Catching up on our Maine Trip in 2016

Ok.  I'm trying to catch up on my trips.  We took a few in 2016.  I figured I better get them on the blog before I start our Alaska trip!

So let's take a step back in time to 2016...June to be exact. My sister invited us to go to Maine with her and her husband for a week.  How could we say no?!  She booked a beach house in Saco, Maine. It was such a relaxing, fun trip.  My sister and I rarely get away together, so this was a real treat!

This was the beach house that we stayed in. It was very beautiful inside.  The beach was gorgeous...the water cold...at first...then interestingly, as you walked in a little deeper...it wasn't as cold.

Like my blue toes?  

View from master bedroom window.

My sister insisted that we take the master bedroom.  The view was so peaceful.  At 4:30 every morning, the sun would come out and I would be up...not tired at all.  I felt very rested the entire week even though my sleep schedule was slightly off.  Do you think it was Maine or the beach?  I'm still not sure.  

This is my beautiful sister, Brigette, enjoying the sea breeze and relaxing.  If anyone deserves a vacation, it's her!  She works too hard.  She gets it from our Dad.  I didn't inherit that trait...just kidding.  She works much harder than I do though.  Like I said, it was nice to get away together.

  

Saco, Maine:

Saco is a very quaint, small, picturesque town.  We enjoyed our walks into town and I ran...ok, jogged...almost every morning before anyone got up.  Brigette enjoyed the opportunity to sleep in. My body doesn't allow that much to my husband's dismay on many Saturday mornings.

Heading into town

Portland, Maine:

We took a trip to Portland with the intent to go whale watching. Brigette has gone several times, but hasn't seen a whale. I told her I was her lucky charm.

Our whale watching boat

 Portland is a pretty neat town to walk around.  They had a festival going on the day we went.  The port was very pretty with lots of ships in the dock.  

We saw some beautiful lighthouses on our way out to the ocean.  I'm not sure how far out we went.  I think we could still see the shore way off in the distance.  The guide said we needed to go out far enough into deep water to see the whales.

We did see a small whale off in the distance.  Brigette said it counts!  I wished we had seen a larger one or one closer.  But hopefully next time she goes, she'll see a bigger one.

We also went kayaking in the Scarborough Marsh. We went maybe a mile I think, but it felt like five against the tide!  It was a lot of fun. It was my first time and I had a hard time steering my kayak.  My poor husband had to help me a few times.

Acadia National Park:

Brigette and Randy took a day to themselves.  I decided I wanted to drive up to Acadia National Park which was several hours away.  On our way up the coast of Maine, we saw Penobscot Narrows Bridge and Observatory along with Fort Knox historic landmark in Prospect, Maine.  So we stopped.  

At 447 feet tall, the observatory is the tallest bridge observatory in the world. The elevator ride takes only a minute to get you to the top.  Once at the top and the doors open, you see the Maine countryside in full 360 degree views!  Of course I wanted to go up!

Did I mention that my husband is afraid of heights?  I guess afraid isn't the right word.  He doesn't care for heights.  But being a good sport, he went up the elevator with me. 

I think he actually enjoyed it up there!  

The exit sign looks wrong above him, but it does have an arrow pointing to the left!

We finally made it to Acadia National Park.  We drove around and enjoyed the sights.  We walked along the trail and looked out over the ocean.  This is almost as far north as you can go in the US on the east coast.  And it was so peaceful!  That's what hit me the most about Maine.  It was peaceful and relaxing.

The breeze coming up off the Atlantic Ocean was pretty chilly!  By the time we were done, we were both very cold.  There were people up there in shorts!  I guess it was summer for them.  But we were very cold!

We ended our day in Bar Harbor, Maine.  We were on the hunt for some good lobster!  A local pointed us to a very good restaurant right on the dock.  We ate on the dock, but it was so cold that they put up a tent like canopy with heaters above our heads.  The lobster was fabulous!  They were pulling the lobster in from the boats and cooking them right there on the dock!  Gives a new meaning to "Live Maine Lobster!"

We started comparing all of the lobster bisque, clam chowders and lobster rolls to see who had the best.  Curtis and I loved the lobster and the clam chowder we had at this restaurant. I think the name of the restaurant was Stewman's.  They did allow dogs on the dock too. 

We had a very nice day trip together.  We definitely want to go back to Maine.  There is a lot to see and do. Maybe we should start a bucket list....