We are loving our time in Maine. Every time I am here, I get all the feels. Maine, for me, is the perfect blend of piney woods, sand, and sea. When I was growing up, my parents always planned two vacations – a week at the ocean, and a week in the mountains. Mother loved the sea – long walks on the beach, collecting shells. And Daddy loved the cool, fresh mountain air and jeep drives on the trails. So, I feel them both with me here in Maine. I think they would love it here.
This past week has been fun exploring parts of Maine we have never seen. So here’s a recap:
Slow Maine Mornings
Click the pic to see the listing on VRBO
We are staying at The Castaway Cottage in Addison, Maine. It’s a small two-story home right on the harbor, nestled among piney woods and a quiet neighborhood with a mix of summer homes and year-round Mainers. Mr. Twist found our home-away-from-home on VRBO here. It has all the comforts of home. It’s been a 5-star experience!
The weather is cool at night, so we’ve been sleeping with the windows open. As a result, we’ve been waking up a lot earlier than usual to the sounds of birds, which is such a wonderful feeling. We have a fun, free app on our phone from Cornell University called the Merlin Bird ID. You can record the sound of bird calls, and it immediately analyzes the sounds to tell you what birds you’re hearing from. If you love birding, add the app to your phone and download this checklist from Maine Audubon to track all the birds you’re searching for.
After we enjoy our coffee in the garden, I head down to the beach during low tide to look for shells. The most popular shells in northeast Maine are periwinkles, clams, mussels, scallops, and seaglass. Technically, not a shell, seaglass is bits or broken bottles or pottery smoothed by decades of tumbling in the waves. Here’s a fun fact – each piece of seaglass takes 20-40 years to form, nature’s way of turning trash into treasure. I’ve been curating quite a collection of seashells to take home.
Hiking – Where the Views are Worth Every Step
Just up the street from the cottage is the Ingersoll Point Reserve with over three miles of walking trails engulfed by the lush green of a forest carpeted with moss, lichen, sedges, and other plant species. It was breathtaking. All you could hear was the sound of the quaking Aspen trees, birds, and the breeze. The forest floor felt like a springboard with countless layers of pine needles, leaves, and moss beneath your feet.
Our host left us an extensive list of other trails to explore making the location of the cottage perfect for accessing lots of local flora and fauna.
Live Like a Local – Festivals, community activities, and small town life.
One of the best ways to have fun is to immerse yourself in the local flavor. Our host has been super helpful in texting us updates about things she finds out. Just up the street, the community gathered at the Cape Split School House for a showing of the movie Grease. They served hot dogs and strawberry milkshakes. It was fun visiting with the residents, and I couldn’t tell you the last time I saw Grease – but I remembered the lyrics for sure!
We also went to the Machias Wild Blueberry Festival in Machias, Maine. It’s a project of Centre Street Congregational Church, UCC, which rolls out the blue carpet each August with crafts, food, entertainment, contests, and all things blueberry. Machias is on the Downeast part of Maine’s beautiful, rugged coast, two hours from Bangor, about an hour and a half from Bar Harbor, and a little more than an hour from St. Stephen, New Brunswick. From whale-watching to lighthouses, from hiking and kayaking to eagles and lobster rolls, their little corner of Maine has a lot to offer. Mr. Twist enjoyed a nice slice of Maine blueberry pie, and I picked up a few Christmas gifts from the local vendors. We even enjoyed watching a blueberry pie-eating contest. Apparently, the secret tip to winning is to start with eating the crust first.
Lobster – Crack, dip, and savor Maine’s Crown Jewel.
Our Lobster Dinner
Mr. Twist and Bub the Lobsterman
As soon as we book our annual summer trek to Maine, Mr. Twist starts talking about all the lobster he’s going to eat. And, he makes good on that – as of this writing, he’s at a Masonic Lobster Picnic!
Just up the road is Caler Cove Lobster Company. On Monday morning, we gave Losterman, Bub, a phone call, and that evening he had two fresh lobsters from the boat ready for pick up. Watch my Instagram reel here for the directions on how to steam a perfect lobster every time. This coming week, we are making a lobster bisque, so stick around for that!
One last thing, have you signed up to receive a postcard from Maine? If you love to receive postcards as much as I do, I have a few more cards left if you’d like to be added to the list here. I will send you a custom postcard from Addison, Maine! I’ve been enjoying writing each postcard while I enjoy the sunsets – they are next level! I took this shot last night when we got home from a Sunday drive. See you next Sunday!
Hospitality is in my DNA. I founded Home with a Twist, a daughter’s twist on her mother’s traditions, in memory of my mother to celebrate her life and the gifts she shared with me. Mother loved to celebrate life’s occasions – big and small.
