THIS ARTICLE BEGINS A SERIES OF SHORT ESSAYS ON THE RIVERS OF MAINE. THE RIVERS FOR THE MOST PART ARE ONLY NAVIGABLE NEAR THE COASTLINE. THE EXCEPTIONS TO THIS ARE THE MAJOR RIVERS IN MAINE, I.E. THE KENNEBEC, THE PENOBSCOT, THE SACO.

SINCE I LIVE NOW IN BRUNSWICK, IN WHAT WE CALL THE MID-COAST AREA I WILL BEGIN WITH THE SMALL RIVERS IN THIS GENERAL AREA. THE SASANOA RIVER BEGINS A FEW MILES NORTH OF U.S. RTE ONE AS A SMALL BROOK WHICH IS NOT NAVIGABLE AT IT’S SOURCE BY ANYTHING OTHER THAN A KAYAK OR A CANOE. AS IT MAKES IT’S WAY SOUTH TOWARD THE OCEAN IT CONNECTS WITH THE MIGHTY KENNEBEC IN WOOLWICH MAKING A NATURAL WATERWAY CONNECTING BATH TO THE SHEEPSCOT RIVER A FEW MILES SOUTHEAST. THE SASANOA IS A MIX OF NARROW PASSAGES AND WIDE OPEN BAYS. IT IS AFFECTED BY THE BIG TIDES WE HAVE ALONG THE COAST (MIDCOAST AREA TIDES ARE NINE FEET IN HEIGHT). THE RIVER WAS CARVED OUT OF THE BEDROCK BY GLACIERS DURING THE LAST ICE AGE, AS WERE ALL OF THE RIVERS AND ISLANDS ALONG THE MAINE COAST. IT’S BAYS ARE SHALLOW BUT ITS MAIN FLOW IS VERY DEEP IN PLACES, SOME SPOTS NEAR THE MOUTH ARE NEARLY 90 FEET DEEP. ONE OF THE VERY INTERESTING FEATURES OF THIS RIVER ARE THE TWO “HELL GATES”. A HELL GATE IS A SECTION OF THE RIVER THAT NARROWS TO A HUNDRED FEET WIDE FORCING THE WATER TO ACCELERATE DRAMATICALLY AS THE TIDE RISES AND FALLS. THIS CAUSES FAST CURRENTS IN A ROILLING CALDRON OF SWIRLING WATER. THE BOTTOM IN THESE TWO AREAS IS LITTERED WITH LARGE BOLDERS WHICH MAKE FOR VERY IMPRESSIVE WHIRLPOOLS AND EDDIES. THE SAILING SCHOONERS OF THE PAST CENTURY USED THE TIDES TO THEIR ADVANTAGE, WAITING FOR THE EBB TIDE TO GO SOUTH AND FOR THE FLOOD TIDE TO GO NORTH. SINCE THE PREEVAILING WIND DURING THE SUMMER HERE IN MAINE IS FROM THE SOUTHWEST THE SCHOONER’S SAILS WERE USEFUL SINCE THEY WERE HEADING SOUTHEAST OR NORTHWEST.

THIS AREA OF THE COAST IS RICH WITH HISTORY. THE COAST OF MAINE WAS PRIME FISHING GROUNDS FOR THE EUROPEAN FISHERMEN WHO WOULD COME IN EARLY SPRING AND LEAVE IN LATE FALL. THEY DEVELOPED A UNIQUE METHOD TO PRESERVE THE FISH BY SOAKING THE FILETS IN SALT WATER AND DRYING THEM ON OPEN RACKS IN THE SUMMER SUN. THIS TECHNIQUE IS STILL USED TO PREPARE SALT COD. WHILE EUROPEAN SETTLERS GO BACK 3 OR 4 HUNDRED YEARS THE NATIVE AMERICANS SUCH AS THE ABENAKIS, HOCKOMOCK AND THE PENOBSCOTS GO BACK MANY HUNDREDS MORE. IN FACT ARCHEOLOGISTS HAVE DISCOVERED A RACE OF AMERICAN INDIAN THEY CALL THE RED PEOPLE WHICH GOES BACK A FEW THOUSAND YEARS.

I LAUNCHED “KATIE” AT THE SOUTHERN PUBLIC BOAT RAMP IN BATH. BATH HAS TWO EXCELLENT BOAT LAUNCHING FACILITIES, ONE SOUTH OF THE CITY AND THE OTHER NORTH OF THE CITY. BOTH OF THE FACILITIES ARE ON THE KENNEBEC.

I HEADED NORTH ALONG THE WEST BANK OF THE KENNEBEC PASSING THE MAINE MARITIME MUSEUM ON MY PORT SIDE. THE MUSEUM IS LOCATED ON THE SITE OF A 19TH CENTURY SHIP YARD WHERE MANY CLIPPER SHIPS AND COASTING SCHOONERS WERE BUILT. IT IS WELL WORTH YOU TIME TO SPEND A DAY AT THE MUSEUM, SHOULD YOU GET TO MAINE.

