T&T: Anchoring vs Existing Mooring

[djmarchand at cox.net]

Key:

OK, you told me how things are done in Maine. Let me give you my feelings about unpermitted destination moorings.

My comments were related to the destination moorings, not the town regulated moorings. IMHO most, maybe all of these destination moorings are not permitted. It is like someone building a garage for their car on public land illegally. Do they own the brick and morter, well maybe but maybe not. But they have no rights to use it over others rights.

I am sitting at Jewell Island in Casco Bay. There are three mooring/floats. One is for the Maine Island Cartaker's boat and that is surely permitted. Another is a lobster type float that is probably attached to an anchor. A small sailboat came it yesterday, tied up and carried there stuff into the little house on the outer island. Maybe that one is permitted as well. But who knows since there are no markings on it.

Then right in the middle of the anchorage, there is a medium sized round float, not big enough to support a mooring chain. This one has a line hanging below it, probably to an anchor and no markings. I strongly suspect that this one is illegal.

BTW, if anyone knows the true status of that mooring ball, please let me know. I am curious because no one has used it in the last three days.

And this mooring takes up a hundred square yards of good anchorage space because you can't anchor nearby for fear of fouling your own anchor with it.

So, to say I am down on "destination moorings" and those in Maine particularly is quite true. But this has nothing to do with your properly permitted town mooring. Your position is correct and reasonable in that case. You permitted it, you paid for it and it is solely yours.

David