Travel Channel

The Schooner J.&E. Riggin, based in Rockland, ME, provides an outstanding outdoor vacation experience (with great food!!). This wind-powered vessel has no set itinerary; you literally go where the wind takes you, on a 3,4, or 6-day schedule. Accomodations are basic, but cozy, with reading lights over the quilt-covered bunks and running water in each cabin. Captain Jon Finger and his wife, Captain (and chef) Anne Mahle, are the owner-operators of the schooner and sail with their two young daughters. Annie is a gifted chef and utilizes local and organic foods whenever possible. She produces 3 wonderful meals (including fresh bread) daily for 28-30 people, working in a small galley with a wood-fired stove. The State of Maine Department of Environmental Protection has recently honored the Schooner J.&E. Riggin an an Environmental Leader in Hospitality--the first Maine windjammer to be given the award. Besides using little fuel, energy-efficient lighting, and locally made products, the Riggin crew make their own cleaning products, compost table and galley scraps, and use office paper as mulch in Annie's garden. I have been sailing on the J.&E. Riggin yearly since 1985; no two weeks are ever the same, and the trip is a fabulous stress-reducer (no phones, radio, or TV). I highly recommend this vacation for those who enjoy the outdoors; check out the Riggin website, www.mainewindjammer.com.