Our First Trip to Maine Won't be our Last

I distinctly remember a paper that I had to write about where I might see myself living in 10 years for my very first creative writing class in college. I chose the Maine coast, even though I had never actually been there. Fast forward 25 years and I finally visited Maine. Not sure why it took me this long to get there. Pulling up to the Nubble Lighthouse, in the photos above and below, was a surreal experience - like a photograph coming to reality right before my eyes.




We chose the seaside town of Ogunquit - mostly because of its proximity to both the Nubble Lighthouse in York, Maine and Perkins Cove - 2 places I have seen photographed over and over and seem to represent that quintessential Maine charm. Plus, this area is only a little over a 4 hour drive from our house in NJ. The area did not disappoint.

Of course we ate our fair share of lobster - steamed lobster, lobster rolls, stuffed lobster - lobster never tasted better than while overlooking a cove full of lobster boats at sunset.

The view from where we stayed, Terrace by the Sea, was beautiful. We ate breakfast on the porch overlooking the ocean each morning. The beach in Ogunquit is unique to Maine in that is very sandy (many of the beaches there are rocky) and it was fascinating to watch the tide come in and out each day, revealing a huge stretch of beach at low tide and a river at high tide. It was very hot while we were there and we ended up spending more time at the beach than I thought we would.

There is a cliff walk called the Marginal Way that leads from Ogunquit to Perkins Cove and walking along this path was certainly a highlight. Our two youngest boys joined us on this trip while our oldest stayed home to work and take care of our dogs, who were missed terribly. Next time, when we explore a new area of Maine, I might check out Air B&B for a rental that would let us bring the dogs with us. So many places seemed extremely dog friendly, which made us miss them even more.

Perkins Cove was exactly what you would think a New England fishing village should look like.

Of course we enjoyed driving around and looking at the houses. I think, perhaps, the house below was just the dream house I wrote about in that long ago college essay.

I'm currently working on my bucket list of lighthouses to visit. And I hear they decorate the Nubble for Christmas. I mean, I just have to see Maine with snow too! Have you visited any great ones? Please let me know so I can add to my list. See you next time, Maine!