With warmer weather on the way, we thought it might be fun to dream a little and plan for your spring and summer on Casco Bay. Here are our top five ideas for your adventures:

1. Take the Mailboat Run down the bay. Whether you live here, or you’ve got visitors in town from away, we think our Mailboat Run is hands-down the most interesting way to cruise Casco Bay! Twice a day the Maquoit II delivers mail and other goods to islanders and offers landlubbers a glimpse into island life (plus a gorgeous view of Casco Bay).
2. Plan the perfect date night—pack a picnic and some wine for a romantic sunset cruise. Summer nights in Maine are near perfect – add in a cool ocean breeze and the beauty of Casco Bay, and what could be better? Our Sunset Run cruise lets you relax in the twilight of a perfect Maine day while Portland shimmers in the distance.
3. Explore World War II ruins on Peaks Island. In its heyday, Battery Steele stood guard over Portland Harbor, keeping it safe from invaders during World War II. Today, the fortification stands empty, and ready for exploring.
4. Starting June 23, hop on board the Aucocisco III for a can’t-miss summer classic—a trip to Bailey Island. In addition to being the home of Cook’s Lobster & Ale House, one of the island’s claims to fame is a one-of-a-kind bridge. The Cribstone Bridge was built in 1928 out of individual granite ties, and connects the island to the mainland. Its unique construction has kept the bridge standing strong for close to 90 years with little to no maintenance. Adding to the cool-factor, the bridge is the only one of its kind in the world!
5. Dance the night away on a music cruise. Here’s some inside scoop: our first music cruise of the 2018 season is scheduled for June 16 at 8 p.m with The Hurricanes – keep an eye out, tickets should be available on our website in the next couple of days! All music cruises are 21 plus, feature a cash bar, and sail rain or shine.

Check out our seasonal and cruise schedules online and start planning your spring and summer adventures today!

The post Springing to Life on Casco Bay appeared first on Casco Bay Lines.

Maine is rich in Native American history and many of our landmarks still carry the original names given to them by members of the First Nations. Because we love learning about the history of our area, we dove into the archives of local experts like the Island Institute, the Maine Historical Society, and Bates College to research the original names of our beloved islands and boats.

Aucocisco—Migrating tribes often named things using unique wayfinding words—for example, the estuaries of Casco Bay are filled with a lot of bird life, so the Abenaki word “Aucocisco” meaning “a place of herons” is a fitting moniker for Casco Bay (and one of our boats). The bay was also called “Bahia de Cascos” or “Bay of Helmets” by Portuguese Explorer Estêvão Gomez who mapped the area in the early 1500s.

Bailey Island—The island was originally named “Newaggin” by local Abenaki tribes. The word means “swift current place,” a nod to the strong pull of the currents off the coast of Harpswell.

Chebeague Island—It may be hard to believe, but underground freshwater springs can be found running all over Chebeague Island. That’s probably why the Native Americans called the island “Chebeague” meaning “isle of many springs.”

Machigonne—A birds-eye view of Portland will show the land of the city jutting out into the sea. The Algonquian tribes who called the region home named it “Machigonne” meaning “great neck.”

Maquoit—The word “Maquoit” means “bear place” or “bear bay.” Maquoit Bay sits near the mouth of the Androscoggin and Kennebec Rivers, where salmon traditionally ran in great numbers, drawing bears to the region.

Wabanaki—In 1606, five of the region’s Native American tribes—the Abenaki, Penobscot, Mi’kmaq, Passamaquoddy, and Maliseet—united as the Wabanaki Confederacy. Members of the Wabanaki Confederacy lived all over Maine and Eastern Canada, which is the first place to see the sun rise each day. The word “Wabanaki” translates to “the people of the first light.” When we added the Wabanaki to our fleet back in 2014, students at Long Island Elementary school submitted the winning name for the vessel.

To learn more about this history of Casco Bay Lines, visit our history page.

The post What’s in a Name? Exploring the Heritage of Casco Bay. appeared first on Casco Bay Lines.

We spend all day, every day, out on the water, thinking about boats, the weather, and serving the Casco Bay island communities. So, we thought it might be fun to teach you a little about our world—a kind of ABC’s of Casco Bay Lines—so that you can speak our language when you climb aboard.

A is for Aucocisco—The Abenaki name for Casco Bay, meaning “place of herons,” it’s also the name of one of our boats.

B is for Bow—The bow, or front, of each of our boats proudly displays the name of each boat in our fleet.

C is for Captain—Our experienced Captains deftly pilot all the vessels in our fleet around Casco Bay.

D is for Davy Jones’ Locker—No one can agree on where this originated, but Davy Jones is an evil spirit of the sea, and his locker is the ocean floor.

E is for Echo Sounding—Boats like ours use echo sounding technology to tell the depth of the water.

F is for Fair Winds and Following Sails—This traditional blessing, wishes sailors a safe journey and good fortune during their voyage.

G is for Gang Plank—Our passengers use a gang plank to safely get on and of each of our boats.

H is for Harbor—Portland Harbor is our safe haven, but did you know that a harbor can be either man-made or natural?

I is for Ice Breaker—Unfortunately, winter is coming, which means you may see an ice breaker out in Portland Harbor, making sure we have a clear path for our daily trips.

