Tag: New Harbor

Summertime in Midcoast Maine

If you’ve never visited midcoast Maine during the summer months, now is the time to do it. After a late spring, the trees are fully leafed out, flowers are blooming, and the days are glorious. Plan a trip to some of the charming towns and villages here — pretty Wiscasset with its antique shops, Damariscotta, where Main Street is lined with shops in handsome vintage buildings, and if time allows, travel on to the Pemaquid Peninsula and the less-visited villages of New Harbor where you can catch the ferry to Monhegan Island, or  Bristol and tiny  South Bristol, a quintessential lobstering community that lies off the beaten track.  Throughout this area, you’ll find lobster shacks, pocket beaches, and small restaurants that are open only during the fleeting summer season.

Now that life has settled down here after a hectic winter and spring, I’ll be trying to post more regularly about life on the small Maine island I call home,

A Maine lobsterman readies his traps for the summer season. Photo (c) Nathaniel Hammond

and interesting things to see and do throughout the state. Thanks to those of you who have followed me over from my previous blog, and welcome to anyone new who stops by.  Wherever you spend your summer, enjoy every moment!

 

Life on a small Maine Island — July

A tranquil Maine harbor in summer. Photo (c) Nathaniel Hammond
A tranquil Maine harbor in summer. Photo (c) Nathaniel Hammond
July at last. It has always been my favorite month. The world seems to have come into its own with trees finally turned green, flowers in bloom, and birds singing from dawn to dusk. Very hot weather is rare in Maine, so even the occasional scorching day seems like a treat…especially after last year’s brutal winter.
Perhaps this summer you’ll travel to midcoast Maine and visit some of the islands that attract so many writers and artists. Monhegan, “the artists’ island” is perhaps the best known, with seasonal ferry service from Boothbay Harbor, New Harbor, and Port Clyde (in winter, there’s only service out of Port Clyde). But there are other wonderful islands to explore, including Isle au Haut, Matinicus, and several islands in Casco Bay, off Portland. Don’t expect big-city amenities, but do expect comfortable lodgings, New England comfort food, and a chance to see a part of Maine that many visitors miss. If you plan to stay overnight, do make advance reservations since hotel or B&B rooms are limited.
If islands are not your thing, try a drive along the midcoast region and explore some of the fishing villages like New Harbor and Tenants Harbor for a look at a traditional Maine way of life.
From my office on my own little island I’m looking out at glass-calm seas, with sailboats scooting along and lobster boats starting to come into port with the day’s catch. The little village is bustling — at least compared to winter when there are only 100 of us out here — and it’s nice to see summer residents and visitors in town again. By September most will be gone and the island will fold back into itself. Life ebbs and flows on my small Maine island, much like the tides that surround us.
I hope everyone is having a great summer thus far and one that will include a trip to this lovely part of the country. Enjoy!