Few places offer the peace and calm of Seal Bay. It is a protected bay on the northeast side of Vinalhaven Island. To enter, you twist and turn around small rocky islands, go around a sandbar that is submerged at high tide, and emerge into a bay that feels like another world.
The first thing you notice when you turn off your engine, is that it’s practically void of sound, especially at night. There are few places on earth where you can completely excape the noises of civilization. It’s therapeutic to sometimes stop and listen to… nothing.
The bay is surrounded by rock islands covered with pine trees. Per it’s name, there are a few seals that live here. Sometimes the silence is broken by the sound of heavy breathing near your boat. That’s a seal surfacing for air.
There are usually a few sailboats anchored here, more since the Cruising Club of America published an article about this place a few years ago.
Yesterday, we were surprised to see a lobster boat in the bay. It was listing to port. When we kayaked by, we found out why. They were catching bait fish by the netfull, scooping out hundreds of mackerel at a time. They put them in barrels on the port side of the boat, explaning why it was listing.
When the sun goes down, you are all of a sudden surrounded by jumping fish. This is the time of day when they feed on low-flying insects.
You’re then treated to one of those starry skies that are hard to find in populated areas. Sometimes we lay on the foredeck and just look up. Last night there was also a bright orange moon.
The best part of staying in seal bay is dawn, when there’s not a ripple on the glasslike water and you can’t tell the real scenery from the reflections.
