5 friends and I sailed with Captain Dan on the Bufflehead for a half day sail and a picnic lunch on Monroe island. We had a fantastic time! Captain Dan is fascinating and entertaining- between his personal stories on the sea and his knowledge sailing and the area, we were constantly learning and laughing. This is an authentic, not to be missed, once in a lifetime experience. We are so glad that we started our vacation on the Bufflehead. The only downside is that after that, nothing else quite compared to our sea adventure with Captain Dan (and that includes sea kayaking, rock climbing, plenty of hiking, and a cruise on a larger sail boat). He is a great guy, and we feel like we made a lifetime friend.

My best advice- book a long tour. An hour or two is great, but to get the full experience you really need longer. The experience is well worth it.

While planning a trip to Maine, I knew I wanted to go on a sailboat. After some searching, I came across Captain Daniel and Bufflehead Sailing Charters. It is a wonderful operation! He and I e-mailed back and forth briefly about what would work out best for my wife, my parents, and me. We settled on an evening, ~5hr sail, private sail. We were all so glad that we did this! A few of us weere worried about sea sickness, but we shouldn't have been concerned at all. It was amazingly smooth. The conversation was excellent and to hear about some of Captain Daniel's adventures, just amazing.

As for the trip, we had enough time to go around one of the islands, Monroe Island, I believe. It's a private island, and to be able to see the Maine coast from the vantage point of a small boat was great. We could really get up close and really look at it. There were some wonderful picture opportunities of a couple of the lighthouses (Owl's Head, and Rockland Breakwater). Having been at both of those during the day looking out at the sea, it was really cool to be in the water looking back at them. We also sailed around for a little while just seeing some of the other boats in the area. Even the trip back in was wonderful. We could slowly come back in under sail and make our way through the harbor. The highlight was when we went by the Coast Guard station and the USCGC Eagle was in port and we could get up close to it.

It all ended up being about 4 and a half hours and, as soon as we got off, we knew we had found the highlight of the vacation.

One word of caution, depending on the angle you come from, it may not be obvious as to whether you are headed in the correct direction. If coming in from Main Street, yes, go up the stairs. I trusted the map and directions provided by Captain Daniel, and it was all good.

Definitely something that everyone should try!

Captain Daniel Bennett is more than "just" a sailor; he is one part historian, one part sailing teacher, one part gentleman, and five parts entertainer!!!! As we toured Rockland and the waters and islands beyond, we enjoyed the presence of another couple and Daniel's close attention to every detail, from making sure we were warm as the sun set to the continual adjustments to his navigational plan. Bufflehead Sailing Charters is the only one of its kind in the Rockland area and Daniel is a one-of-a-kind person. Thank you Daniel for providing the wonderful views and perspectives of the middle Maine coast! R&J McC

Captain Daniel is professional and very warm. He has sailing in his blood. We were out for four hours with him among the tall ships parade off of Rockland Harbor. We had great weather and being on the water was great. If you want a personal taste of sailing in Maine the Buflehead is the way to go. His stories and humor were great! We will go again we loved sailing with Captain Daniel!