2017 DS Cruise

www.vbdusa.com/darkshadowscruise2017.html
cruise schedule

The 2017 cruise is completely booked. My friends on standby are terribly disappointed but understand they can only blame themselves for procrastinating. We set sail from Boston this Sunday, Oct. 1st. and will be visiting Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and finally the Maine coast: Frenchman's Bay, Bar Harbor & the Acadia National Park -- the coordinates of the series and the novels penned by Marilyn "Dan" Ross, including his Bar Harbor series. Lara Parker and Kathryn Leigh Scott are scheduled to give several performances throughout the trip, one at a lighthouse, one at a spooky old mansion.

We will explore the coastline mentioned on the classic show, as detailed in Art Wallace's "Shadows on the Wall": Collinsport, Maine. In Hancock County, not far from Frenchman's Bay, the thriving town of Collinsport is one of the many fishing villages that dot the multi-fingered coastline of Maine. Founded in the late 17th Century by Isaac Collins, the community prospered through the long years during which fishing fleets and whaling ships struck out from its sheltered harbor. In the 1930's Collinsport was discovered as a summer resort. The rugged beauty of its coastline, its fascination of scores of ships heading out from its harbor and the feeling of seperateness from the world attracted hundreds of visitors each year. By now, Collinsport is accustomed to seeing its population of 3,000 swell to almost 50% during the summer months. A small artist colony took shape along the waterfront and the easil and paintbrush are no longer the curiosity they once were. The many famillies that can still trace their roots back to the original founding of the village do their best to tolerate the summer people. The main Industry of Collinsport are still its fishing fleets, canneries and allied trades. The main body of its inhabitants are imbued with a strong local pride. They love their village square, their churches, their socials and their traditions. Although the nearest large city, Bangor, is only an hour's bus ride away, there is a sense of isolation about Collinsport and the men and women who live there. They are hearty people, formed by the bleakness of the cold Maine winters and a constant danger of a life drawn from the sea. They are suspicious of strangers but, once a newcomer is accepted, he is loved and trusted with the warmth of a family group. To that adventuresome stranger, there is as much of beauty to be seen in the village. But his eyes will eventually be drawn to the large house that looms in brooding isolation on the crest of Widow's Hill, overlooking the Harbor, staring out across the Atlantic. If a stranger asks about the house, he might be answered with a curt "Collinwood." If he persists, he might eventually be told the story of that Great Dark Mansion. A Story that would almost be inevitably capted with a casual admonition: "Good place to stay away from"...