BASS HARBOR BAR extends south from Bass Harbor Head on Mount Desert Island to Great Gott Island. A dredged east-west channel runs from red-and-white gong “WB,” close to Bass Harbor Head Light, to red-and-white bell “EB” at the eastern end. Run a straight line the short distance between them.
COPYRIGHT 2002 DIAMOND PASS PUBLISHING
The current floods west and ebbs east across the bar at an angle to the channel, so it tends to set you to one side or the other of the channel or right out of it altogether. Keep track of a rough bearing on the mark behind you so you can gauge it. Normally this is an easy passage, but a nasty chop can build up when the wind is against the current. With conditions quite benign just a short distance away, even 50-footers can pitch violently and dip their bowsprits as they cross the bar. Stow the lunch dishes ahead of time.
COPYRIGHT 2002 DIAMOND PASS PUBLISHING