Day 4 – It was 48 degrees and partly cloudy this morning when we got up. We hate to leave; it’s really nice here, but today we are driving to our land, way down east Maine. We haven’t been there since last August. When we left there last, we’d just had work done on the land to put in a new clearing closer to the cliff’s edge overlooking the water. We’d only been able to camp there two nights to try out the new RV pad before we had to leave.
121 miles (3:50), 29450-29571
Moorings Oceanfront RV Resort: 191 Searsport Avenue, Belfast, ME 04915, (207) 338-6860, www.mooringscamp.com. This is one of our favorite campgrounds & we often stop here on the way to our land. It’s a small campground located very close to Belfast and a short drive to Lincolnville & the ferry to Islesport, Camden, Rockport, Rockland, Camden State Park, etc. We had site #5 last year & site #1 the year before – both front row – and we used the campground as a base when travelling to and from the annual Common Ground Fair in Union one year. Excellent restaurants in Belfast, Rockland & Camden plus art galleries & the Farnsworth Art Museum (with its Wyeth shows) in Rockland. The campground is clean, well-maintained, and quiet. It’s at a lovely setting right on the Penobscot Bay. Front row campsites are overlooking the water & the beach. All sites are a very short walk to the beach and most have a water view; all sites are full hook-up. No tent camping. It’s fairly expensive at high season for one of those front-row campsites, and to get one you must reserve early. This year we had site #20, not front row, but it was cheaper and as it turned out, no one was parked in front of us & we had a great view. $59.95 for one night, early season rate. We will come back again, of course.
We departed at 9:45 a.m. It was a beautiful day, 64 degrees and sunny. We followed Route 1 north and across the Penobscot Bay at Fort Knox & the wonderful Penobscot Narrows Bridge. There’s an elevator at the Bridge up to an observation deck at the top – worth the stop. Then continuing on Route 1 as it heads down east to Ellsworth and Route 3, we stopped for breakfast at Martha’s Diner. We ALWAYS stop for breakfast there – they have a fantastic Crab Quiche, and judging from the crowds of locals (and tourists), the rest of the breakfasts are good, too. Closed on Monday’s, open for breakfast & lunch only. Martha’s Diner has been around for a long time and has quite a following. It’s on Route 3 as you head towards Bar Harbor & Acadia National Park. There are stores & shopping centers lining both sides of the street. It’s in the corner of the shopping center which houses a Wendy’s and is across the street from the LL Bean Outlet in Ellsworth.
We continued meandering along Route 1 after turning off the 3 rather than going into Acadia National Park. (Acadia National Park is a great destination in itself. There is much to do and we’ve spent lots of time there. It can be extremely crowded in the summer. We’ve always preferred the Fall or Spring.) The farther you travel after Acadia and Mount Desert Island, the more rugged & rural it becomes. We took pictures between Belfast and our land of some of the landmarks we’re used to seeing on the way.
Click on any picture to see a slideshow.
Schoodic Peninsula is after Mount Desert Island and parts of it are also Acadia National Park. Gorgeous. Following Route 1, you go through quaint towns where lobstering is the way of life, pass through dense spruce forests, and have ocean views from rocky cliffs. There are rivers and lakes, cranberry & blueberry bogs, and beautiful scenery. You go through Machias, a small town which houses the University of Maine at Machias. Beyond East Machias you can turn right onto Route 191, a two-lane road which goes through the area called the Bold Coast with wonderful hiking trails that culminate on cliffs overlooking the Ocean with the waves crashing below. You drive through the scenic and much-photographed town of Cutler with it’s small harbor and lobster boats. From Cutler you can take a boat to an island to get up close and personal to the Atlantic Puffin. Past Cutler the 191 continues to wind through the trees and you have glimpses of the Ocean beyond. Our land is on a peninsula near here. OR – instead of Route 191, continuing on Route 1 approximately two hours beyond Bar Harbor/Mount Desert Island/Acadia, Route 1 turns northward again. If you continue on, you pass by the turn-off for Route 189 – Lubec and Campobello Island. You can turn right on the 189 and take this road to Dixie Road and turn right again. This takes you to Route 191, by Cutler and the Bold Coast, going the other way back to Machias.
If you continue on Route 189 to Lubec, you will reach another great little town with a charm all its own. There is a bridge in Lubec which crosses over to Campobello Island, New Brunswick, Canada. Bring your passport. There’s the great tour of the Roosevelt Summer Home & gardens, and you can drive the island and get a look at the quaint island towns, stopping to climb on the rocks at the lighthouses, or go whale watching from the Island. The entire area, including the Cobscook Bay and the town of Eastport, are fascinating and incredibly beautiful. A completely different way of life. When camping at Cobscook Bay State Park, between Lubec and Eastport, we discovered this area and fell in love with it.
Our land is off a dirt road on a small peninsula jutting out into the Ocean. It’s not located where the waves crash, but you can hear them. We are on a cliff overlooking a small harbor which leads to the Ocean. The water is deep green, unbelievably beautiful; when the lighting is right, the water is a deep turquoise. The tides are amazing. Being near the Bay of Fundy, the tides vary daily about 20 feet, occasionally as much as 28 feet. Never a dull moment. Bald eagles fly over. We’ve seen two young bears and neighbors have seen moose. It is wild and rugged and so peaceful. There are deep woods and flowering meadows. There’s really not much around there, not many people, just peace & quiet. It can be foggy & cold on our land, and 15 minutes away in Lubec, it might be 80 degrees and clear. They have the most tender, freshest lobster we’ve ever had. Our home away from home.
We arrived at our land at 1:35 p.m., 70 degrees and sunny, and hardly any bugs. Beginning in May and through most of June, black flies can be pretty bad in Maine, some years worse than others. Last year was awful; hopefully this year not so bad. The mosquitoes also arrive & can last thru July. It’s usually foggy and cool in June; we were pleased to have this nice weather. The winter can be rough here & we are always worried about what we’ll find when we first arrive. This year there were two trees down, one large and one medium. Neither blocked the driveway, so we drove straight into the new RV pad. It fared quite well. (Last year a small tree had fallen across the driveway and we had to clean it up before we could get in to park and set up.)
We unpacked and set up camp. Rob put up the screened tent and we went out to sit and view the water from the cliff. So pretty. It’s wonderful to be here. We love the new RV pad and the cats adapted right away. The high was 75 degrees today and it remained sunny. We watched a lobster boat go by. Other than that, we saw and heard no one.