The J. & E. Riggin, homeport Rockland Maine, is a traditional old two-masted schooner that has been newly rebuilt to accommodate 24 passengers. Our breathtaking cruising area, amid the hundreds of islands of Midcoast Maine, is one of the most scenic and spectacular in the world. We sail between Boothbay to the southwest and Bar Harbor to the east just like they did a hundred years ago, with the wind and tide to determine our course and destination; we have no set itinerary. Often we slide through narrow passages or weave through clusters of granite-based islands. The Penobscot Bay and Blue Hill areas are rich with relaxed sailing, offering an unending variety of scenery and protected waters for comfortable cruising.

You’re welcome to help with the sailing by hoisting sails and tending sheet, or you can simply watch. The Riggin is a spacious-decked historic schooner with plenty of room to move about and broad cabin tops on which to stretch while you read your book, knit, sketch or just enjoy the scenery, and relax. You might want to spend some time chatting with the Captain or taking a turn at the wheel yourself. You can also check our position and the names of the islands on the chart. Be sure to spend a moment or two alone at the bow listening to the ocean rush past.

At the end of each day's sail, we drop anchor in a different harbor. It could be an island fishing village such as Isle au Haut or Burnt Coat Harbor or a larger working town like Stonington. Sometimes we’ll find a quiet cove where only the flicker of a cottage light hints at civilization. Feel free to go ashore in the yawl boat to explore or take our traditional Maine peapod for a row or do some fishing. One evening each week we stop at an undisturbed shore for lobster steamed over an open fire - certainly one of the highlights of your trip!