Marina in New Hampshire / Southern Maine

[grasspack]

Hello,

I was wondering if anyone could help me a little bit. We are buying our first sailboat and we are looking for a marina to keep it on the NH coast or southern Maine coast. We are looking for something that has good sailing right out of the marina, family friendly(as we have a 10 year old daughter), pet friendly( as we have a dog), showers, and we also like things on the quiet side.

Any and all recommendations would be appreciated. Not sure if we want to be on a slip or mooring yet. Boat is 28 feet.

Thanks so much.

Alice

[bermudabob]

Forget NH. Moorings are scarce. Avoid anything on the the Piscataqua River in Portsmouth, you can only come and go with the tide as it runs 4 to 5 knots. Marinas up river would require going through two lift bridges. The waiting list for a mooring in Kittery is 10 years.
I would suggest driving 90 minutes or more north on the Maine turnpike to the to the Casco or Penobscot bay areas of Maine. Where you can find some of the best sailboat cruising areas in the world.

[sailorboy1]

Just in time there bermudabob to save te op from making a mistake

[mariner36bob]

Casco Bay fo' sure.
Feel welcome to send a PM if you'd like some info on the Portland marinas.
I am Dockmaster at one of them and have ALL the scoop...



Sent from my iPhone using Cruisers Sailing Forum

[MonkeysNephew]

I'm in the same boat <g>. This year we've had our boat in Eastern Casco Bay at Great Island Boat Yard in Harpswell. It's a beautiful spot, but it's over 2 hours from our home in Central NH, and it's another 1 - 2 hours out to open water. On the plus side the Yard is really excellent and very well protected, as well as that much closer to the great cruising areas.

I had initially planned to keep the boat at Great Bay Marine in Newington, up the Piscataqua. We did our winter storage there last year and liked it very much (nice people and great service). The ride up and down the river was quite pleasant and interesting when done near slack water, but it does take 2 - 2 1/2 hours. The river (and even Great Bay) can be quite frightening when the wind and current are against the tide.

Feel free to pm me if you'd like any further info on these two yards.

[GordMay]

Greetings and welcome aboard the CF, MobkeysNephew.

[makana]

There are several marinas located near the entrance of the Piscataqua. We've taken moorings at the Portsmouth Yacht Club, they have nice facilities. We've also taken on fuel at Wentworth By The Sea and they have nice facilities. Other options are Harbor Place Marina which is located right in town and Back Channel Marina located on the Maine side of the river. All of these offer easy access to the ocean.

Cheers,

Rick