Special Excursions

Since Maine State Conservation Law prohibits pulling lobster traps on Sundays in June, July and August, Lucky Catch offers
some other unique and interesting excursions to explore Casco Bay.

Fort Gorges Excursion

Fort Gorges is a stunning, granite walled Civil War battery built between 1858 and 1865. Situated in the center of Portland Harbor, the fort is easily seen but rarely visited due to her rocky shoals, awash at low tide. At high tide her stone pier can be accessed but only for a limited time, causing our widely varied departure times for this excursion. Fort Gorges, now owned by the City of Portland, is designated as a public park and is open for all to enjoy, but only smaller craft that can be carried ashore can make a landing during all tides. Despite the required effort every summer hundreds of adults and children stop to explore and experience a piece of history.

Visitors enter the fort at their own risk and will be required to sign a release of liability before embarking on the excursion. There are hazards in and around the fort including uneven footing and access to precipitous drops, however the fort can be safely visited using minimal common sense.

The transit to Fort Gorges is 10-15 minutes each way allowing 60-70 minutes ashore.

Jewell Island Adventure

The excursion to Jewell Island offers a full day of adventurous Casco Bay exploration. We depart Portland at 9:00am to arrive and anchor by 10:00 allowing for two hours of sea kayaking before a lobster lunch is served onboard at noon. With several different Kayaking routes to choose from, your licensed guides will introduce you to the majesty of the outer Casco Bay islands, otherwise unreachable by kayak without a long, vigorous paddle. After the lobster, corn, mussels, salads and deserts are finished, it’s back in the kayaks for another two hour paddle before we pull anchor at 3:00 for the 1 hour steam back to Portland.

For the tireless paddlers the opportunities abound with a chance to reach Eagle Island, Outer Green Island and circumnavigate Cliff Island. If you’re in the mood to relax, state owned Jewell Island has walking trails and WWII era fortifications to explore, plus there’s an old concrete lookout tower which gives magnificent views of the bay.

This trip is limited to just twelve passengers, and due to the nature of the excursion passengers will be required to sign a release of liability.