August 28, 2025 Splish Splash - Long Cruise to Shelburne

 Thursday  August 28, 2025  LaHave Anchorage to Shelburne Yacht Club  67 miles and 7 hours

The sailboat that was anchored with us pulled up anchor towards dusk and disappeared headed north leaving us with the anchorage all to ourselves.  We are at the start of a new moon which makes star gazing unbelievable in these isolated areas - but it sure is dark and lonely! I like having a few visible reference points when doing my nightly checks and there was nothing I could see.  Not a light on shore, nor the rocky shoreline, not even a lighted sea buoy.  Glad we had the electronic anchor alarm all set up earlier as a "just in case" warning if the anchor dragged. Wind and swells settled down overnight and we were able to get a pretty decent night's sleep.  Up with the sun for a longish cruising day.

The Big Dipper bright and visible in the clear northern sky

Sun just cresting the horizon as we leave our anchorage

 Pretty straight shot so "Otto" did most of the driving. Then up Shelburne Harbour to the yacht club.  We've waited over a week for better conditions, and these were about what we expected.  Still getting 3 foot swells which weren't an issue but as the day progressed a SW wind continued to build creating that windblown chop and spray all over the boat.  A mixed trip visually.  Sometimes several miles offshore and sometimes cruising almost alongside imposing rocky shorelines. 

Working our way through a near shore passage

Definitely hard surfaces should you experience a grounding

Working our way past the light protecting the shoal at Sandy Point 

Approaching the Shelburne waterfront

Finally caught up with several other boaters doing the Down East Loop.  We've crossed paths with Tom on Sky Blue several times since meeting back in Quebec.  Have seen Clementine on our Nebo app as they gained ground on us for a month. Got to meet the owners Brian and Dawn so now we can say "We're no longer stalkers, now we're friends".  Also met Peter and Pam on Brew-Ha-Ha.  Doing the loop but were "flying under the radar" and unknown to us until today. Had a nice dinner together at the yacht club watching their Thursday night sailboat races.   They all run faster than us and left Friday morning for Yarmouth.  So, at this point it looks like we're now pulling up the rear of the boats we know that arec doing this year's DECL!  We'll stay here another day to explore the town.  

Our DECL crews. L to R. Peter, Pam, Dawn, Tom, Brian, John, Martha

Catching the last of the sun and wind during the weekly race

Shelburne is a small quaint old town. As with many of the towns we've visited, an interesting history and grand glory days now long gone.  Spanish and Portuguese settlers were here as early as the late 1500's.  Then there were the French Acadians until the British deported them as part of the "Grand Derangement".  The initial big settlement occurred in 1783 when about 5000 British Loyalist from the 13 colonies accepted a British offer of land, tools and provisions to help establish the town.  Shortly after, roughly 1500 formerly enslaved blacks who had fought for the British during the revolutionary war arrived with the same promises of land, tools, etc.  Followed in the fall of that year by 1500 former British soldiers also with the same promises.  In all, by the end of 1792 there were over 17,000 inhabitants making Shelburne the 4th largest city in North America.  However, broken promises and open racism against the former slaves resulted in roughly 1000 of them taking up a British offer to relocate to the crowns new settlement in Sierra Leon West Africa.    Others moved on realizing there was limited agricultural land or infrastructure and few people with frontier living or development skills.  By 1820 the population was down to just 300. Those that remained took to lumbering, shipbuilding and fishing.   There are numerous houses and buildings along the waterfront that date to the late 1700's - early 1800's and they typically have a very New England look to them.  Wood structures covered in shingles as was typical for that area and time.  

Houses on Dock Street attest to a prosperous period in the 1800's

A nicely maintained home with that "Lunenburg bump" dormer

Look for the most significant building downtown and you'll find
 the old Post Office, Customs and Immigration Office.
  Ownership and future use disputes has it sadly sitting idle and deteriorating

 A major industry in the town as the Grand Banks fishery developed was dory building.  At one time there were 7 boat yards producing over 1000 dories a year for the local schooners and those headed from New England to the fishing banks. The J. C. Willimas Dory shop is the only remaining original dory shop in Canada and houses the dory museum. 

The J C Williams Dory Shop museum

Dory's were stacked on deck until fishing grounds were reached then lifted overboard.
A two-man crew then fished and brought their load back to the schooner

They still teach dory building

This all mahogony rowboat was a special order. 
 Purchaser never paid so it was put in the attic. 
  Sat there for 100 years before recently being found

Salmon aquaculture farming is evident by the large cages running alongside the shoresides.  A large vessel shipyard, once a WWII naval repair shipyard, is the other significant industry. Like many small towns, proud of its heritage but struggling economically.   Had an invitation to attend Karaoke Night at the yacht club but had to pass.  Didn't start until 8PM and we knew we would be up at 5 AM for an early morning start. 

Sunset over the marina

Journey for August 28, 2025