Ambergris’ Story
Captain Patrick Reilly was a sailor in search of a ship.
He had grown up sailing in Maine and started working boats as a teenager. By the time he was 18, he had earned his USCG captain’s license and started working as a yacht captain, sailing all over the world. He also had several boats of his own, the latest of which he had recently sold in Central America.
He found the Ambergris in Florida where she had been lying for the past 10 years. She was a bare hull with a half-rotten foremast, but her steel construction was sound and with a lot of work Patrick saw that she would be a fine sea boat.
Patrick, his partner Erin and their friends motored the Ambergris over to the Bahamas for the rest of the winter where they scraped off the barnacles from her bottom, reinforced the rotten mast and built a jury rig to sail her back to Maine.
That summer they worked on new masts and rigging for the Ambergris, making her seaworthy before sailing back to the Caribbean. Since then they have sailed thousands of more miles aboard the Ambergris between the Caribbean and her summer home in Maine.
How We Board the Ambergris for the Acadia Boat Tour
The Ambergris will be waiting for us on her mooring out in the harbor. To get out to her, we’ll take our ship’s boat, which was originally a lifeboat for a fishing boat from Newfoundland. To get aboard the Ambergris, we’ll climb a short ladder up the ship’s side.
Please let us know if you have mobility issues and we’ll do our best to accommodate.
Sail into the Sunset on our Acadia Boat Tours!
★★★★★
Beautiful and relaxing. We went in the fall so the weather was perfect. I also loved the history behind the boat. Highly recommend!
– kold830 ● Tripadvisor
The four of us had the boat to ourselves with Patrick, our captain. One of us was an experienced sailor and enjoyed talking "shop" with Patrick. The boat is very stable and no chance of getting seasick. Lots of space to walk around the deck. Great way to spend the afternoon. Thank you Patrick!
– Raybo ● Tripadvisor
Friendly captain. Good boat. All around fun ride. The weather was beautiful. The views were impressive. Good speed.
– coloradomtnclimber ● Tripadvisor
We had an excellent sail though Somes Sound! Captain Patrick was a joy to chat with when the wind was light and the most adept sailing captain when the wind picked up! Highly recommend!
– Kathryn M ● Tripadvisor