Maine: Lobster Challenge

That's my 2.6-pound lobster on the right. The other is Jane's 1.5-pounder. Both had shells 
so hard that we had to take them back to the counter at the Five Islands Lobster dock 
to have someone crack them with a hammer. The steamed clams, by the way, were
as excellent as the lobsters.

There are any number of reasons to visit Maine in the warm months: hikes in evergreen forests and along rocky coves, souvenir and antiques shops, the L.L. Bean Outlet in Freeport, and, of course, lobster.  The later was why Jane and I added Maine to our July 2022 trip, our first air travel since the beginning of the pandemic.  We drove up to Maine almost every summer when we lived in New York and we loved both the lobsters and the relatively low prices at Maine's lobster docks. 

Red's Eats in Wiscasset may be the most celebrated lobster roll stand, but Five Islands Lobster in Georgetown (on islands off Bath) must be the best place for steamed whole lobster. When we arrived in Maine on Sunday July 17, we sped from the airport in Portland straight to Five Islands for dinner. Since the biggest lobsters were sold out, we shared three, each a bit more than a pound. Sure, lobster rolls and even hamburgers are available at the gray snack building, but we went to the red shack where whole lobsters are steamed and sold. Clams, corn on the cob and red potatoes are also available steamed. 

 After our first-night dinner at the dock, we drove back up the road to check in at Grey Havens, a large shingled inn where we've stayed several times before. In fact, the current operator is the third owner who has hosted us there. We've noticed changes with each new owner. When the original owners left, a lot of local art and cool early 20th-century furnishings disappeared. The second owers filled the place with vintage but nondescript furniture. When we returned this year after a gap of at least 15 years, two big changes were that the dining room converts some evenings into a fine dining restaurant and that freshly made blueberry muffins were not included in the continental breakfast. One day (of our four-night stay) there were biscuits with whipped cream and strawberries. Tasty, but who comes to Maine for strawberries?  Blueberries were being sold at stands up and down the coast. We ate at the restaurant, Blue, on a Wednesday when the lobster dock was closed and I had a decent seafood chowder.  Our best non-lobster dinner was nearby at the Osprey on Monday night when rain closed the lobster dock. On the plus side, when the bar is open at Grey Havens, the mixologists know what they're doing. Our turret room, with windows on three sides, gave us plenty of ventilation, important since the inn is not air-conditioned. 

Between meals, we went to nearby Reid State Park and we drove to Bath and Boothbay Harbor to browse the shops.  After Maine, we flew to New York, visiting Jane's sister on Long Island and spending a couple of sweltering days in Manhattan, Next we picked up a rental car and drove to Maryland to see old friends, and then flew to Milwaukee to see son Kyle and his wife, Meg. We flew home to San Diego on August 1. This little adventure has whetted our appetite for travel and we're planning more trips.

Here are some photos from our time in Maine:

Maine's rugged coast is catnip for photographers. This scene is near Five Islands Lobster.

Recreational boats tie up near Five Islands Lobster.

The gray building has lobster rolls, french fries, hamburgers and other offerings. The red building
behind it houses the steamer and it's where you go for whole lobsters. 
Below, an employee lowers a bag containing a lobster into the steamer.

How fresh are the lobsters?  Here they are coming off a 
boat at Five Islands, though these are destined to go
elsewhere. Maine, obviously, supplies Maine lobsters
to the entire United States.

The rocky shore at Reid State Park gives way to a long sandy beach.

When my family visited Reid State Park a couple 
of decades ago, only pre-teen son Kyle would
get into the water, which barely reaches
60 degrees Fahrenheit at the height of summer.

Even if the water is cold, people still flock to these beaches. L.L. Bean's Beach Box
uses an honor system to loan out beach toys, beach chairs and umbrellas.

The sun can be very bright, so Reid State Park provides
sunscreen for its visitors.

No one expects to hurt themselves at the beach,
but the park has first-aid supplies ready to go.

Shallow coves at Reid State Park give cold North Atlantic waters a chance to warm up.

Bath is an old shipbuilding town on the mainland,
about 20 minutes from Georgetown.

Boothbay Harbor is one of Mains's most touristy towns. It's about 40 minutes north of Bath by car.

Josephine Newman Audubon Sanctuary offers
shady trails for hiking near Grey Havens.

A continental breakfast is served daily to guests
in the Grey Havens dining room. Several evening
a week it becomes the restaurant Blue.

The porch at Grey Havens invites guests to drink in the view of islands and the open Atlantic.

Our room (shown below) was in the second-floor of the turret on the right.