Maine

Maine Weekend

September 2011

          We’ve done other trips to Maine. The 1^st was 1976 w/ Uncle Bill. A drive to Bar Harbor & Acadia NP, views along the coast and from Cadillac Mtn.

A very hot summer, even Down East, little wind and ocean like glass!; and Marjorie had a breast-feeding child attached.  At our motel on the ocean, a man in the next room stepped out and said loudly into his video camera: “Wow, what a view!”  This phrase became a shared joke for our travels.  Beautiful trails along ocean cliffs.  

Pretty views of fishing boats & sunrises from our room.  

Good blueberry pie. Other views of inlets, Thunder Hole, and various nautical scenes. 

A stop in Boston on the way home. Public Gardens, John Hancock Bldg., 

                                 Faneuil Hall area, 

following the Freedom Trail to Old North Church.  

 

An earlier visit to Boston yielded other views of the city.

      
 We go back "Down East" in 1995 w/ Uncle Bill, pretty views going up the Maine coast 

to scenic Ogunquit and Betty Doon Motel,

a short walk to the beach and coastal views. 

 Walks along Marginal Way to Perkins Cove, with pretty boats & good seafood. 

A drive to Portland & Portland Head Light.

  To Kennebunkport, a stop at the Wedding Cake House and other views

 before we meet up w/ friend Sarah for dinner.

  

Pretty Joan's Breakfast near the motel, the Kittery model RR museum, Uncle B's a train buff.

In 2009 Caroline & Kevin, who we met on a Provence river cruise, invited us to their “camp.”  A pretty drive thru VT & NH, past Breton Woods resort set among the mountains, 

to their lovely cottage on a lake in central Maine (Lowell) – “you can’t get here from there,” as my t-shirt from The Wicked Good Store says.  A beautiful location: overlooking the tree-lined lake, mountains on the horizon, the sound of loons.   

Many hummingbirds to watch on the porch, and their very friendly dog.  Horrormeister Stephen King also has a house on the lake (and he was hit by a car on the road by the complex some years back). 

 Kevin takes us on a more-strenuous-than-expected hike up a mountain, but we’re rewarded w/ spectacular panoramic views on a beautiful clear day.  

 

 We also enjoy a boat ride around the lake, walking in the evening amid lighted lanterns on the roads, and just relaxing. 

They have a nice couple over for dinner, a jeweler and school headmaster.   

We treat C & K to a ride on the N Conway (NH) Scenic RR.  

 A stop to see friends Robert & Kim in Providence on the way home.

          But now to the journal of our Maine weekend in 2011. When we signed on w/ Ambit for energy supply we were promised a free weekend getaway.  That proved difficult to arrange, but Marjorie finally connected with someone who helped arrange our first-choice “Maine coast” stay.  Well, “coast” is something of a misnomer, it being off the coast in a not terribly interesting spot: Auburn (near Lewiston).  But it’s free.  And Robert & Kim (now in Portland) offer the use of their cottage, actually on the coast.  But we need to stay in Auburn to get our $50 deposit returned.  So many complications for a simple weekend jaunt!  We decide to combine both options: a night in Auburn, a night on the coast.  The arrangements finalized, we’re looking for a relaxing weekend, not too frantic.  Toward the end of August we had experienced an earthquake (my office was swaying!), followed a few days later by Hurricane Irene, bad flooding around the area (tho not us, thankfully).  More recently, Marjorie finished an artistic frenzy getting ready for the debut exhibition of her artwork at the Stockade Art Show; I’ve had my usual start-of-classes frenzy.

Friday, September 23:

          A foggy AM (seems appropriate for a Maine excursion) for an early start.  Maybe we should have brought Carousel for musical accompaniment.  I remember some “Down East” humor from an old “Bert and I” record (how old? – read on).  We begin to notice some fall colors, but agree that we can’t take note of every splash of color.  Past the “Big E” (Eastern States Exposition, aka “New England’s Great State Fair”), in Springfield MA, that we’ll have to get to one of these days.  There seem to be lots of troopers on the Mass Pike with very bright blue lights (but not directed at us).  We bypass Boston, crossing thru a bit of New Hampshire on the coast into Maine: “Welcome to Maine: The Way Life Should Be.”

          About 4 hours to Ogunquit and Perkins Cove, which we remember fondly from a previous trip.  Atmospheric overcast & fog, pretty boats in the little harbor.  

It’s pretty touristy, shops like Swamp John’s and The Whistling Oyster.  Sandwiches & 1^st  chowder at a simple café, sitting on the back porch overlooking the ocean.  We split up to wander.  Marjorie discovers a fly deterrent in one shop: shiny pennies in water in little baggies suspended over the open doorway; they swear it works! 

After a stop at the “buoys” room (as it’s labeled), I head out onto Marginal Way along the ocean.  (Neighbor Barb had sent a Facebook message when she was on this walk at the beginning of the week.)  Pretty views of ocean, rocks, trees along the coast.  Back among the shops I hear someone calling “Russ,” turn around and don’t recognize the woman gesturing from a shop.  Turns out the guy next to me is also Russ, so I alert him that he’s on call. 

          Off we go, poking along Rt. 1 thru Wells, Kennebunk, Kennebunkport, full of shops, lobster pounds, and the like.  We pull into Wallingford Farm w/ pretty pumpkin displays (one set up to look like a big cat), pumpkin patch w/ scarecrow, many mums and other fall displays.  A lucky cat looks very contented napping in a planting of catnip.  Marjorie wants to stop on our way back for some nice plants.  Continuing north, past our first moose crossing sign.  (We later notice signs begin to show both miles and kilometers, must be getting closer to Canada.)  To Scarborough, south of Portland, and Robert & Kim.  We present them w/ artwork: an “original Marjorie” collage that will decorate their cottage.  Kim has some free time, “thanks” to a recently-broken wrist (not a good thing for a violinist!), so she and their boys Alex & Eric plus cute friendly dog Teddy (a silky terrier) are heading up to the cottage.  We have a “quintessential” Portland dinner with Robert at Gilbert’s Chowder House near the port.  Good food, a friendly waitress who spells Alex “Aalyx.”

