A Journal of Days: Maine! Bar Harbor to York Harbor

Acadia coastline

September is a wrap! (I am beginning to be alarmed at how quickly time passes. Someone needs to study this. I think time is speeding up.)

September saw us off on our big, beautiful trip to Maine. It was wonderful! We planned it months ago so when the departure date drew near all we needed to do was pack and go. We made this trip with our friends, Tim and Kay. Tim has always wanted to see Maine and I am ALL about Maine, so his wish was the prompt and I put it into motion. We divided the trip into three sections that would allow us to explore the coast from Bar Harbor down to York Harbor. We flew to Bangor, rented a car and drove to our first VRBO in Bar Harbor. We spent three days exploring a ninety mile radius of Bar Harbor with the highlight of this leg being Acadia. Next we drove to Boothbay Harbor to our second Airbnb and did the same, driving and exploring for three days. A highlight of this portion of the trip was our visit to the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens and a drive to Freeport to go to LL Bean. Finally, we drove to York Harbor where we stayed at the York Harbor Inn. York Harbor is dear to my heart because we lived there briefly in the late 1980's and our second daughter was born there. We return to this lower section of Maine as often as we can. This leg of the trip was all about relaxing and visiting favorite places.

The view from the deck of our first rental house

It was fun to explore the beautiful rugged coastline of Maine. Everywhere we turned there was beauty. We walked a lot, ate a lot, drove a lot (over one thousand miles), and rested a little. Kay and I visited every quilt shop that happened to be along our way down the coast. (Sew Chateau in Lisbon Falls was my favorite and Fiddlehead Artisan Supply in Belfast was also fantastic.) Our husbands were gracious and happy to accommodate our stops as we were with their requests to stop at three Irish pubs and one brewery. We also stopped at every antique store we passed, sometimes making u-turns if need be. It was a treat to see shops full of actual antiques. I am still excited to think of all the beautiful antiques we saw. It was a good thing we were flying home or I may have been more tempted to take stuff home with me. As it was, I used my backpack to carry home a piece of Beaumont salt glazed pottery stamped with York, Maine. I cushioned it with a bunch of fat quarters of fabric I purchased. Kay always keeps an eye out for salt glazed the pottery for me since she knows I collect it. She spotted this piece in a shop in Camden. It was a great find for $25. Camden was a darling, vibrant town to walk around in and have our lunch.

Beautiful hydrangeas everywhere

Actual antiques inside!

Striking stand-outs of the week were the amazing hydrangeas we saw everywhere. They were giants compared to how they seem to grow where we live. Also, the cool, fresh air of Maine was invigorating to our heat-weary souls. We had a relentless, hot, dry summer at home and the cool air was a balm to our lungs and health. We were also treated to a glimpse of fall color in the trees. It lifted our spirits to think of the approach of fall when we returned home. We also enjoyed the lighthouses we visited and The Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens near Boothbay Harbor are a huge stand-out.

The one down side of our trip was the crowds of people everywhere, especially in Acadia and downtown Bar Harbor. I guess we expected September to be less crowded since schools were in session, but so did everyone else. So, everywhere we went there were lots of older visitors like ourselves.

Ending our trip at the York Harbor Inn was special for me. We were young and broke when we first lived in York Harbor all those years ago. Back then, with a toddler and baby in car seats, whenever I drove past the York Harbor Inn I could only imagine what it would be like to stay there. Thirty-nine years later we got to make the dream a reality. There is a beautiful park overlooking the harbor across from the inn and we used our last two days to relax a little more. We visited the iconic Nubble Light and Goldenrod Kisses, ate lobster overlooking Long Sands Beach, took local walks and ate our meals in the pub at the inn. Our final drive was up to Portland for our flight home. It was certainly a memorable vacation and it met all of our expectations. I am sure we will go back again if we are able. We would prefer to drive and take more time to linger at our favorite places.

The first rental house had beautifully terraced gardens down to the water line.

We walked on the 3/4 mile long breakwater to see this Rockland Breakwater Lighthouse. I did not like this walk. The cracks between the boulders were large and the moving water on either side made me dizzy. But it was a neat place, nevertheless.