Bill and Maggie Johnston are friends of Angie’s parents who happen to live on Mt Desert Island just outside the Acadia national park boundary. In addition to cruising their sailboat down the east coast of the US to the Bahamas and back, they ran a charter sailing business aboard their boat for 21 years.

Lovely Southwest Harbor- note the numerous moored lobster boats and stacks of lobster traps on the pier- this is lobster country!

With a resume like that, it was no surprise that we would get along well. What was a surprise was the hospitality they showed us. Before we arrived, they arranged for a mooring for Madrone in the town Southwest Harbor, and a second one at the top of Somes Sound in case we wanted to sail there.

Angie and Maggie visiting the Bass Point Lighthouse on the south shore of Mt Desert Island during our private “Johnston Island Tour”

Once we arrived, they picked us up for an insiders tour of Mt Desert Island. And of course they gave the most welcome gifts to any sailor – a ride to the grocery store and the use of the laundry machine at their beautiful house in the woods (that Bill built himself, of course).

An already great trip to Mt Desert Island was made even better with new friends.

Bill and Mike putting together the winter cover for their powerboat. Over winter they park their boat on the property beside their house
The stained glass fixture in their home has a panel for each of their previous sailboats. This one is Chamar, the Luders 33 they did charters with and sailed from Maine to the Bahamas and back