Maine was my favorite state that we visited on our trip—not because it had the best leaves (hardly any, in fact) but because I just love being by the water, especially rocky, cold beaches like those I grew up with in Washington state. Everywhere we went had so much charm. I really feel like this was just the tip of the iceberg, and I would love to visit again someday to explore more of what the state has to offer.

Portland

Impressions

Portland was different than I expected because it felt kind of industrial—which, in hindsight, duh—it is an active port city. I was surprised that as you wander around downtown, you really can’t see the water due to all of the active piers and docks along the waterfront. It felt old but in a cool way, and I actually quite liked the industrial feel. We learned later that Portland is kind of a foodie city, and it did seem like there were lots of great restaurants around—heck, the ones we went to did not disappoint. I’m sure Portland has much more to offer than the Old Port District that we explored, but I do feel like one full day there was enough for our purposes (though it would have been fun to try a few more restaurants).

Activities

Cape Elizabeth and Fort Williams Park—We spent our first morning at Cape Elizabeth, about a 12-minute drive from where we were staying downtown and (supposedly) home to one of the most photographed lighthouses in the world, the Portland Head Light. We lucked out with such beautiful weather! We spent a couple of hours wandering around the park, viewing the lighthouse and Casco Bay from every angle, and taking lots of pics. You can’t go into the lighthouse, but there is a small gift store and a free museum about Fort Williams. We didn’t stay long at the museum, but I did think it was interesting and worthwhile to learn a little bit more about the fort and surrounding area’s history.

Lucky Catch Lobster Boat Tour—One of the highlights of the entire trip for me was going on a lobster boat tour. What does that entail, you may ask? We got to put on big rubber gloves and ride a lobstering boat out to the company’s traps, where we pulled the traps, measured lobsters, took the ones that were big enough and bound their claws, and refilled and launched the traps, all while learning about the lobster industry. It was fascinating! We even caught a pregnant lobster, which is really rare. Apparently it’s estimated that only half of female lobsters can reproduce, so it’s important to mark the female ones so that everyone knows to keep them alive. We got to see the Portland Head Light and a handful of other lighthouses from the boat as well as a few seals. You could even buy a lobster straight from the boat to take to a restaurant for dinner. Even if a lobster boat tour is a little too hands-on or gruesome for you, I recommend doing some sort of boat tour so you have a chance to enjoy the bay and see Portland from the water.

Shopping around Commercial and Exchange Streets—We spent the rest of our full day in Portland shopping around, and I quickly realized I wanted every red lobster themed thing (from plates to tea towels to sweatshirts to stuffed animals—SO cute!). All of the fun ocean-themed items made me long for a beach house. One of my favorite stores for window shopping was Sea Bags, where all of the totes are made from old sails.

Food

Thames Landing—We had reservations here on our first night, after a long day of travel, since it was just down the street from our hotel. The menu was limited but both of our meals turned out to be so good. My mom got fish and chips (the flour was naturally gluten-free!) and I got the pasta du jour, which included a cream sauce, bacon, tomatoes, and huge lumps of lobster. I still think about it.

Luke’s Lobster—For dinner our second night I knew I had to get the Maine staple, a lobster roll. Thankfully there were a handful of places with GF options, and we lucked out getting a spot at Luke’s Lobster with a view of the water without having a reservation. We split a bowl of clam chowder to start, and then I got the lobster roll and my mom got a fried shrimp roll (again, the flour was naturally gluten-free). All of it was SO good. I would go back in a heartbeat if I ever found myself in Portland again.

The Holy Donut—I saw this place pop up a lot in my research as a local favorite, so when I saw they also make gluten-free cake donuts I knew we had to go. I got the cinnamon sugar donut and the lemon blueberry, both delicious. I recommend going early though because they do sell out!

Bam Bam Bakery—While not technically in Portland, this fully gluten-free bakery was 10 minutes outside of town on our route to Bar Harbor. I got a blueberry cinnamon roll and a pumpkin whoopie pie—I read that both blueberries and whoopie pies are a big thing in Maine, and sure enough we saw them a lot on menus throughout our trip! I’m so glad I got to partake.

Freeport and the Drive

It was about a 3.5 drive from Portland to Bar Harbor, which I wanted to break up with a couple of stops, including Freeport, Camden, and the Penobscot Narrows Bridge. In Freeport we stopped for about an hour to explore the LL Bean flagship store and get a pic with the iconic massive duck boots (I’ve heard of LL Bean, and of duck boots, of course, but my mom was telling me about how they were all the rage in the 80s). We also discovered the cutest made-in-Maine gift store, Freeport Market. We did some serious souvenir damage there.

Next we drove through Camden, which added about half hour to the drive compared to driving straight to Bar Harbor. I thought this route would allow us to see a little more water during the drive, but that wasn’t really the case. And, ultimately, we spent too much time in Freeport, so we didn’t have time to stop in Camden! Downtown was hopping though and it seemed really cute. Per usual, I was overzealous in my planning.

The last stop on our drive was the Penobscot Narrows Bridge and Observatory. One of the two towers you can see in the pic above is the observatory, with 360-degree views of the Penobscot River and Bay. It sounded really cool, so I’m bummed we ran out of time to do it (we had a sunset booze cruise scheduled at 4:00pm in Bar Harbor).

