Waking up on our last morning, we felt tired but achieved a grueling day of driving 500 miles through New Hampshire and Vermont. Today it was decided that we would take it slow, no rush. What’s the point of rushing, when you can sit back, enjoy a nice cup of Starbucks and take a wonderful drive to Maine.
Maine was the 6th state in New England to visit and my 29th state overall. Since we weren’t in a rush we decided against taking highways to Portland and let Google guide us through the rural countryside. Google said it was going to take us about 40 extra minutes but we ended up taking some really unique pictures in towns filled with changing lives and New England styled homes. Today, more than ever, the weather felt very Maine with light rain and fog, the type of fog that you relate to scary movies. For the 2 hour drive to Maine the rain never let up but at least it wasn’t down-pouring.
From Epping, New Hampshire we headed north to Dover, New Hampshire a small city just south of the Maine border. There was some sort of festival going on and the streets were surprisingly crowded. Once past Dover we crossed the Salmon Falls River and entered Maine. The entrance into Maine isn’t very impressive and the only way we noticed was the road signs changing from green to white. Near this golf coast there is a sign that read “Welcome to Maine, The way life should be.”
From South Berwick, Maine we kept heading northeast to North Berwick and then over to Wells and Kennebunkport. At Kennebunkport we felt we were in a very Maine city with the architecture and the salty smell of the ocean nearby. Signs for crab and lobster in every city we passed, some stereotypes are true! I actually had the inclination to stop and check out the city but felt the need to keep going north to Wood Island, where there was suppose to be a lighthouse.
On ME-9 we continued north until we hit this small peninsula on the southern end of Saco Bay. From here we had out first glance of the ocean and the feeling was powerful. I grew up thinking of this image I had of Maine and this scene felt like Maine. The salty breeze with the ocean fog was beautiful and we took several pictures by the coast. Technically we weren’t even suppose to be there, as there was no public parking, but we improvised like we always do. We came to that coast line to try to see this lighthouse that was supposedly supposed to be there but we couldn’t see it. The section of the beach that it was probably possible to see the lighthouse was owned privately and not in the mood to trespass we decided to go on the other side of the Saco Bay.
Driving to the other point of Saco Bay took around 15 minutes and there were still more privately owned property, making it pretty hard to see the lighthouse. We got a view but it wasn’t what we expected and it was rainy with fog making the visibility even worse. One thing I have to say is that in October there are very few tourists around if any. We felt that the coast was all ours to discover.
Disappointed with the first lighthouse we decided to move north to lighthouses that are well established. About an hours drive north of Wood Island lies Cape Elizabeth, with two famous lighthouses. Cape Elizabeth Lighthouse on the western end is now part of a private home. There is another lighthouse, hence why they call the lighthouses Two Lights, on the eastern end at Dyer Cove and that lighthouse is still active. When we arrived at the lighthouses we went to the active one first.
Because the area was foggy the lighthouse was operating as normal with a fog sounder. It was windy, chilly but the views were really amazing and we probably took some of the most scenic pictures. The rocks were this strong black color that were placed in this diagonal to the ocean. The waves came crashing in all around.
After taking some pictures and GoPro videos we then head over to the other part of the other lighthouses which is located in a state park. We actually couldn’t see the lighthouse and wondered where it was. The state park is on this high cliff with some jagged rocks below and was very breezy. We didn’t stay too long because we were hungry and decided to go back to the other lighthouse to eat at this place called The Lobster Shack.
The Lobster Shack is this unique restaurant that overlooks Dyer Cove and the Atlantic. They sale whole lobsters to eat as well as lobster sandwiches and other types of seafood. It was somewhat expensive but well worth the price since we knew the lobster had to be fresh. We both ordered a lobster sandwich that came in a hot dog bun and the lobster already cut up. Truly one of the few times I really enjoyed lobster.
From Cape Elizabeth we drove north for 30 minutes until we hit Maine’s oldest active lighthouse, the Portland Head Light. Out of all the lighthouses we saw in Maine, this was by far the most scenic and the most visited. The Portland Head Light is located in a park with the lighthouse containing a gift shop and a museum. We picked up some postcards for our family and decided to not do any of the tours. The grounds were packed with tourists from Portland, Maine who we learned were on a cruise.
From Portland Head Light we were only about 15 minutes from downtown Portland so we decided to drive over. The weather still hadn’t let up and we now had a steady rain with fog. In Portland we tried to circle the city to find a post office but realized it was Sunday and that we couldn’t send our postcards. So we drove to the “cute” area of Portland, where all the main shopping, tourism and the best architecture were located.
We parked our car, put some coins in the meter, and walked around for about an hour exploring the city. Portland actually felt lively, largely because of the cruise ships docked. We actually enjoyed this city a lot and it did have some charm to it with cobble-stoned street and very New England like bricking. We grabbed some coffee and walked around the city snapping some photos. Honestly I have the most fun with this type of low-key setting.
Done with Portland we got back into our car and this time went on I-95 and paid the toll to get back to New Hampshire. We felt like we had seen it all and were content with going back to the hotel to relax for the entire night.
New England was a fantastic place and I’m happy that we decided to go when the autumn leaves change. It made the trip feel more like we were in New England and the trip reminded us a lot about nature and seasonal travel. What I like about this trip is that we didn’t set very many expectations and I think this is what made it more enjoyable. We kept it in the moment, and there was very little pressure to do one thing over another. This was a perfect 4 day weekend get a way trip and is highly recommended from me.
The next morning we got up at 3 in the morning and drive 2 hours south back to Providence, Rhode Island. We caught our morning flight at 7 and we were back in Chicago before most people were eating breakfast. Another trip down. Make sure to check out my earlier posts about all the New England states!
images by: shawnvoyage
