the west shore opposite the north end of Clark Island. Arrange a visit by calling 372-6317. Great Eastern has a gray building on a granite wharf, with a float for your dinghy. Be aware, though, that this upper part of Long Cove bristles with ledges, and the tidal currents are strong. Without caution, you might be needing those extra shear pins.
COPYRIGHT 2002 DIAMOND PASS PUBLISHING
If you prefer to walk, it is about 1.5 miles. Land at Atwood Brothers and walk past the quarry, turning right on Route 131. Continue a half mile or more to the next right turn, Long Cove Road. There is a sign for the mussel farm. Walk another quarter mile and take the first right turn.
COPYRIGHT 2002 DIAMOND PASS PUBLISHING
Wild mussels from low-tide ledges have always been a local Maine delicacy. Early attempts to culture oysters and mussels relied on rafts moored in bays and rivers, with the seeds arranged in trays or clinging to long vertical strings. Better methods have been developed since the passage of a 1973 law making it possible to lease parcels of sea bottom for aquaculture. In recent years, Great Eastern has learned how to improve the quality of wild mussels and reduce the time they take to grow.
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Great Eastern sows mussel seed on acreage leased from the state. After two years, when they have grown to sufficient size, the mussels are harvested by local fishermen and brought to the Great Eastern plant. There they spend a day in tanks of clear seawater to siphon themselves clean before declumping, washing, and inspection to remove broken shells and grit. Finally, the shiny black mussels are shipped all over the country in special refrigerated trucks. You can buy mussels right here, and Great Eastern provides recipes in English and French. They also sell a T-shirt printed with the comparative nutritional values of mussels and a T-bone steak (95 calories versus 395 calories, just for a start).
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Despite the popularity of these succulent mollusks, the mussel industry remains highly controversial. Fishermen have objected strenuously to the harvesting of seed mussels and to the leasing of mussel beds. “One man’s seed mussel is another man’s catch,” they say, and lobstermen complain of damage done to good lobstering ground.