CONTINUING NORTHEAST I PASSED THE VERY IMPRESSIVE “BATH IRON WORKS”. IT IS A MODERN SHIPBUILDING FACILITY WERE AEGIS CLASS CRUISERS ARE CONSTRUCTED. I SAW THE HUGE DRYDOCK USED TO LAUNCH THESE LETHAL WARSHIPS AND THE WAYS WHERE OTHER CRUISERS WERE IN VARIOUS STAGES OF COMPLETION. THERE WAS A NASTY LOOKING PATROL BOAT PROVIDING SECURITY FOR THE YARD ON THE WATER SIDE. I STEERED CLEAR OF HER AND CROSSED THE KENNEBEC HEADED FOR THE CONNECTING PASSAGE TO THE SASANOA. THIS CONNECTION LEADS UNDER THE BRIDGE WHICH CONNECTS WOOLWICH ON THE MAINLANDTO ARROWSIC ISLAND.

I PICKED UP THE FIRST OF THE CHANNEL MARKERS IN THE SASANOA AND FOLLOWED THE MARKERS SOUTH. THIS IS WHAT LOCALS CALL THE INSIDE PASSAGE FROM BATH TO THE RIVERS AND WATERWAYS TO THE SOUTHEAST. THE TIDE WAS JUST BEGINNING TO EBB (GOING OUT) SO THE CURRENT WAS VERY SLIGHT. THIS AREA OF THE RIVER IS MARSHLAND WITH BEAUTIFUL HOMES ON EITHER BANK.

I SOON REACHED THE FIRST OF THE “HELL GATES” CALLED THE “UPPER HELL GATE”. THE WATER WAS FLOWING FASTER NOW BUT STILL NOT VERY IMPRESSIVE. THE CURRENT IN THIS AREA HAS BEEN CLOCKED AT 8 KNOTS.

JUST AFTER THE HELL GATE ON A DAYMARKER IS AN OSPREY NEST. YOU CAN JUST BARELY MAKE OUT THE MOTHER GUARDING HER NEST. THE WILDLIFE DEPARTMENT OF THE STATE OF MAINE BUILD FLAT PLATFORMS ON POLES FOR THEM TO NEST IN. OSPREY ARE QUITE COMMON IN THIS AREA OF THE NEW ENGLAND COAST.

SOON THE RIVER OPENED INTO THE FIRST OF HER WIDE BAYS, HOCKOMOCK BAY , NAMED AFTER THE HOCKOMOCK INDIANS THAT OCCUPIED THIS AREA IN YEARS GONE BY. THE BAY IS SHALLOW AND THE MARKERS NEED TO BE NEGOTIATED CAREFULLY, EVEN AT HIGH TIDE. THE BAY DRAINS OUT TO EXPOSE MUDFLATS AT LOW TIDE LEAVING ONLY A NARROW NAVIGABLE CHANNEL . THERE WERE A NUMBER OF BOATS WHOSE OCCUPANTS WHERE FISHING FOR STRIPED BASS, TIS THE SEASON.

BISECTING THIS BAY IS THE BACK RIVER, WHICH RUNS NORTHEAST TO SOUTHWEST FROM WISCASSET TO PHIPPSBURG LOCATED ON THE KENNEBEC A FEW MILES SOUTH OF BATH. BUT THIS IS ANOTHER STORY!

I EXITED HOCKMOCK BAY IN THE VICINITY OF BARENECK ISLAND WHERE THE RIVER ONCE AGAIN NARROWS. I SOON FOUND MYSELF INCREASING SPEED, WITH NO ADJUSTMENT TO THE THROTTLE. I WAS ENTERING THE LOWER HELL GATE. IT IS ACTUALLY THE FASTER OF THE TWO WITH CURRENTS UP TO 9 KNOTS. ONE AREA OF THE GATE IS CALLED “THE BOILERS” WHICH IS APT;Y NAMED BECAUSE OF THE SWIRLING WATER. THE TIDE WAS EBBING NOW, PUSHING ME RELENTLESSLY SOUTHEAST TOWARD KNUBBLE BAY, ANOTHER OF THE RIVER’S CALM WIDE BAYS.

AS I PASSED LITTLE KNUBBLE ISLAND, ROBINHOOD MARINE CENTER APPEARED ON MY RIGHT, ONE OF THE COAST’S PREMIER MARINAS. THE MARINA IS NESTLED NICELY IN RIGGS COVE.

CONTINUING ON I CAME TO ANOTHER AREA OF THE RIVER THAT COULD BE A HELL GATE BUT IS NOT SO NAMED. RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF THIS PASSAGE IS A LARGE ROCK CALLED “GOOSE ROCK” , THUS THIS SECTION OF THE SASANOA RIVER IS APTLY NAMED “GOOSE ROCK PASSAGE”. THE WATER RUNS FAST AND SWIRLS LIKE THE HELL GATES. THE INTERESTING THING IS I HAVE BEEN THRU THIS PIECE OF WATER IN BOATS WITH DEPTH SOUNDERS AND HAVE SEEN 90 FEET RECORDED. YOU’D SWEAR IT WAS SHALLOW THE WAY THE WATER ACTS.

JUST A QUARTER OF A MILE DUE EAST IS THE MOUTH OF THE SASANOA RIVER WHERE IT JOINS THE SHEEPSCOT RIVER.

ALL IN ALL IT WAS A FUN PASSAGE. I RETURNED LATER IN THE DAY TO SEE THE TWO HELL GATES AT THEiR WORSE, BUT THEY WERE NO MATCH FOR “KATIE” WHO BECAUSE OF HER 2 INCH DRAFT WAS HARDLY EFFECTED BY THE CURRENT.

STAY TUNED TO DUCKWORKS MAGAZINE FOR THE NEXT EPISODE OF “CRUISING IN “KATIE”.