Bar Harbor

Impressions

I really liked Bar Harbor. I have to admit, we didn’t end up having that much time to explore the actual town, but something about the rocky beaches and water made me feel so at home, as a Pacific Northwest native. The town was small with busy streets, but it felt very walkable for the most part. I would go back in a heartbeat to spend a couple of days just in Bar Harbor and Acadia National Park, hiking around, reading, relaxing… It felt very peaceful (crowds aside).

Activities

Bar Harbor Whales Sunset Cruise—Our first evening in Bar Harbor was spent on a 2-hour sunset cruise around Frenchman Bay, where we got to view much of Acadia National Park from the water. It was so relaxing and felt really long, in the best way. It was a bigger boat than I expected but still easy enough to avoid people. We even saw a couple of seals and several porpoises!

Acadia National Park—We reserved an entire day for exploring Acadia National Park. Our trip did start right after the government shutdown, so there was a lot of confusion as to what would be open/available. Thankfully most of the park remained open due to volunteers! Unfortunately, we were there on a Saturday, so it was absolutely packed. We drove the Park Loop Road, a one-way route throughout much of the park, stopping at points of interest such as the sandy beach, Thunder Hole, and Otter Cliff. Thunder Hole is a natural phenomenon where the water gets sucked into a cave and creates a large thunderous clap, particularly before high tide. We ended up driving the Park Loop Road a second time in the afternoon so we could hear the “thunder” better!

Originally I wanted to experience Cadillac Mountain at sunrise, which is the tallest point on the eastern seaboard of the U.S. However, Cadillac Mountain requires separate reservations, and due to the government shutdown the reservation system was on the fritz. What I didn’t know is that some amount of tickets become available six months early (which is before we even knew we were going to do this trip). The rest of the tickets become available two days before the desired date, which was right after the government closed. At first I was bummed to forego this experience, but my mom said after reading about it that it sounded so crowded and the opposite of serene that it made me feel a little better about missing it.

We also wanted to do a hike and explore Jordan’s Pond, but it was so busy that we couldn’t get a parking spot. What I didn’t know was there are carriage rides throughout the park, where you get to take some of the old carriage roads and bridges not accessible by car. My mom and I asked if there were any available tours, but of course they were all booked up. Would be fun for next time! Overall, we saw very little autumn color in Maine, especially Acadia. At first we thought we missed it but someone told us we were still too early.

Bar Island—We took a break from the park in the early afternoon so we could walk across the land bridge to Bar Island, which is only available for a couple of hours each day during low tide. It was fun to experience the “thrill” of potentially getting stranded on an island, though of course we didn’t stay long enough for it to actually be a concern. It did remind me a bit of a zombie movie with everyone aimlessly wandering about…

Food

Geddy’s—Thank goodness my mom made us reservations both nights in Bar Harbor because the restaurants were packed. We saw so many people turned away for hours-long waits. The best way I can describe Geddy’s is like an ocean-themed dive bar—it was dark, cramped, and kitschy but in a very fun way. This was another place that had naturally gluten-free batter, so I got a fried fish sandwich! It was so yummy and such a treat since I normally can’t eat fried food.

Side Street Café—At this point I was starting to get a little tired of seafood, so I was thankful to have reservations at a place known for their mac and cheese. They had GF pasta (and admittedly, I still got shrimp on mine) and it was absolutely delicious.

Bangor

On our drive from Bar Harbor to Lincoln, New Hampshire, we took an indirect route so we could stop in Bangor, Maine, specifically for a 2.5-hour Stephen King tour. Bangor is the inspiration for the fictional town Derry that is featured in several of King’s works. Our tour was through SK Tours, a husband-wife duo who decked out their property with a ton of Stephen King props and recreations, including a Pet Sematary, a life-size Pennywise (their property just happens to have a real sewer opening!), and the car from Christine. The tour guide’s enthusiasm was infectious and we got to visit lots of places that either inspired King or are featured in movie adaptations, such as Mount Hope Cemetery (where he got the names Georgie and Carrie; it was also included in a scene of Pet Sematary). We even got to see Stephen King’s old house. Unfortunately, our van nearly broke down during the tour (!!!) and we had to end early. The owners handled the situation very well, though—and I would absolutely recommend this tour if you are in the area (or, like us, a couple hours from Bangor—it was definitely worth the extra driving).

Like I said, I can’t wait to go back to Maine. Maybe I would visit in the summer next time and try my luck at a whale watching tour. We could have done whale watching this trip, but October is the final month of the season as the whales start to migrate south. I didn’t want to invest all that time and money if the chances of seeing them weren’t that great! It just gives me a good reason to go back. I also read about a lobster festival in the summer that I just might have to go to.

Please let me know if you have any questions (or corrections) regarding today’s post! And if you missed them, check out the other blog posts about my trip:

Fall New England Road Trip: Itinerary and Details

Fall New England Road Trip: New Hampshire and Vermont

Fall New England Road Trip: Salem, MA

 

Miles of smiles,

Grace