On a tip from a reliable skater that Toddy Pond was tight enough top to bottom we set out to try it. There are two narrow choke points that separate the top bay from the bottom bay; the entire lake is seven miles long. The first was sketchy, but there was a plate just wide enough between the waters to squeeze the boats across.

The middle bay provided some wonderful cat and mouse loops around a marshy island in the corner, but on approaching the second choke point we found it impassable. Even for us. So we tip-toed back across our narrow ice isthmus and ran fast four mile laps in the top end. The wind was still strong and blowing right down the lake. A perfect course with tight competition.

And naturally we minded all the rules:

We were invited in for coffee by a curious observer right around lunch time. A lovely spot out of the wind, in full sun, with the fountianesque burbling of the dock bubbler in the background, and wonderful conversation to boot:

Damariscotta Lake had a small fleet sailing out of Lake Farm today, but no reports have come in. We assume the conditions are still stellar.

Snow tomorrow might buy us some time off, but it doesn’t appear to be much, especially the further north you look.