J is for Jonah—We think we have pretty good luck, so we’re pretty sure none of our passengers or crew members could be called a Jonah—a person who carries a jinx and brings bad luck to a ship.

K is for Knot—Normally we think of speed in terms of miles per hour, but on the water, speed is measured by knots which equal 1.15 miles per hour.

L is for Land Lubber—Our cruises and ferry rides are a perfect summer (or even fall or winter) adventure, even for land lubbers who would prefer to stay on shore.

M is for Monkey’s Fist—Our deck hands are so strong they don’t need a monkey’s fist to catch the ferry. This ball woven of rope traditionally helped crew members toss a line.

N is for Nun—Sometimes sailors come up with nicknames for common objects. A “nun” is a cone-shaped navigational buoy—though they are not typically black like a habit, they’re usually green or red.

O is for Old Salt—With our busiest season almost over, all of our crew members could be considered old salts, or experienced mariners.

P is for Port—Yes, Portland is home to one of the East Coast’s busiest ports, but we’re talking about the left side of a boat.

Q is for Quay (pronounced “Key’)—We don’t use this term much in the U.S., but across the pond, a quay is synonymous with wharf—a structure used for unloading or loading vessels.

R is for Rogue Wave—Don’t worry, we don’t see many of these unusually large, singular waves during our trips around Casco Bay.

S is for Starboard—Before ships had a center rudder, there was a steering oar on the right side, which is why we now call the right-side of a ship the starboard-side.

T is for True North­—We know most would consider Maine “the north,” but true north is the direction of the geographical North Pole.

U is for Underway—You’ll find our vessels underway, moving about Casco Bay, 365 days a year.

V is for Vessel—Our fleet is made up of five sturdy, seafaring vessels.

W is for Wake—Not to be confused with the wash—waves created by a boat—coming from the Machigonne II’s, the wake is the chop behind a vessel caused by the boat’s propeller.

Y is for Yacht—We see a lot of yachts cruising Casco Bay during the summer months. These large, sometimes fancy, boats can be a signal of the summer season in Maine.

X is for X Marks the Spot—Marks the location of hidden treasure. Wonder if we can find buried treasure on one of Casco Bay’s islands?

Z is for Zephyr—There’s nothing better than a zephyr, or light breeze, to cool things down during the hot summer season.

The post The ABCs of Cruising Casco Bay appeared first on Casco Bay Lines.

We asked Jason Bosch, video story-teller extraordinaire, some questions about Red Stallion Media and the experience of creating Casco Bay cruising magic.

Tell me a little bit about Red Stallion?

Jason:  We started in 2012. We’re a small shop – me and my friend Ryan. Since day one, our goal has been to create cinematic videos for our clients without breaking their bank. We wanted to help local companies make local commercials feel a little cooler.

You saw an opportunity to provide a service to your home state?  

Jason:  Yea! We didn’t want to sell out. We wanted to make something cool. Work with people doing good things. Like with Casco Bay Lines, we like what you do and we want to help you tell your story. We’re always striving to capture meaningful imagery that tells a story.  We’re just two Maine guys but we can do everything from 3D shots to music engineering. We take a lot of pride in what we do. We want to make content that’s actually worth watching. There’s so much content out there that you have to do something interesting if you want to stand out.

What was the Casco Bay Lines shoot like? 

Jason:  Definitely an adventure! We shot over a handful of days to get the best weather. We were going to do drone shots on the first day, but there were clouds first thing in the morning and the sun never came through. So we came back and did another day and brought the drones on the ferries. That was interesting. At first the drone wouldn’t take off because of a GPS error – we think because of interference from the GPS system on the boat. We were nervous that even if we could get it up in the air, we wouldn’t get it back. The GPS tells the drone where it took off and  where to come back to. Which doesn’t work as easily when you’re on a moving boat. The GPS also keeps the drone steady in windy conditions, pushing it back to hold its position. There were several times that we had to grab the drone with our hands and pull it in to a safe landing. But we made it work and the resulting footage was fantastic.

Obviously, we had a vision going into this project. Can you talk a little bit about that?

Jason:  We really wanted to was make sure this was authentic. The first time I went on the ferry, it was a huge deal. And we wanted people to experience this – experience what we feel when we first get out on the bay, the sights, sounds, and smells. We wanted to show others what its really like to be out on the Maine coast, exploring these islands. This should be part of any trip to Maine. It’s an experience that shouldn’t be missed.

Do you have a favorite shot?

Jason:  Right when the music comes up there’s a great shot of the boat. We’re circling overhead. We wanted to make people really feel just how cool the experience is and I think this shot nailed that feeling. I also love the drone shot directly looking down at the boat. It’s a different and interesting perspective.

Now for the most important question. Will you be cruising Casco Bay this summer?

Jason:  Absolutely! We go to Peaks Island all the time. But now, after the shoot, I’ve realized there are so many other islands to explore.  I’ll definitely be out there cruising this summer with my drone to see what else I can capture.

Well, there you have it folks. We agree with Jason – the video is kind of awesome. Here’s a sneak peek at the final cut. Visit cascobaylines.com/cruisecascobay, share your info, and we’ll send you a first look at the full length version. We’ll see you on the water!

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