          It’s a 45-minute drive up to Auburn and Fireside Inn and Suites.  Auburn is a “twin city” w/ Lewiston, or “LA” as they call themselves.  The hotel is quite nice, we get a welcome gift of whoopie pies – the official “state treat” of Maine (according to Wikipedia) and a passion of my stepsis Mar, so we’ll save them for her.  We instead hunt down a Dairy Queen (DQs seem common in Maine), Marjorie puts together a “turtle” sundae (hot fudge, caramel, nuts), a favorite from her Wisconsin childhood.  A little boy says “Hi” as he passes us; Marjorie: “How are you?”; Little Boy: “Sticky!” (holding out his hands).

Saturday, September 24:

         A bit drippy then heavy rain as we drive about 20 miles to the coast, then up Rt. 1 to Boothbay Harbor.  We’re early so the village is very quiet, we find free on-street parking near the harbor.  

  Well, there is some confusion in the tangle of streets: I go the wrong way on one for a bit until noticing a truck coming at us (I meet someone else at breakfast who had the same probably common tourist failing).  A nice place for breakfast, rain stopped when we finish.  As was true yesterday, the rain holds off when it matters; overcast & foggy, humid & warm w/ temps up to the 70s.  

We wander a bit.  Cap’n Fish’s Whale Watch doesn’t seem enticing in the damp & fog, but good atmospheric (the word for the weekend) photo ops of boats and reflections in the harbor.  Some nice shops for browsing. 

  

Up to the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens, a “gem” in our AAA book and thumbs-up from Robert & Kim.  A beautiful place w/ a variety of gardens: woods, ponds, hillside, shore, Burpee kitchen garden.  Marjorie & I split up so she can browse and chat w/ fellow gardeners.   

 An especially interesting and colorful children’s garden w/ lots to do, including constructing fairy houses in the woods.  Grandsons Willy and Miles would love this!  Good soups, salads, bakery for lunch in a nice café.    

 

Back thru Boothbay and . . . whoops – we swing into a craft fair on the green.  Then back onto Rt. 1 for the 1½ hour drive north to the cottage.  We notice a number of signs w/ Knickerbocker (including a YMCA camp), a common name in Albany’s Dutch heritage.  And what’s with all the “bean suppers” we see signs for?  Guess it’s a Maine version of potluck, but can’t help but think of a scene in “Blazing Saddles.”  Heading down a peninsula to the cottage we pass thru St. George, a sculpture of St. George battling a dragon in front of the high school.

          Robert & Kim’s cottage is reached via a rather rustic couple of roads, getting us away from all the tourist hubbub.  A beautiful setting, on St. George River around the bend from the ocean, markers for lobster traps in the water opposite the cottage and fog rolling in among hills across the way.  Quite a view from their living room and deck!   

 

We all climb into their van to head further south to the end of the peninsula.  Marshall Pt. Lighthouse w/ impressive foghorn and memorial for local fishermen lost at sea. 

Into Port Clyde, more photo ops of pretty harbor w/ boats and reflections.   

Nice shops and General Store, where we’re reminded of our age – “Bert and I” is 50 years old!  Back up to Tenants Harbor for dinner at a good local pub, The Happy Clam.  We partake of their German specialties, also some Maine-y things: very tasty lobster/corn chowder and a local beer, Sea Dog Wild Blueberry (yes, there is a bouquet of blueberry, quite nice actually).  Back to the cottage for Marjorie’s chocolate-chip cake.  Eric is busy with various electrical wiring projects, a passion of his.  I settle into a comfy chair to doze, others play ball with energetic Teddy.

Sunday, September 25: 

          Another very foggy early AM.  Kim & Alex (& Teddy) are up with us, teen Eric is still in bed.  Back to Rt. 1 and north to Rockland for breakfast at Kim-recommended local favorite Home Kitchen Café.  We arrive just as they open, it quickly fills up w/ a waiting line out the door (while Dunkin Donuts next door is almost empty!).  This is the right place, good food and cheery “Good Morning, Friend!” when anyone comes in (even a 2^nd time for me, after I get something from the car).  And what’s that bright orb when we leave?  It’s the sun, as we have sunny blue skies the rest of the day (and plenty warm).  

We continue north for a while thru Rockport to Camden.  Harbor Park offers more sights of boats and grounds of a nice library building, plus more nice shops nearby in the pretty village.  Back down to Rockland (which AAA dubs the “Lobster Capital of the World”), more harbor views including a large sailing vessel.   

Continuing south, we swing into the large Montsweag Flea Market (which I discover back home has its own website).  At one point there’s much horn-honking by vendors, then we all join in singing happy (80^th) birthday to Norma (she and her family run this affair).  

Into Bath w/ a stop by the library (there seem to be many lovely libraries in Maine), a pretty park and steepled church across the way.  We’re delayed leaving a bit waiting for a scenic train ride to pass through; wish we were on it! 

Continuing south into Portland to meet up with friends Peg & Jim (and daughter Alison) at Local 188 restaurant for brunch.  After another excellent Maine meal, a stroll thru the Arts District and a hotel rooftop view of the city and harbor.   

On the road again, one last stop back to Wallingford Farm to get a couple of plants for our garden.  To Albany in the midst of a beautiful sunset. 

          A relaxing, wicked good Maine weekend: foggy harbors & chowdah.  And good friends.