Lobstah This, Lobstah That--Maine
We got an early start on the road to Maine from Massachusetts, but first had to go through New Hampshire. As soon as we crossed the state line into New Hampshire instead of seeing a blue “Visitor Center” sign with an arrow, we saw a blue liquor store sign, which my mom and I both thought was weird. So I looked it up and found out that New Hampshire consumes about twice the amount of alcohol compared to the national average. When we were driving down I-95, we saw liquor and wine outlets galore! Who knew that was a thing? I guess you learn something new everyday.
Only an hour later, we were at our first stop in Maine, Nubble Lighthouse. Nubble is one of Maine’s most photographed lighthouses and I can see why. Surrounded by the powerful waves crashing up on the rocks, it was quite a spectacle. Not to mention our selfie stick almost blew away!
Stop two in Maine was Ogunquit. It is a picturesque town with a trail right along the sea and an abundance of shops. We made a reservation to go out on the sea with a Maine lobster fisherman, see him haul in traps, and learn about lobsters. It was quite informative. I learned how to tell the difference between a male and female lobster as well as the many regulations of lobster fishing in Maine. We hauled four traps and caught eleven lobsters, but only kept one. It is banned to keep female lobsters with eggs and ones that are too short in order to keep the lobster population plentiful. So the fisherman would just chuck the lobster overboard if they didn’t meet regulations. Our guide told us that if you find one to keep in every three traps then it is a good day. No wonder lobster is so expensive.
Our third stop in Maine was the Portland Head Light. We got there around lunchtime and had our first lobster roll and blueberry soda of Maine from a small food truck called “Bite Into Maine”. It was voted best lobster roll and 5 stars from TripAdvisor and I can see why. They had phenomenal service and food. We took our lobster rolls to a nearby patch of grass and sat down to eat overlooking the ocean. I am still dreaming about that buttery, toasted, lobster filled roll. Yummmmm. Once we finished eating we walked to the iconic lighthouse and again saw the waves collide with the shoreline. I honestly think I could stare at the crashing waves all day long.
Our fourth stop in Maine was Freeport. Freeport is where the original L.L. Bean store is located. I didn’t know it was possible to be this overwhelmed. The Freeport L.L. Bean store was literally as big as 2 to 3 Walmart stores. It took over the city of Freeport. The fun part about the L.L. Bean store was the giant bean boot in front of the store. I have never “bean” so excited!
Our fifth stop in Maine was Camden. It is a city along the coast on the way to Bar Harbor. We ate dinner at a place called Cappy’s, which overlooked the harbor. Now for the mistake we made. We ordered a quesadilla with lobster, which we thought was pricey at a whopping $18.99, but decided our goal was to have lobster in as many forms as we could while in Maine so decided to give it a whirl and order it. However, once we got the bill it was $29.99 for the quesadilla. Oops. Turns out it costs $18.99 to ADD lobster to your quesadilla. Never making that mistake again.. Although it was fully loaded with lobster and quite delicious.
Our final stop for the day was Bar Harbor, where we will be staying the next 2 nights. We arrived right at sunset so we raced to the waterfront to take pictures and then we headed to our hotel. The hotel had a fire going out back with free S’mores, so we of course stuffed ourselves with even more food.
xoxo,
Em